Carlson Real Estate Plans Spec Project in OakdaleBy Burl Gilyard, F&C Real Estate Writer

Carlson Real Estate Co. is gearing up to break ground in June on the first phase of The Oaks Business Park in Oakdale.

Plans for the first batch of buildings call for about 192,000 square feet of speculative commercial space with a mix of property types — 98,000 square feet of flex/office warehouse space, 58,000 square feet of Class A office space and 36,000 square feet of office condos.

“These are speculative. Obviously, we’re feeling good about the market since we’re proceeding,” said Wayne Teig, vice president with Minnetonka-based Carlson Real Estate. “We’re feeling good about the eastern market, especially multi-tenant Class A office space.”

Ultimately, Teig said, the business park will include 650,000 to 740,000 square feet of commercial space, to be developed in phases over several years on the 55-acre site along Interstate 94.

“We’re still looking at over the next eight years,” Teig said. “We were focused on providing multiple product types within the park to really cater to a wide variety of users.”

Teig said the company is planning to begin construction on the office condos, dubbed The Oaks Office Suites, on June 15, with completion slated for November.

Construction on the flex space, dubbed The Oaks Tech Center, is slated to start on July 1, with completion scheduled for next February.

Teig said construction will begin in mid-September on the single-story office building, with completion set for the middle of next April.

Leasing and marketing for The Oaks is being handled by Craig Lien and Jay Chmieleski of Welsh Cos.

The architect for the office condos is Wayzata-based Mohagen Hansen Architectural Group, and the general contractor is Plymouth-based Bainey Group Inc.

For the office warehouse and office buildings, the architect is Eden Prairie-based Edward Farr Architects, and the general contractor is St. Paul-based McGough Cos.

“The unique thing about what we’re developing is we can have a user as small as 1,500 square feet in our office condos and yet be able to accommodate a user that needs 70,000 square feet of office and 20,000 square feet of warehouse,” Teig said.

“We’ve been assembling land and planning for two years, so we’re excited to move forward with actual construction,” he said.

© Copyright 2006 Finance & Commerce, Inc. All Rights Reserved