June 29, 2020
Twain closed on its first two ground lease capital transactions in June 2020. The projects, known as the Beaumont building and the Lindell building, are both located in St. Louis, MO.
Ground leases offer property owners an opportunity to finance development projects or reposition existing assets by entering into sale and leaseback agreements. Property owners receive a lump sum payment for a portion of the value of the ground and current or future improvements. Further, property owners retain ownership and operational rights to their current or future improvements while making ground lease payments to Twain.
Twain provided $5.4 million in ground lease capital to the historic Beaumont Telephone Exchange Building. The 76,000 square-foot building will be transformed into a mixed-use apartment and commercial building. The residential component will include 72 apartments with community amenities and storage units. The 11,494 square feet of commercial space will consist of retail and co-working tenants and feature a lower level “Maker Space” for artists. Additionally, Twain is financing over $8 million in federal and state historic tax credits. Construction began in late 2019 and is expected to be fully completed by March 2021.
Twain provided $7.8 million in ground lease capital to the Lindell building, located in Midtown St. Louis. The current four-story office building will be demolished in order to construct a new student housing complex. Upon completion, the new building will offer 79 residential units. The building will feature a number of shared amenities including club room with kitchen and big screen TV, study space with conference rooms, fitness room with state-of-the-art equipment, elevated outdoor courtyard, and more. Construction is expected to begin in June of 2020 and will be completed by August 2021.
“Twain is thrilled to partner with these two exciting projects as we kick off our ground lease offering,” said Will Purdy, Director of Business Development at Twain. “We are especially proud that both projects are underway in our hometown of St. Louis. We expect that the Lindell building will be a wonderful option for student housing and we look forward to the restoration of the historic Beaumont building.”