Courtesy / Compass Commercial Brokers
The sale of 2 Market St., on the corner of Market and Commercial streets in Portland’s Old Port, came with a solid retail anchor in kitchenware’s store Leroux Kitchen.
October 25, 2021
An Old Port building, with a long-term tenant and parking, sells for $6.1M
Courtesy / Compass Commercial Brokers
The sale of 2 Market St., on the corner of Market and Commercial streets in Portland’s Old Port, came with a solid retail anchor in LeRoux Kitchen.
A building with prime retail space on Commercial Street has changed hands.
The building's primary tenant is LeRoux Kitchen, which occupies four levels, including the ground floor. Another floor with office space is available for lease. The building also includes its own small parking lot, a significant feature with more new development taking over surface lots in Portland.
A limited liability corporation, 161 Commercial Street LLC, acquired 2 Market St. (at the corner of Commercial Street), from RobDog Realty LLC for $6.11 million.
Joe Malone and Jennifer Small of Malone Commercial Brokers and Steve Baumann of Compass Commercial Brokers brokered the transaction. A 19th century building that was thoroughly renovated in 2001 and is today anchored by a solid tenant was viewed as a great investment in Portland’s Old Port.
“It’s so hard to find any properties in the Old Port in this day and age that aren’t already owned by large landlords in blocks,” said Baumann, who represented the buyer. “Having this pop up was of particular interest to our client. It’s front and center on Commercial Street. They don’t make any more of this.”
The 16,379-square-foot office building, on the corner of Commercial and Market streets, is anchored by LeRoux Kitchen, which has the address’s of 161 Commercial St. The sale included a parking lot measuring 0.10 acre, with space for six cars.
1850 warehouse
The six-story Greek Revival building dates back to 1850, when it served as a warehouse. It was renovated from top to bottom in 2001.
Known as the Moulton Block, the building is in the center of the Old Port’s waterfront area. The Moulton Block is believed to have been the first brick and granite commercial structure built after the completion of Commercial Street, according to the Malone Commercial Brokers listing.
Courtesy / Compass Commercial Brokers
The building comes with a view of Portland Harbor.
Features include exposed brick, beams and ductwork; skylights, birch doors and trim; and spot, track and hanging fixtures; and views of Portland Harbor. There’s a dedicated lobby entrance at 2 Market St. with elevator access. Upper-story spaces include offices and a large conference room.
Whip & Spoon
The sellers were Sonia and Jock Robertson, who once had a kitchen supply and food shop called the Whip & Spoon at the location, said Small, who represented the couple.
The Whip & Spoon started in the 1970s and operated through 2001, when ownership of the business changed and the shop reopened as LeRoux Kitchen, a kitchenware store, according to digitalcommons.portlandlibrary.com. LeRoux has multiple locations in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
The decision by the Robertsons to sell the real estate came naturally.
“It was just the right time in their lives,” said Small. “They’ve owned it for a while and they were looking to do something different.”
The property went under contract quickly — within a week or two of its listing, she said. “We had a lot of very strong interest, mostly from local buyers and developers,” she said.
Long-term anchor
The building is in great shape and has been well maintained over the years, said Baumann. LeRoux occupies the first, second, third and sixth floors and holds a long-term lease, he added.
A full floor of 3,500 square feet of office space is available for lease.
Courtesy / Compass Commercial Brokers
Interior features include exposed bricks and beams.
The buyer is a local investor who has other real estate holdings around Maine and will maintain the building as is, he said.
“It’s nice to have it remain locally owned,” Baumann said. “It will be a nice investment for them.”
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Anonymous
October 26, 2021
Great to have this remain locally owned. Congratulations to all parties!
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