Brokers hired to fill Electric Works
By Sherry Slater | The Journal Gazette
Two brokerage firms have been selected to find and sign future tenants for Electric Works, officials announced Thursday.
RTM Ventures, the partnership behind the $248 million first phase in redevelopment of the former General Electric campus, is seeking a mix of business, education, arts and other organizations to take up residence.
The Zacher Co., a Fort Wayne firm founded by Al Zacher, will handle local and regional leasing deals. The Indianapolis office of JLL, a global commercial real estate services firm, will steer national leasing agreements.
The brokers, who will coordinate their efforts, are also expected to work closely with the region's economic development professionals when wooing tenants.
“I think we've got a unified vision and a unified approach to get there,” said Steve Zacher, president and managing broker of the local firm. “It's a collaboration.”
Zacher described Electric Works as transformative for the community.
“We sort of took an active interest from the beginning and showed up at a number of those public events” when the developers shared their vision, he said.
Traci Kapsalis, senior vice president with JLL's Indianapolis office, said that firm is honored to work on the project.
“Our team recognizes the unique potential of the Electric Works development to attract top firms from around the country to Fort Wayne and the ability to positively impact the regional economy,” she said in a statement. “We're eager to put our experience with creative, mixed-use developments like this to work.”
JLL, which has experience working on projects of this type and size, employs about 90,000 in offices in more than 80 countries.
The site's west campus, which has about 700,000 square feet of available space, will include an innovation district and an indoor food hall and public market. The developers consider local buy-in crucial to the project's success.
Electric Works has announced leases or letters of intent with several organizations in the past few months, including Fort Wayne Metals, Parkview Health, Medical Informatics Engineering, Three Rivers Music Theatre, and Rush Rock Gym, a climbing gym and adventure park.
Leasing announcements already made reflect “the optimism and enthusiasm that this project has already generated,” Zacher said. “I think that's going to continue.”
For leasing information, go to fortwayneelectricworks.com/leasing.
Related Articles
Firms chosen to find future Electric Works tenants from The Journal Gazette
Electric Wornks names leasing partners from Inside INdiana Business
Zacher Co. of Fort Wayne to help lease Electric Works from the News-Sentinel
