A major Downtown building is poised to follow a makeover similar to the one being undertaken at the LeVeque Tower, where residential and office tenants are being welcomed and a boutique hotel is on the way. Columbus apartment developer Edwards Cos. has bought the PNC Plaza building on the south side of Broad Street between 3rd and 4th streets with an eye toward adding housing and a boutique hotel, an industry term for a smaller hotel in a unique setting.

A major Downtown building is poised to follow a makeover similar to the one being undertaken at the LeVeque Tower, where residential and office tenants are being welcomed and a boutique hotel is on the way.

Columbus apartment developer Edwards Cos. has bought the PNC Plaza building on the south side of Broad Street between 3rd and 4th streets with an eye toward adding housing and a boutique hotel, an industry term for a smaller hotel in a unique setting.

The purchase price was $24 million, according to records filed with the Franklin County recorder's office. The buyer is listed as 155 Spec LLC, with a mailing address that matches Edwards' offices on High Street. Edwards has been talking to other developers about taking on parts of the development in partnership with it.

Representatives of Edwards declined to comment.

The seller, Arthur Goldner & Associates of Chicago, bought the property in 2001 for $40 million from the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio. The commercial real-estate service CoStar estimated the property's value at $18.2 million.

In a phone interview, Arthur Goldner said the buyer approached him about the property, which was never formally listed. The deal leaves Goldner with no other holdings in Columbus, but he said his company is "aggressively seeking" other investment oportunities in central Ohio and across the Midwest.

At the LeVeque building a couple of blocks to the west, apartments (being built by Kaufman Development) were 30 percent leased before the first ones started to be turned over to tenants this week. The Autograph hotel, a boutique Marriott brand, is scheduled to open at the LeVeque this year, and the building's owners have started to market office space in the iconic building.

The PNC building and attached Galleria don't have the same historic pedigree as the 90-year-old LeVeque, which was for decades the tallest building in Columbus. The 24-story PNC building opened in 1976 and does not feature the ornate touches that characterize the LeVeque.

However, the PNC is considered attractive Class A space with a good location directly across from the Statehouse and bounded by three major Downtown thoroughfares. Its sleek marble-clad exterior and parking garage also make it attractive.

According to Goldner and CoStar, the building is about 80 percent leased. Major tenants include PNC bank and the Ohio Hospital Association. OhioHealth has 114 employees in about 26,000 square feet in the building; they will be moving to OhioHealth's recently announced new headquarters by early 2019.

It's unclear what impact the sale will have on occupants. According to CoStar, two floors are vacant, as is much of the main floor of the Galleria building on S. 3rd Street. Sources familiar with the plans say Edwards hopes to reserve the tower's upper floors for residential units.

Michael Copella, managing director in the Columbus office of commercial real-estate firm CBRE, said the deal is a positive sign for the improving health of the Downtown market. New housing is being absorbed as fast as it's being built, and many are finding it hard to locate top-tier Class A office space, he said.

"We think that these types of deals could continue to happen," Copella said. "Office tenants like the amenities of a mixed-use building, and there is strong demand for Downtown housing."

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