Manatee County $23.5 million office building buy closes

Manatee County has closed on the purchase of a Lakewood Ranch office building to be used for administrative offices. 

The $23.5 million deal for the 101,000-square-foot building closed Sept. 2. 

The 11.28-acre property is at 9000 Town Center Parkway. The two-story office building off of University Parkway was previously owned by a joint venture between affiliates of MHCommercial Real Estate Fund, a West Palm Beach real estate investment company, and Contrarian Capital Management, a Connecticut investment manager. 

According to Manatee property records, the joint venture paid $20.25 million for the building in 2021. 

In May, when Manatee County commissioners unanimously approved the purchase, the East County Observer, sister paper of the Business Observer, reported that a pair of commissioners said the current county building in downtown Bradenton will remain in place because it lies within the “county seat,” which is defined by the Florida Constitution as where the principal offices and permanent records of all county officers are located. 

Commission meetings will continue to be held in the Honorable Patricia M. Glass Chambers in the same building, but Development Services and other departments will relocate, the paper reported. 

For now, there is a tenant occupying the building until January and Manatee will begin moving in in phases to accommodate the current occupant. 

The sale of the property was brokered by Ian Black Real Estate’s Jag Grewal and Cameron Wilson.