Carlson Real Estate Secures Landmark Lease at The Oaks Business Park
January 14, 2008—Minnetonka, Minnesota—Carlson Real Estate Company recently signed a significant lease with The Hartford at The Oaks Business Park in suburban Oakdale.

The Hartford has leased the entire 60,000 square foot Class A single-story office building located at 7755 3rd Street North within The Oaks Office Center, the office component of The Oaks Business Park. Occupancy is planned for this spring.

Founded in 1810, The Hartford, which was represented by John Ferlita and Emily Nicoll of CB Richard Ellis, is one of the largest investment and insurance companies based in the United States, with offices in Japan, Brazil, Ireland, England, Canada, and the United States. With 31,000 employees and $2.3 billion in income in 2005, The Hartford was ranked 78th on the 2006 Fortune 100 list. It is a leading provider of investment products – annuities, mutual funds, college savings plans – as well as life insurance, group and employee benefits, automobile and homeowners' insurance, and business insurance.

Said Ms. Nicoll of why The Hartford ultimately decided to lease at The Oaks Business Park, “The Hartford chose to focus on The Oaks project because of its proximity to their current location just across the freeway in Woodbury and also because it gave them an opportunity to have sole occupancy in the first phase of office product.” In addition she commented that “Carlson was extremely easy to work with, and that helped us to reach a speedy and yet still mutually beneficial conclusion to the negotiation.”

Carlson Real Estate Company was represented by the Welsh Companies team of Craig Lien, Jay Chmieleski, and Danielle Loffler. Mr. Lien, a Vice President with the Bloomington-based company, echoed many of Ms. Nicoll’s sentiments regarding the location being a main driver behind the decision, and also added that the professional business park environment was another major factor. “Location was a major driver. But they also wanted to be in the midst of a first class, professional business park environment. And without question, The Oaks Business Park is quite simply the premier business development of the eastern metro. They also liked that within The Oaks there is virtually unlimited expansion potential in the event that they need more space.”

Wayne Teig, Carlson Real Estate Company Vice President in charge of overseeing the entire Oaks Business Park project, believes Carlson’s personal, partnership-oriented approach helped tip the scales in the company’s favor with The Hartford. “They saw that we took a personal, long-term approach to their current and future space needs. We came to the negotiating table and responded quickly and professionally to all of their requests,” he noted. “I think in the end they see this as an advantage of doing business with us.”

Carlson partnered with the City of Oakdale from the beginning in developing the land on which now sits The Oaks Business Park. City Administrator Craig Waldron was most pleased with the impact this deal provides to the city and The Oaks. “The Hartford is a tremendous boost for our city,” he commented. “It will bring nearly 300 jobs and also I believe it will help spur further development, activity, and interest in this outstanding business park.” Mr. Waldron also echoed Mr. Teig’s assessment, saying, “Carlson’s professionalism is what ultimately won over The Hartford. It shows in their ability and willingness to stay with and bring resources to a project that is absolutely second to none. The responsive and open way they do business really showed the people at The Hartford what Carlson would be like as their landlord for the next several years.”

Carlson Real Estate President Matt Van Slooten considered securing a lease with The Hartford to be a major accomplishment for his company in general, and for his new business park in particular. “We are very pleased to welcome The Hartford to The Oaks Business Park,” he said. Mr. Van Slooten quickly pointed out that he considers this just the beginning of big things for The Oaks Business Park. “We anticipate a strong trend of momentum going forward off of this deal. We still have plenty of office and flex space available and we are eager to begin construction on even more buildings in the near future, all of which will allow us to continue to accommodate virtually any type or size of organization at The Oaks.”

The Oaks Business Park is located immediately northeast of the I-94 and I-694 interchange in Oakdale, Minnesota. When complete, it will consist of more than 650,000 total square feet. Presently, there are six buildings completed, including the now fully-leased 60,000 square foot single-story office building, a 98,000 square foot flex/light industrial building, and four office buildings at 9,000 square feet each that are for sale or lease.

Carlson Real Estate Company is an affiliate of Carlson Companies, parent company of Radisson Hotels, T.G.I.Friday’s Restaurants, and other national and global businesses, and one of America’s largest privately held companies. Carlson Real Estate Company is dedicated to developing long-term client relationships by operating with caring and integrity and providing innovative and accommodating solutions. Its portfolio of office and flex/industrial space concentrated in Minnesota, Arizona, and North Carolina exceeds 6 million combined square feet. For more information about Carlson Real Estate Company, visit www.carlsonrealestate.biz

Media Contact:
Brett Talbott
Marketing Manager
952-404-5016
btalbott@carlson.com