The $21 million project, formerly known as the Euclid Tech Center, will comprise 128,500 square feet of offices, labs and research space, aimed at growing biomedical and technology companies. Developer Fred Geis said he is talking to several interested tenants and hopes to start construction soon.
Clik here to view.
View full sizeThe $21 million MidTown Tech Park will comprise 128,500 square feet of offices, labs and research space for growing biomedical and technology companies.CLEVELAND -- The state awarded a $3.5 million grant today for an office, laboratory and research building in the Midtown neighborhood, where a developer says he has several interested tenants and is ready to start construction "as soon as possible."
Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, a candidate for the U.S. Senate, announced at a news conference in Cleveland that the state will give its maximum grant for job-ready sites to the MidTown Tech Park, a $21 million project being developed by the Geis Cos. and the Coyne family. Formerly known as the Euclid Tech Center, the project has a new name and a bigger footprint -- 128,500 square feet of offices, labs and research space aimed at growing biomedical and technology companies.
At the southwest corner of Euclid Avenue and East 69th Street, the development site sits in the middle of the burgeoning Cleveland Health-Tech Corridor, a district that stretches from East 22nd Street to University Circle. Last month, the state tagged the corridor as a "Hub of Innovation and Opportunity," a designation that comes with $250,000 and priority status for future state grants and loans.
The grant announced today will help the Geis and Coyne families build their technology center speculatively, creating available space for companies that need to move quickly. But developer Fred Geis said he is talking to several interested tenants, one of whom already has signed a letter of intent to occupy 12,000 square feet of the building. Geis would not identify the tenant.
"We're ready, willing and able to start right now," Geis said, adding that he has two potential tenants who each might take 15,000 square feet if the building is finished this year.
The advertised opening date for the project is May 2011.
Real estate broker Terry Coyne, a partner in the project, said he is marketing the building for lease at $14 per square foot. To offer competitive rents and offset the high cost of land and construction, the developers sought help from several public sources.
Clik here to view.
A rendering of the MidTown Tech Park project.
In addition to the developers' cash and the state grant, the MidTown Tech Park involves a $10.7 million federal, low-interest loan administered by the city of Cleveland; a $240,000 forgivable loan from a city program for vacant properties; and about $4 million in equity created through the sale of New Markets Tax Credits.
The U.S. Treasury awards the federal income tax credits to community development entities, which then participate in deals that can involve selling the tax credits to create equity for projects. Banks and profitable businesses buy the credits to offset what they owe in taxes. The Ohio Finance Fund is allocating tax credits for the MidTown Tech Park, and PNC Financial Services Group Inc. is buying the credits.
The project is one of 14 statewide to receive part of $29.9 million in job-ready sites grants that state officials announced today. The list of winners also included the former NCR Corp. headquarters building in Dayton, which the University of Dayton plans to use for labs and research space.
