$100m GE loan bridges deal for historic landmark.

GE Real Estate announced it provided a $100 million on-book bridge loan to an affiliate of Prime Group Realty Trust (PGRT) to recapitalize and reposition 330 N. Wabash, a Class A office building located in Chicago. Along with GE Real Estate's initial funding of $50 million, ING Investment Management provided a first mortgage of $88 million.

Prime Group Realty Trust is a REIT with extensive experience in the Chicago area in completing large lease transactions, including major leases at Citadel Center, and 77 W. Wacker in Chicago and Continental Towers in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. The broker for the loan transaction was Draper and Kramer, a vertically integrated property and financial services company headquartered in Chicago.

As part of this refinancing, PGRT also sold off floors 2 through 13 of the building to a joint venture entity controlled by LaSalle Hotel Properties to develop a 5 star hotel in this portion of the building. GE's five-year, interest only loan provides PGRT additional funds for repositioning space to attract new tenants when one of the property's major existing tenants, vacates its space when its lease expires in April, 2010.

The 52-story 330 N. Wabash was designed by world-renowned architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and was designated a Chicago landmark in February, 2008. It is situated on the Chicago River near North Michigan Avenue famed shopping district, the "Mag Mile" and is in close proximity to Chicago's central business district, as well as, River North's restaurants.

"GE Real Estate and ING Investment Management did a great job completing this complex transaction at a time when the capital markets are very volatile and not many debt transactions are getting done," said Jeffrey A. Patterson, president and CEO of PGRT.