Platinum Equity wins Wellcraft buildings

Platinum Equity wins Wellcraft buildings

BUYER: Sarasota Real Property LLC, Beverly Hills, Calif.

SELLER: Genmar Industries Inc. fka Wellcraft Marine Corp.

PROPERTY: 6775 and 7150 E. 15th St., 651 Whitfield Ave., 1715 E. 67th Ave. and 4.25 acres, Sarasota

PRICE: $6.5 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $90,000, December 1989; $310,000, August 1985; $350,000, July 1987; $100,000, February 1984; and $800,000, October 1981

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Latham & Watkins LLP, Chicago

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Platinum Equity LLC purchased the assets of Ranger, Stratos, Champion, Wellcraft, Four Winns, Larson and Glastron from Genmar Holdings Inc. in a bankruptcy auction.

As part of the purchase, Platinum Equity LLC acquired Wellcraft's closed main manufacturing facilities at 15th Street and Whitfield Avenue in Sarasota, an auxiliary plant and a vacant piece of land for $6.5 million.

The main portion of the Wellcraft property is a 28.67-acre parcel housing a two-story office building and five warehouse buildings totaling 381,973 square feet.

“The office building was in good condition,” says Bob Kolton of Michael Saunders & Co., who was marketing the property for Genmar prior to the bankruptcy sale. “Two of the manufacturing plants were good, but the other three were in pretty rough shape.”

The only occupant of the large warehousing complex is a small 20,000- square-foot tenant of building 6-D.

The 209,000-square-foot ancillary plant, previously used for storing engines, is located on a 9.5-acre parcel on 15th Street just south of the main plant.