Crafting deals from a century old downtown bank to a warehouse to grow this millennium’s medicine.
As the banking industry continues to adjust to the impact that technology is having on the patterns of the consumer, those branches full of elaborate décor that were built in the Gilded Age are now becoming obsolete. Fierce competition, tighter margins and less pedestrian traffic are making it easy for banks to shed themselves of these very costly unique structures. In the heart of downtown Frederick, the former Citizens Bank built in 1909 at 2 East Patrick Street once shared the four points of the Square Corner, as it is known, with two other banks, but today, only one survives.
As markets change, creative business people seek to take advantage of unique adaptive reuse opportunities that spring up along the way.
After sitting vacant for several years, PNC Bank off loaded its Citizens branch to an investment company based out of Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania. Then Michael Locraft of Hamilton Morrisville, LLC procured the sales, leasing and management services of MacRo, Ltd. to find a new user for the magnificent 6,000 square foot property.
While the interest in the property was nothing short of overwhelming, finding just the right buyer was not that easy. But after 18 months of negotiations with prospects who planned uses from a wedding venue facility to a pharmacy and everything in between, a Washington DC restaurant developer who has a plan for rooftop dining among the clustered spires closed on the property in August of last year.
Mr. Locraft was more than satisfied with all the services provided, stating that the MacRo Team was “obviously instrumental in everything that we did for that property.” In particular, he singled out General Manager Sherri Mercer, who also heads the firm’s property management services: “I can’t stress how great Sherri is. We’d love to do another deal with you guys and have you do the management on that deal as well. She was absolutely fantastic, probably the best I’ve ever worked with.”
Growing Medical Cannabis
In another case of how technology is changing things, a local printing business that once occupied a 42,000 SF warehouse in Frederick County, chose to move its operations north to more affordable territory. In its place, the MacRo Team found a home for Green Leaf Medical Cannabis, LLC, and to adaptively reuse the space for a medical marijuana growing facility, Green Leaf had to make a substantial investment in the building. After a brief leasing period, the property was sold to Green Leaf, in January 2018, and now they supply product to dispensaries throughout the state.
Phil Goldberg, CEO of Green Leaf, offered praise for the real estate expertise of the firm. “The staff at MacRo did a thorough job of assisting our group in selecting our new facility,” said Goldberg, “and from there was instrumental in bringing our dream to reality through some very complex negotiations.”
This transaction required a unique financing structure, along with the establishment of overlapping access and parking easements, to name a few. Former property owner, Garland Johnson, of Barnesville, was pleased with the skill set provided by MacRo and offered the following: “Over the past several years, I have used MacRo Realty as my realtor of choice for rentals and commercial property sales. Rocky and his staff are competent and professional in using state of the art practices. Their knowledge, insight and advice has proven to be a valuable asset for my business.”
Rocky Mackintosh, President of MacRo, Ltd., a Land and Commercial Real Estate firm based in Frederick, Maryland, has been an active member of the Frederick community for over four decades. He has served as chairman of the board of Frederick Memorial Hospital and as a member of the Frederick County Charter Board from 2010 to 2012. He currently serves as chairman of the board of Frederick Mutual Insurance Company. Established in 1843, it is one of the longest enduring businesses in Frederick County.