7/30/2018, 7:16am CDT
The spaces that make up Market House Collaborative in Lowertown St. Paul were sold last week for $1.82 million. Made up of the collection of business that were envisioned by star chef Tim McKee, the 25,000-square-foot space includes his Octo Fishbar restaurant, a fish and meat market, a bakery and the forthcoming Birch’s Lowertown brewery. The new owners don't anticipate to make any changes for the existing tenants, and hope they stay there beyond their five-year leases. A trio of investors from Caspian Group — Rafik Moore, Marshall Nguyen and Raim Abdurakhimov — and Daniel Kurkowski of VSM Real Estate jointly purchased the spaces that house the businesses. “We think the property has the potential to appreciate,” said Rafik Moore, the Edina-based Caspian’s principal. “We basically have the tenants there ... [and we] want to try to maintain it.” Cushman and Wakefield’s Andrea Christenson represented the previous owner Kris Maritz on the deal. The former Heatland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market space, McKee’s food hall concept first opened in October 2017 and houses the St. Paul Farmer’s Market during the winter.