Renovated building hopes to draw new tenants

The people who seek to lease commercial office space in one of the most prominent buildings in downtown Sarasota hope a recently completed renovation will be its trump card.

The renovation, at the M&I Bank building on Pineapple Avenue, a few blocks south of Main Street, includes some unusual features, like showers for employees who ride their bikes to work. Plus, this particular building, 11 stories tall and 128,389 square feet, had another lurking issue: It was stuck in the 1980s when it came to aesthetics and style, according to officials with the firm that owns it, New York City-based iStar Financial.

“We saw this as a fantastic asset that had been neglected by previous owners,” says iStar Vice President Matt Ballinger, based in Atlanta. “We thought now was the time to reinvest in the building.”

The firm, with a portfolio of more than 40 million square feet nationwide, took ownership of the building in September 2008. The previous owner defaulted on a $40 million loan on the property, built in 1986.

The renovation project cost nearly $2 million. In addition to showers in the offices and an updated look, iStar added two chillers and completed several maintenance projects. Most of the bathrooms were redone, too, and are now made of marble and granite. “The building is stunning,” says Ian Black Real Estate agent Jag Grewal, who will lease space for iStar. Ian Black recently took over leasing from CBRE Group.

The building is about 75% occupied, says Grewal. Law firm Kirk-Pinkerton, recently signed a lease for the entire sixth floor, 10,104 square feet.