Pearl Properties Seeks to Divest Stake in Wacker Drive Offices
A venture of Philadelphia-based Pearl Properties is seeking nearly $21.5 million for its stake in 55 W. Wacker Dr., the former Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois headquarters which was divided into office condominiums more than a decade ago.
Crain’s Chicago Business reported that Pearl’s share of the 224,000-square-foot building includes 14 office suites, the building’s ground-floor retail space and a mix of parking spaces, storage spaces and two building antenna leases.
Despite lingering questions about future demand for downtown office space, Pearl hopes investors will want its sizable slice of a highly visible property as companies start calling employees back to offices and evaluate their post-COVID workspace needs, Crain’s reported.
It’s also playing up the offering as an opportunity to add value by building a new bar or restaurant on the roof, which the current zoning allows, according to marketing materials from Greenstone Partners.
