Office building going condo

A California investment group has purchased an aging office building at 275 Hill in downtown Reno and plans a major renovation project that will create office condominiums for sale.

Renovation of the building a block north of the Nevada Art Museum will bring 25 units 23 offices, each about 400 square feet, along with two street-level retail locations. The retail spaces will be about 1,000 square feet.

The office properties also will include deeded parking inside the building.

The renovation will include new electrical, plumbing, heating and air conditioning and mechanical components in the 13,100-square-foot building constructed in the early 1960s.

A new exterior designed by Cathexes Inc. of Reno is designed to fit well with the nearby art museum as well as the new Mills B. Lane Justice Center, said Mark Henderson, a general partner of the investor group that purchased the building this month.

He said the building's new owner, Cardinal Investments of Los Angeles, specializes in investments in emerging market for urban infill development.

Reno fits that bill, he said. Cardinal was drawn to Hill Street because of its location, as well as the upside potential of a renovation.

The company's belief that a small-space condo project would work in the market was supported, Henderson said, by the number of small residential properties in the neighborhood that have been converted to office uses.

The property will be marketed by Alliance Commercial of Reno.