Flash! Non-profits deal with economic demands the same as other businesses
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With the extended economic down-turn, non-profits have had to adapt to a tightened economy and increased demands, the same as other businesses. This is how three non-profit groups, all working with youth in the community, have recently found to cope with their real estate challenges.
Open Inn, Inc. an Arizona non-profit (Judy Tocco, President) sold its 4,500 sq. ft. building with excess land at 630 E 9th Street for[mepr-show rules=”58038″]$240,000 ($53 PSF) to Jet To The Promised Land, LLC (Phil Lipman, manager) in a sale leaseback agreement. The building was built in 1947 on an 8,024 sq. ft lot and sold with an additional 14,500 sq. ft of excess land.
Open Inn is a community based non-profit organization that has provided shelter and crisis intervention services for homeless, runaway, and at-risk youth and their families since its inception in 1974. From its Tucson hub, Open Inn has developed programs for runaway and homeless youth in rural communities in Northern and Southern Arizona, which would otherwise not be served. Open Inn serves more than 6,000 individuals per year in shelter care, supervised transitional living, independent living, life skills training, community assessment, truancy and outreach services. The non-profit occupied the building at 9th Street since 1999 and will continue to occupy it as a tenant in a sale leaseback agreement with new owner.
Gary Best and John Hamner of Keller Williams of Southern Arizona represented the seller and Phil Lipman of Bright Properties represented himself in the transaction.
In an unrelated sale, Youth On Their Own (Theresa Baker, Executive Director), also a local non-profit for youth, sold the property at 1443-1449 W Prince Road to Southwest Conservation Corps (Rob Spath, Executive Director) a Colorado based non-profit. The property sold for $331,500 ($121 PSF) for the 2,736 sq. ft. building that was built in 1980 on a 42,000 sq. ft lot.
The buyer, Southwest Conservation Corps (SCC), was founded in 1998 to provide 14-25 year old youth with structured, safe and challenging service and educational opportunities through projects that promote personal growth, the development of social skills, and an ethic of natural resource stewardship. The SCC program model was built upon the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s, and incorporates guiding principles of experiential learning, respect, openness, willingness, commitment, responsibility, pride, excellence, health and safety, and fun.
According to Spath, “We are happy to continue to be good stewards for the building and found we shared much in common with the seller, both in the same business of helping youth. During the course of the sale, we formed a good working relationship with the seller that resulted in referrals to one another. SCC will merge 3-1/2 locations, spread out around town now, under one roof at its new Prince Road headquarters.”
Dave Blanchette of CBRE in Tucson represented the seller and Tony Reed of Long Realty in Tucson represented the buyer in the transaction.
Reed is also marketing SCC’s 2,485 sq. ft. building at 1376 W St. Mary’s Road that is now vacant for sale.
Youth On Their Own moved into its new headquarters at 1660 N Alvernon Way that was acquired last December from P&J Enterprises (Eric Hein, manager) for $597,500 ($124 PSF) for this 4,800 sq. ft., 1-1/2 story building, built in 2001 on a 16,500 sq. ft. lot. According to Baker, “We were looking for more space, that would be more centrally located, and were about to give up the search when they found the Alvernon Way property. The split floor plan allows for youth programs to be expanded on the ground floor with administrative offices and board room upstairs.”
Youth On Their Own provides youth, through no fault of their own, who lack a parent or long-term legal guardian in their lives with a stable nighttime residence, financial assistance, basic needs and guidance as they work to obtain a high school diploma.
According to Baker, “It’s important to remember that non-profits are like any other business, we just give our profits back to the community. There is also a fiduciary duty to not allocate more than 30% of our contributions to the business operations while providing services. That means we must run our operation as streamlined and efficient as any other business, and that requires the right people with experience and modern equipment.” Baker continues, “It has been made possible through community sponsors, that Youth On Their Own has grown from assisting 400 students in 2010, to over 1,000 students graduating last June.”
Mark Irvin of Mark Irvin Commercial Real Estate Services represented the buyer and Ian Stuart of CBRE in Tucson represented P&J Enterprises, the seller.
For more information or to assist any of these non-profits, Open Inn is at (520) 628-9590, contact Youth On Their Own at (520) 293-1136, or reach Southwest Conservation Corps. at (520) 884-5550. Lipman can be reached at (520) 906-7215. Best and Hamner are at (520) 615-8400. Blanchette should be contacted at (520) 323-5138 and Reed is at (520) 918-5189. Stuart is able to be reached at (520) 323-5180 and Irvin is at (520) 620-1833.
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