Vista Properties Sues Co-Working Tenant Salt Flats

A high-tech Fulton Market coworking space is in hot water after its landlord, Vista Properties, sued over late rent payments.

Vista sued Salt Flats Innovation House for breach of contract, alleging Salt Flats owes the landlord over $735,000 tied to its 36,000-square-foot lease at 113 May Street, according to the lawsuit filed Dec. 11 in Cook County.

Salt Flats used most of its $1 million security deposit to cover multiple rent payments, according to the suit. The lease terms allowed that but also stated that Salt Flats would need to later replenish any funds taken from the security deposit, the lawsuit states.

When that didn’t happen, Vista sued Salt Flats and its CEO Rick McNabb, who named himself a guarantor on the lease.

Salt Flats signed a lease with Vista in 2018 at a base rent of $81,000 per month. It increased by about $2,000 per year. Vista and Salt Flats did not respond to requests for comment.

Tenants at coworking space include ARCO Murray Construction and Sybridge Digital, a digital engineering company formerly known as Fast Radius.

First-year membership agreements for coworking tenants range from $11,000 to $46,000 per month, according to the lawsuit.

The first floor functions as a traditional office space, while the second floor is described as a “production space,” equipped with 3D printers and other specialized tools.

Salt Flats is not the first coworking space in Chicago to hit dire straits in recent months, amid the city’s pandemic-fueled office downturn.

Coworking company Firmspace abruptly closed its 34,000 square-foot Loop location last month after failing to renegotiate the terms of its lease, Bisnow reported. The landlord, Moceri + Roszak, is suing Firmspace for $2 million. Firmspace’s lease was set to end in April 2036 but it had the option to terminate earlier.

Representatives of Firmspace and Mocer + Roszak did not respond to requests for comment.

Even the biggest players are not immune to the office market’s woes. WeWork sought bankruptcy protection last month as it aims to restructure leases with landlords across the nation.