The Fremont Group recently sold three office buildings and two parking lots in East Hartford’s Founder Plaza Business Park for $50 million.
The properties were sold to Milton East Hartford Investments LLC in deeds recorded July 14. The White Plains-based company’s principal is Mark Graham, of Scarsdale, New York, according to a business filing with the Connecticut Secretary of the State’s office.
The sales include Riverview Square, a two-tower, 325,000-square-foot class A office complex and 155 Founders Plaza, a 50,000-square-foot office building, according to Fremont. The company describes the sale as the largest suburban office transaction in central Connecticut since 2012.
With the sale, West Hartford-based Fremont yields its status as one of the largest landlords in East Hartford. The company will continue to manage the buildings and there will be no changes in operation, said Jonathan Keller, a founding partner with Fremont.
“The only difference is there will be a different owner,” Keller said.
Riverview Square was built near the banks of the Connecticut River in 1983. Keller said his company heavily renovated the buildings, adding amenities and replacing major building systems over the past decade.
That helped raise occupancy to more than 90%, he said, with tenants including Bank of America, the state of Connecticut Judicial Branch, Doosan, Amica Insurance, Stryker and Cyient.
“It has been a great run,” Keller said. “East Hartford has been a great city to do business in. I couldn’t be prouder of what we have done from an investment standpoint. The new owner will do great with it.”
Fremont acquired the East Hartford properties in 2000. Keller said he is looking for medium to large-size real estate investment opportunities in the greater Hartford area.
Patrick Mulready and John McCormick of CBRE worked with Cory Gubner and Alex Haendler of Newmark as Fremont’s advisors in the sale, according to the release.
McCormick said Fremont dedicated a big investment in Riverside Square following the 2016 pullout of State of Connecticut information technology staff. Upgrades to the buildings, including new amenities such as a fitness center and new dining options, saw the building nearly refilled.
“As a stabilized office sale coming out of COVID to a sale to private capital investors, that speaks volumes to the credit quality, the location and the improvements,” McCormick said.
