KBS Purchases Minnetonka’s Trophy 601 Tower at Carlson Center Office Building

By Camelia Bulea, Associate Editor

 The prestigious 15-story 601 Tower at Carlson Center in Minnetonka, Minn., reached 95 percent occupancy yesterday when KBS Capital Advisors, an affiliate of KBS Realty Advisors, signed a direct lease with Altair Global Relocation for approximately 7,600 square feet.

Seeking to significantly expand its presence in the market, the company will relocate to a 7,580 square-foot space on the fourth floor. Other tenants of the 288,458-square-foot building include Pine River Capital, One Beacon Insurance and RBC Capital Markets.

Intermediating the lease transaction were Jones Lang LaSalle Minneapolis, which represented the tenant, and CBRE Minneapolis, which represented KBS.

KBS already owns approximately 600,000 square feet in the state, including two industrial facilities, the Cedar Bluffs Business Center complex in Eagan and the Cardinal Health Distribution Facility in Champlin.

KBS Real Estate Investment Trust II added the office tower to its portfolio in February of this year. The trophy-quality asset is located in the prestigious Carlson Center master-planned office park, at the highly visible interchange of Interstates 494 and 394 in the I-394 Corridor.

A company press release states 601 Tower at Carlson Center was completed in 1989 and features polished burgundy granite and glass exteriors. The property is part of a two-building complex that also encompasses a 22-acre lake with lakefront amphitheater, a health club, an upscale cafeteria and other services.

In 2009, the tower received the TOBY International Award as Outstanding Building of the Year in the Suburban (Low-Rise) Office Park category from the Building Owners and Managers Association. The property has an Energy Star Rating of 97 and is actively pursuing LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.