The German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest (GACC Midwest) will relocate to 150 N. Michigan Avenue in August 2020. GACC Midwest signed an 11-year lease with CBRE Global Investors for the space in late 2019.
Andria Winters and Jon Milonas of CBRE represented GACC Midwest in the transaction. Sara Spicklemire, Kelsey Sheive and Seth Tuscher of CBRE represented ownership, CBRE Global Investors.
GACC Midwest’s new office space, located on the entire 35th floor of 150 N. Michigan, is 17,140 square feet and overlooks Michigan Avenue as well as Millennium Park. The organization is currently headquartered at 321 N. Clark Street and this significant expansion aligns with the growth of German business investment in the Midwest. The new office will provide enhanced opportunities for members to connect, while also enabling GACC Midwest’s growing team to support new German businesses investing in the Midwest and the continuous expansion of the Chamber’s apprenticeship programs and Christkindlmarkets in the region.
The building was purchased by CBRE Global Investors from John Hancock Real Estate in 2017 for about $132 million and boasts a renovated fitness center, a bicycle storage room, a state-of-the-art conference center and tenant lounge, among other amenities. Designed by Sheldon Schlegman of A. Epstein and Sons (now Epstein) and completed in 1984, the 41-storybuilding is LEED Gold-certified and instantly recognizable in Chicago’s skyline with its diamond-shaped facade.
The office will be used by GACC Midwest employees as well as employees of its subsidiary, German American Events, LLC and Germany Trade & Invest. GACC Midwest joins the Goethe-Institut, the non-profit German cultural institution, as a resident of 150 N. Michigan.
“We are excited about the new opportunities and ammenities that 150 N. Michigan Avenue offers not only to us but also to our members. The iconic building and its location steps from our Christkindlmarket on Daley Plaza will serve to welcome and support further German trade and investment in the Midwest,” said Mark Tomkins, president and CEO of GACC Midwest.
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