Holland development’s first commercial tenant brings new renovations, $2M invested to-date

For the past year, Third Coast Development Partners has been doing behind-the-scenes renovations for a handful of tenants at the former Hart & Cooley industrial building just east of downtown Holland.

This summer, renovations are making their way to the forefront with the announcement of the development’s first commercial tenant, Tulip City Beauty College.

Third Coast acquired the 625,000-square-foot building in 2006, and Hart & Cooley moved out in 2008. The building, 500 Eighth Street, is intended for industrial and commercial space, which includes retail and office, says Dave Levitt, a partner with Third Coast Development.

“So far, the back side of the building was where the major construction was taking place, literally behind the scenes,” Levitt says. “Now we’re demonstrating the commercial [aspects] of the building.”

Last year, Charter House Innovations, which owns City Flats Hotel in downtown Holland, purchased a section of the building as non-commercial industrial space. Levitt says there are currently six tenants, including furniture maker Herman Miller Inc., which uses the space for warehousing.

Approximately 450,000 square feet of the building is occupied. Levitt estimates that Third Coast Development has invested roughly $2 million into the project so far.

Although Tulip City Beauty College will be the seventh tenant in the development, Levitt says the activity in renovating space for the beauty school is the first visible change to the front of the building.

“Now that the front is being renovated and changed, it’s bringing life to the Eighth Street side of the project,” he says.

In the near future, the developer hopes to have a sign identifying the building as the Federal Square Business Park, which pays homage to the neighborhood north of the project called the Federal District.

Source: Dave Levitt, Third Coast Development Partners LLC

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].