US investor King Street Capital Management has emerged as the buyer of an office building at Milan's viale Fulvio Testi 280 from German fund manager Commerz Real.
King Street, through the newly-launched Whitemoon closed-end fund managed by Italian asset manager Kryalos, is believed to be investing €50 mln to buy the property which is entirely let to Italian telecoms firm Fastweb.
Fastweb is due to vacate the property by March 2019 after which King Street will invest a further €50 mln to renovate the building, according to those who track the market.
Built in 1989 and refurbished in 2005, the property currently provides 16,400 m2 of space and 355 car parking spaces in the Bicocca sub-market of Milan. It will offer 33,000 m2 of office space on 13 storeys following redevelopment which is due to complete by 2020. The asset will target Leed Gold sustainability certification.
Vendor Commerz Real said the deal is in line with its strategy of 'selling non-strategic assets at an attractive price'. The German group bought the asset in 2007 on behalf of the hausInvest open-ended fund.
King Street's Whitemoon fund managed by Kryalos Sgr has an opportunistic risk profile and focuses on development and redevelopment opportunities in the city.
The operation is the second development project planned by King Street in Milan. In May, the US investor bought an asset at via Gattamelata from Generali Real Estate with plans to demolish it and redevelop it into a 33,000 m2 Leed Gold-certified office complex. King Street's Pharo development project is planned for delivery in 2020.
