OAKLAND — The Oakland Masonic Center has been bought by an alliance of veteran real estate developers in a deal that could revamp the prominent building as a modern medical office complex.
The alliance paid $13.5 million for the three-story Masonic Center building, which is at 3903 Broadway in Oakland, according to documents filed on March 7 with the Alameda County Recorder’s Office.
The buyers, acting through an affiliate, are Walnut Creek-based Meridian, a real estate developer whose specialties include medical office projects; and Chicago-based Harrison Street Real Estate, a major player in property investment and development.
Meridian and Harrison Street also obtained a loan from Midcap Financial Trust totaling $35.2 million at the time of the purchase, the county property records show.
The purchase was arranged by Sid Ewing, a senior vice president with Colliers, a commercial real estate firm. Ewing teamed up with Colliers senior vice president Matthew Nebel to market the Masonic Center for possible tenants. Last year, Ewing found the buying group for the building.
The new owners intend to retain the building, which totals 61,000 square feet and revive it as a medical office complex, according to Ewing.
“Medical offices make so much sense at that location,” Ewing said. “It’s right near Kaiser and Pill Hill.” The building is on Broadway between 38th Street and 40th Street.
Kaiser Permanente operates a major medical center a few blocks away and Oakland’s famed Pill Hill, a neighborhood of medical facilities including Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, is also nearby.
“The building was mostly vacant and in significant disrepair when the buyer entered into contract last year” to purchase the property, Ewing said.
The Meridian and Harrison Street alliance envisions big-time upgrades for the property, according to Ewing.
“The buyer’s vision is for the adaptive reuse of this wonderful building as a first-class medical office facility,” Ewing said.
The property that was purchased also includes a big surface parking lot that Harrison Street and Meridian aim to use as a key part of the development project.
“They are going to build a parking structure where the surface lot is located,” Ewing said. “Medical uses need a lot of parking.”
By sometime this fall, the new owners intend to begin major construction to redevelop the existing building and build the parking structure next to it, according to Ewing.
“The buyer acquired 3903 Broadway on a speculative basis without any leases in place,” Ewing said. “The buyer believes in Oakland as a vibrant community and hopes to attract medical office users.”
Multiple potential tenants have emerged already with a strong interest in the building. At least one of the medical organizations is interested in leasing the whole building, according to Ewing.
“We are very hopeful we can get the entire building leased soon,” Ewing said.
