Needing to fill a large vacancy in an unconventional building, with the added headwinds of a pandemic, developer R2 had to get creative. An unexpected savior emerged: Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh.
The tenant: Lighthouse ArtSpace’s “Immersive Van Gogh” exhibit.
The property: The Germania Club Building at 108 W. Germania Place.
The brokers: The landlord was represented by R2’s Matt Duhig and Matt Pistorio, while the tenant was represented by Lee Dickson of Baum Realty Group.
The lease: Toronto-based Lighthouse ArtSpace leased 25,650 of the four-story building’s 49,000 square feet. The five-year deal includes extension options. Rent is $35 per square foot, with 3% annual escalations.
The concept: The Van Gogh show opened in February 2021, featuring what the Chicago Tribune’s Steve Johnson described as “a supper-trippy digital projection of the artist’s imagery onto the walls and floors of the grand halls of a North Side former social club.” Ticket holders walk through the space to see moving digital images of the Dutch artist’s work.
Why it matters: The deal was signed at a time when in-person experiences were rare because of COVID-19. Starting in February 2021, it was one of the first new shows in Chicago during the pandemic, with ticket times staggered to allow for hundreds of thousands of guests who paid $50 per ticket.
Key step: The lease also allowed R2 to sell the building at a profit, even during an uncertain real estate market, because it was fully leased. A high-net-worth California family bought it for $15.1 million in August. R2 bought it for $10 million about three years earlier and made extensive renovations. Other tenants include CorePower Yoga, Lincoln Park Preschool and Tiparos Thai & Sushi Bar.
The building: The property is near the intersection of North Avenue and Clark Street, along three wealthy neighborhoods on Chicago’s North Side: Old Town, the Gold Coast and Lincoln Park. The building was home to the city’s oldest German-American club before it disbanded after 97 years in 1986. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 and was designated a Chicago landmark in 2011. Before the Van Gogh exhibit, the ballroom was used for large events such as weddings.
The backstory: R2 planned to convert the ballroom to creative office space. The firm held talks with several tenants, R2 CEO Matt Garrison said. The pandemic halted those plans, causing a pivot to the experiential use.
What they’re saying: “We have this nasty habit of buying these quirky, historic buildings,” Garrison said. “The reason we do that is they’re one-of-a-kind and that makes them interesting investments. When you’re leasing them, you’re not just leasing a commodity. Our plan was to do creative office space, but we thought something else might show up.
“We found the Immersive group, which really believed in their concept. They believed people were looking for something to do. Being in a building like this, it gives the entire experience a feeling more akin to a museum and makes it special.”
What’s next: The space recently welcomed its second interactive art experience, featuring the work of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Showings of the Van Gogh exhibit, which began with more than 2 million visitors in Paris, continue until May.
Fun fact: The Germania Club Building, featuring a ballroom with 35-foot ceilings, was completed in 1889. The next year, Van Gogh died by suicide at age 37.
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