The City of Brooklyn Park desired to create a new Small Business Incubator Center to help immigrant businesses have a greater chance for success. IAG was hired to map out a six-sigma process and composition of the center through facilitation of stakeholder meetings. Once defined, IAG and WSB Engineering teamed up to represent the City of Brooklyn Park in assistance with this effort.
The City was not sure if it made more sense for them to lease or buy a building. Stakeholder mapping indicated office and office/warehouse needs were most prevalent but there was defined need for some retail space, as well. This created facility challenges as no single building seemed ideal for the mix of required needs such as dock doors, retail visibility with parking and 12 ft. plus ceiling heights.
IAG Commercial utilized Six Sigma techniques to define the need for an entrepreneurial incubator space within the city. IAG led an effort to identify stakeholder’s and engage in discussion around their individual business needs and desired space needs IAG then worked with the city to gain approval to proceed toward finding the most ideal building/space to purchase or lease.
WSB and IAG embarked on a needs analysis process which included a programming exercise to determine the requirements of a new space. An architect was selected and WSB and IAG guided the architect through the programming exercise.
IAG then went to the marketplace to identify all possible alternatives which could fulfill the City’s requirements. WSB and IAG toured the spaces, issued a request for proposal to finalist and discussed the pros and cons of each space with the City.
WSB and IAG worked with a general contractor to create a high-level estimate which was used to compare the spaces. IAG then developed a detailed financial analysis which identified the financial implications of the real estate decision at hand. IAG was instructed to purchase a 60,000 square foot retail strip center that was partially leased and an adjacent land lease that housed a former CVS drug store.
IAG is currently acting as owner’s construction representative to oversee the space construction, IT & AV Design, design and selection of furniture, fixtures and equipment. IAG is managing the consulting team and working with the City’s EDA staff. IAG is maintaining the schedule and budget, facilitating bidding and construction, FF&E installation, punch list and commissioning. Last, IAG is assisting the City with reviewing and approving all pay applications, collecting lien waivers and working with the title company to facilitate title searches and funding.
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