Wells Fargo leases 71,872 s/f at Lee Farm Corporate Park - Grossman and Summit put property on the market

Danbury, CT With the execution of a long-term lease for 71,872 s/f with Wells Fargo, the class A, 215,000 s/f Lee Farm Corporate Park at 83 Wooster Heights is now 95% leased. Meanwhile, the ownership entity announced that the Lee Farm property is on the market for sale.

Making the announcements were Jake Grossman, co-president of The Grossman Companies, Inc., of Quincy, Mass., and Felix Charney, principal of Summit Development of Southport, Conn. The partnership bought the property in April 2013, when it was 65% leased. Since acquisition, Summit and Grossman have invested significant capital to improve the building including upgrades to the common areas.

Lee Farm Corporate Park, 83 Wooster Heights - Danbury, CT

Wells Fargo’s space includes offices vacated by GE Capital. Wells Fargo Bank is the third largest in the United States by assets and the largest by market capitalization. Handling lease negotiations on behalf of the landlord were Cushman & Wakefield leasing directors Kathleen Fazio, Brian Scruton and Meredith Siburn, all of the Stamford office. Representing the tenant was Paul Kauffman, managing director of JLL’s Stamford office.

Having completed their business plan, the partnership has engaged Jeff Dunne and Steve Bardsley of CBRE’s Stamford office to sell the property to investors seeking a well-located class A building with a top notch tenant roster including IMS Health, Navigator Management, Lenovo, Regus and Comcast (in addition to Wells Fargo).

Dunne said, “After a renovation of much of the common areas, ownership has brought the building to 95% occupancy with an average lease term of over 6.5 years. I expect these dynamics will play well to both equity investors and debt providers.”

Lee Farm is a five-story office building ideally situated at the intersection of I-84 and U.S. Rte. 7. It is considered Danbury’s premier office environment. It is located across from the Danbury Municipal Airport and the Danbury Fair Mall and offers panoramic views of the region. With on-site property management and ample parking, the property has numerous amenities including a café, a fitness center and a conference center. It has earned an admirable Energy Star rating.

In the last three years, The Grossman Companies and Summit Development have partnered in the acquisition of 10 commercial properties in Connecticut. 

The Grossman Companies, Inc., is a full-service real estate firm that is actively involved in the acquisition, development, management and brokerage of commercial investment real estate. The family business, with New England roots darting back to 1895, has built a reputation for investing in under-achieving properties and repositioning them to create value. It owns a commercial and residential real estate portfolio in excess of three million square feet in southern New England.

For 34 years, Summit Development has specialized in opportunistic and distressed real estate investments with a focus on redeveloping and repositioning undervalued assets. The firm has completed 95 deals encompassing 5.5 million s/f in three states.