Doran Companies announced $40 million in loan agreements for two apartment projects at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. The deals included permanent financing for the highly successful Sydney Hall project and construction financing for the Edge on Oak, a much anticipated project in the Stadium Village neighborhood east of campus. Market analysts point out Doran Companies’ strong position in the University apartment market and the combination of low vacancy rates and high desire among students to live in apartments as key indicators of Doran’s strong portfolio. Minneapolis as a whole had low vacancy rates, in the 2% range. Increasingly positive market fundamentals are also raising perceived values of Doran properties and Doran Companies president Kelly Doran mentioned that with each successive project (Sydney Hall, 412 Lofts, The Edge on Oak) more lenders were interested than the previous project.

An exciting change is coming to the famed Mississippi riverfront. Doran Companies has completed a deal to buy the property directly adjacent to the historic Pillsbury A Mill in a $5 million agreement. A two-phase 375 unit luxury apartment project is planned for the site, located at the Stone Arch bridge’s north side, directly across the Mississippi from Downtown Minneapolis.

The project, which doesn’t include the Mill and periphery buildings, already has approval from the Historic Preservation Commission and a spring 2012 ground breaking is planned. Following its success in the high-end student housing market, Doran Companies is adding a fresh and dynamic opportunity for those looking to live in the thriving St. Anthony Main and Northeast neighborhoods.

Also read about in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal or Finance & Commerce.

Doran Companies is proud to announce that Sydney Hall and the Dinkydome won the Best in Real Estate award for Best Overall Project, awarded by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal. The $38.6 million project at 15th Avenue and University Avenue straddles the entrance to the East Bank of the University of Minnesota campus and includes the construction of the 6 story Sydney Hall apartment building directly adjacent to a renovation of the historic Dinkydome building. The Dinkydome in particular proved challenging given the unique aspect of the structure, which was originally built between 1913 and 1918, and has served a variety of purposes including as a Bible College and a food court prior to its current reincarnation as a premier student housing address.

Commercial property tax increases and the flat economy are hampering development and business investment, developer Kelly Doran says. Increases have pushed real estate taxes up to $13 to $15 per square foot on his retail properties, rates he says are “not sustainable.” Doran Companies is among many local property owners & managers who are seeing large increases in tax charges, lowering the investment returns and incentives to increase new development in the Twin Cities and across the state. The challenging economic times are only exacerbated by the tough new tax numbers, leaving many commercial real estate professionals wondering if the state realizes the detrimental effect on the real estate and construction industries as a whole.