Racine-based manufacturer
Twin Disc Inc. has reached an agreement to sell its corporate headquarters to Milwaukee-based real estate development firm
J. Jeffers & Co. LLC, according to an SEC filing.
Jeffers will buy the Twin Disc headquarters building at 1328 Racine St., Racine, "and certain adjacent properties" for $3.25 million, according to the filing.
A spokesperson for Twin Disc also could not immediately be reached.
The sale of the Twin Disc headquarters property is expected to close by Sept. 30, according to the SEC filing. The sale agreement includes a lease back provision that would allow the company to remain in the facility for up to 18 months after the sale, the filing said.
The Twin Disc headquarters is a 182,142-square-foot building, including 114,022 square feet of industrial space and 68,120 square feet of office space, built in 1938. It sits on a 4.58-acre site, according to marketing materials from
Cushman & Wakefield|Boerke. The listing also included two additional surface parking lots totaling 1.39 acres.
A representative for Cushman & Wakefield|Boerke could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Twin Disc headquarters property has an assessed value of nearly $1.9 million, and it (along with the adjacent parking lots) was listed for sale with an asking price of $5.83 million, according to the Cushman & Wakefield|Boerke materials.
Founded in 1918 to manufacture clutches for farm tractors, today Twin Disc designs, manufactures and sells marine and heavy-duty, off-highway power transmission equipment.
In 2020, the company
indicated it was considering plans to consolidate its Racine operations by moving the operations at its headquarters facility into its manufacturing facility, located 2.5 miles southwest, at 4600 21st St. in Racine. At that time, Twin Disc CEO John Batten said the company could save more than $1 million in annual operating expenses by consolidating the two facilities.
Twin Disc has moved some of its work from Racine to its relatively new Lufkin, Texas facility to free up capacity in Racine. Batten has also previously suggested the company may move some production to Italy to free up additional resources in Racine.
Jeffers has done numerous redevelopment projects in Milwaukee and Racine, including the Gold Medal Lofts housing development in Racine and is working on the redevelopment of the Horlick Malted Milk Company complex in Racine into the mixed-use
Belle City Square development.
"We continue to be excited about the Racine market," said J. Jeffers & Co. chief marketing officer Scott Schwebel. "Our Belle City Square project is on track to be one of the city’s most catalytic - historic and adaptive reuse - neighborhood transformations. Through our development and community engagement efforts with the city of Racine, Mayor Cory Mason (and his team) has introduced us to multiple business and organizational leaders, including John Batten and Twin Disc. We are currently exploring the Twin Disc property and its' viability for reinvention. We have enjoyed the many new relationships we have built, and the enthusiasm for their city’s evolution, from Racine’s leadership community."
