December 23, 2014

Laird Norton, Unico team up to buy Stone34 for $70M

Photo courtesy of McKinstry [enlarge]

The price equates to about $543 per square foot.

Laird Norton Properties and Unico Properties have been buying property together for four years, and last week completed one of their biggest deals yet.

The joint venture paid $70.1 million for Stone34, the 129,000-square-foot office building at 3400 Stone Way N. that is headquarters for Brooks Sports.

The price equates to about $543 per square foot. Skanska USA Commercial Development was the seller.

An earlier report in the DJC listed Unico as the buyer based on information in public records.

Nick Pavelich, president of Laird Norton Properties, said Laird Norton provides most of the money in its partnership with Unico. The firms make big decisions together and Unico runs day-to-day operations.

Pavelich said the building's location near the Burke Gilman Trail is fitting since Brooks is a major producer of running and fitness gear. He also said Stone34 is also attractive because of its design and because it is part of the city's Deep Green Pilot Program, which requires energy and water savings of at least 75 percent compared with standard construction.

Skanska developed and built Stone34, and LMN Architects designed it. Stone34 was Skanska's first development project in Seattle.

Other team members include Swift & Co., WSP Flack + Kurtz, McKinstry, KPFF Consulting Engineers, Cochran Inc. and DCI Engineers. Anne Marie Koehler and Erika Koehler at CBRE are handling retail leasing.

The ground floor has 21,000 square feet of retail space. Brooks' flagship store occupies almost half.

Skanska said a Seattle-based company called Miir recently signed a lease. Miir sells bikes and drinking containers like cups, bottles and growlers. Miir's website says for every bike purchased, one is given to a person in need. Sales of drink containers help to fund the construction of wells that provide clean water for people who need it.

Pavelich said retail space in the building is still available for lease.

The building has 8,500 square feet of outdoor gathering space, 218 underground parking spaces, four electric car charging stations and “dozens” of biking stalls, according to a Skanska press release.

Laird Norton's history goes back to 1855 as a logging operation in Minnesota. Since 2010, Laird Norton Properties has invested more than $70 million in nine properties in Seattle, Portland, Denver and Salt Lake City. It has more than $400 million in holdings in western and midwestern states.