John Mangel III, vice president of business development and acquisitions for Chicago-based HSA Commercial Real Estate, has a contract to purchase the 10-story former Blue Cross Blue Shield office building at 401 W. Michigan St. in downtown Milwaukee.
Mangel is buying the building independently of HSA, which is not a part of the deal, according to a commercial real estate source.
Mangel is still in the due diligence phase for the deal and told BizTimes Milwaukee he is “exploring different (redevelopment) options right now.”
One of the possible redevelopment options for the building is to convert it to a residential building, Mangel said. One source said converting the building to apartments for young professionals or college students is being considered by Mangel.
The 236,218-square-foot building was constructed in 1978. It was occupied by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wisconsin until 2006 when that office and its 750 employees moved to the Summit Place complex in West Allis. The building, which is owned by New York-based iStar Financial Inc., has remained vacant ever since.
The building has an assessed value of $5.66 million, according to city records.
