One of the most prominent bank buildings in Downtown Santa Rosa was sold last week by a Bay Area family to New York based Caspi Development Co. for $9,726,000. Located at the corner of Third Street and Santa Rosa Ave., the home of Bank of America has been a fixture in the Downtown core and financial center of Sonoma County since 1966.

According to Paul Schwartz of Terra Firma Global Partners Commercial Division who represented the Seller in the transaction, the fifty-two year old Bank of America building will continue to be the main branch of Bank of America in Santa Rosa. The building is within the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan and as such is suitable for future mid-rise development of one or a mix of apartment, hotel, retail and office uses. The Buyer Caspi Development Company has a successful history of apartment and hotel development and management on the East Coast.

Caspi Development Co. along with some of their San Francisco Bay Area based partners are considering a future mid-rise development overlooking Courthouse Square. The current 31,539 square foot two-story facility has been the main Sonoma County branch of the Bank since its construction in 1966. The site houses various departments of B of A in addition to the main retail branch. The second floor has historically been the location of the Bank’s wealth management and trust departments.

“The family that sold the property is not in the development business and was looking for a new investment opportunity with longer term leases and income stability”, according to Schwartz. “In the years to come this site could become a centerpiece of future Downtown developments, and this was an optimum time to sell for that reason”. The City indicates the site could accommodate a 10-story or taller structure, and could be designed for a number of potential uses.

The City of Santa Rosa is encouraging Downtown mid-rise development to create more daytime office employees, housing and tourism activity to support the retail and restaurant businesses in the core area and throughout the City.

The partnership who bought the property will receive income from the B of A lease for many years to come while evaluating the site and planning their development strategy. David Kram, one of the partners in the new ownership group, noted that Caspi Development already has roots in Sonoma County. “One side of our family has a home in Glen Elen, and we’ve been visiting them for many years. It has been our desire to find commercial real estate opportunities here and feel this site is a strong investment with tremendous future potential.”

For more details about the sale please call Paul Schwartz, in the Santa Rosa office of Terra Firma Global Partners at 707-479-1841 or David Kram of Lockehouse Investments at 650-445-4491 in San Mateo.