MAVD News: 2010

Colorado Real Estate Journal

July 21 - August 3, 2010

MAVD West to develop flex building at Harmony Technology Park

by Jill Jamieson-Nichols

A 50,000-sqaure-foot flex building aimed at keeping big users in Fort Collins is coming to Harmony Technology Park.

Developer MAVD West LLC is so sure of a need for flex space in Fort Collins that it might even build the approximately $6 million building on a speculative basis - something developers haven't done since the economy tanked two years ago.

"This kind of product in our opinion does not exist in Fort Collins, and there's very, very little of it in Northern Colorado. So we think it provides a nice niche to fill a need that we see the market is looking for," said MAVD President Rob Aldrich.

A couple of users – one of which is large enough to kick the project into high gear – are looking at the building, said listing broker Kevin Brinkman of Brinkman Partners. But Brinkman thinks even without a lead user, there's enough demand to lease up the building by completion.

Tenants that delayed real estate moves are coming out of their slumber, and in many cases they're not in position to wait 18 months, hopefully keeping Fort Collins tenants from searching outside the city, Brinkman said. Abound Solar is a prime example of a company that reluctantly left Fort Collins because there was not enough space available or imminent, he noted.

The Harmony Tech building, called 5042 for its address on Technology Parkway, is divisible to 3,500 sf and suitable for larger companies that need 100 percent office space and/or light-assembly and storage. For tenants from 10,000 to 50,000 sf, "There really isn't a building up here that would take care of that need" said Brinkman.

The asking rates - $12 to $13 per sf triple net, which includes $20 to $30 per sf for tenant improvements - should appeal to users that are in Class B or C office space and want to upgrade to a a new building on the Harmony Roda corridor, he added.

MAVD West will build a 50,00-sqaure-foot flex building at Harmony Techology Park in Fort Collins

MAVD West is confident it can finance construction with a conventional loan and private equity, Aldrich said.

Aller-Lingle Architects is designing the building for LEED certification. It will have 18-foot ceiling clearance, ESFT fire sprinklers, and dock-high and drive-in loading.

The developer has carved out two additional sites of about five acres each at Harmony Technology Park for future construction of the same product type.

Harmony Technology Park is a 105-acre business park just west of I-25 on Harmony Road. Custom Blending, a spice and flavorings company, opened a 30,000-sf facility there tow years ago. Integware, a product lifecycle management and software development company for the medical device industry, is under contract to buy approximately five acres in the park for construction of a 60,000- to 70,000-sf building that will employ at least 100 people.

MAVD West's future plans for Harmony Tech Park include two Class A office buildings and retail development along the Harmony Road frontage.

Denver-based MAVD West LLC is a subsidiary of MAVDevelopment, an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based company founded by Michael Vlasic of the Vlasic Foods family. The company buys and develops commercial real estate along the Front Range and in Michigan.

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