Hines Pays AEW Capital $87M for Chicagoland Industrial

Hines is extending its push into industrial real estate with a big purchase that allowed AEW Capital Management to cash out on the pandemic-fueled warehouse boom.

Houston-based Hines paid Boston-based AEW more than $87 million, or $79 per square foot, for the two-building, 1.1 million-square-foot complex at 4700-5000 Proviso Drive in Melrose Park, CoStar reported.

AEW had acquired them in 2015 as part of an eight-property portfolio purchase from TA Realty. That deal valued the warehouses at a little less than $62 million combined.

The fully leased complex is occupied by companies such as Winston Brands, Grand Worldwide Logistics, Diversified Entities and CHEP USA, the outlet said.

The property’s proximity to major expressways, railway access and O’Hare International Airport made it attractive, Hines said.

This move aligns with Hines’ expanded interest in industrial investments, even amid a slowdown in national property sales driven mostly by rising interest rates. In Chicago, industrial property sales for 2023 have reached $2.7 billion, a notable decline from $7 billion in the previous year, and $8.6 billion in 2021, the outlet reported.

Hines has diversified its portfolio in recent years, not only focusing on trophy offices and residential towers but also low-rise properties.

The firm’s other recent Chicago deals include the completion of the 60-story Salesforce Tower along the Chicago River, the acquisition of an apartment tower on the western edge of the Loop business district, and purchases such as a loft office building on Goose Island, an industrial and office campus along the North Branch of the river and the WGN-TV studio on the North Side.

Outside Chicago, Hines recently grew its industrial portfolio with a four-building industrial complex it’s building in Austin, Texas.

— Sam Lounsberry