Venable Center in downtown Durham sells for $27.3M
The historic Venable Center building in downtown Durham has changed hands for more than $27 million.
Federal Capital Partners (FCP) — who bought the former tobacco building for $18 million in 2016 — sold the property to a group made up of Wheelock Street Capital, SLI Capital and Trinity Capital Advisors. FCP announced the sale on Monday.
The price of sale was not disclosed, but the building sold for $27.3 million on July 20, according to county records.
The sale comes shortly after FCP submitted plans to the city that would potentially double the amount of office space on the 3.76-acre property.
In April, Federal Capital Partners submitted revised plans to the Durham City-County Planning Department for a four-story building on what is now a surface parking lot. The plans were designed by Duda|Paine Architects of Durham.
In its statement, FCP called those plans part of its efforts to reposition the property to allow for additional development potential.
“FCP is very pleased with the successful execution of our business plan for Venable Center and believe this to be a terrific outcome for all of the parties involved,” said FCP Senior Vice President Erik Weinberg in the statement. “We continue to view the Triangle as one of the most exciting markets in which to invest and look forward to additional business in the region.”
Bryan Kane, managing partner of Raleigh-based SLI Capital, said the plan is to expand and add density to the property, especially given the low vacancy rates in downtown Durham.
Downtown Durham currently has a vacancy rate of 2.2 percent, one of the lowest rates in the entire Triangle, according to a report released by CBRE on Monday. In total, more than 950,000 square feet of office space is under construction in downtown Durham right now, according to CBRE, including projects like the Durham Innovation District and 555 Mangum.
“In my opinion, the downtown Durham market continues to show demand, which is what made it an appealing investment for us,” Kane said. “When you look at the buildings being built or coming available in this sub-market, virtually all the space has been pre-leased. That suggests to me that there is pent-up demand.”
The Venable Center is SLI Capital’s first investment since launching late last year.
The center’s three buildings, which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, include office, retail and lab space. The building’s largest tenant is Precision Biocsciences.
Parts of the building date to 1905, but in its original heyday, the building was the home to the Venable Tobacco Co., whose markings are still on the building. Scientific Properties renovated the building in 2006.
Scot Humphrey, Ryan Clutter, Chris Lingerfelt and Zack Drozda of HFF represented FCP in the sale.
This story was originally published July 23, 2018 at 9:54 AM.