When Baltimore-based St. John Properties sought an entry point into North Carolina’s booming commercial real estate market, Dustin Atkielski had to look no further than the community where he resides: The Town of Wake Forest.
Dustin Atkielski, Regional Partner for St. John Properties
“Living here gives me a constant reminder how exceptional the Wake Forest community is, from Friday Night on White, to bike rides with my family on the Greenways, to our favorite local ice cream spot,” says Atkielski, Regional Partner for St. John Properties, the award-winning design, development, and management firm founded in 1971. With a $5 billion-plus real estate portfolio stretching across 11 states, St. John set its sights on North Carolina in 2022. “Our company was looking to expand its presence nationally, and North Carolina checked all the right boxes,” he says.
Atkielski, a Wisconsin native who grew tired of long winters, lives in Wake Forest with his wife and three young sons. He knew first-hand the town’s long list of assets and amenities, but also that its inventory of Class ‘A’ commercial real estate had ample room to grow. His focus narrowed to 30 acres of undeveloped land along Star Road on the eastern side of Capital Boulevard. Following initial conversations with Jason Cannon, President of the Wake Forest Business and Industry Partnership (WFBIP), Atkielski and his St. John colleagues, with support from local Wake Forest firms, began sharpening their vision for putting high-quality retail, office, and flex/R&D space on the property which has been dubbed “Wake Forest Exchange.”
“The whole town has been great,” he says. The company is expected to bring details of its project before the Town Planning Board in November and the Wake Forest Board of Commissioners in December. “We’re wrapping up our final rounds of approvals with the Town right now and looking to start breaking ground in early 2024,” added Atkielski. “It’s really going to be a high-caliber development,” he says of St. John Properties’ first acquisition in North Carolina. “We’re very excited to announce that it’s in Wake Forest.”
Plans for the office portion of the project include single-story, direct-entry spaces. Sketches of its multi-tenant retail component involve construction of two approximately 10,000-sq.-ft. buildings. “This particular part of Wake Forest is in need of an expansion of quality retail space,” he says. Retailers will likely include both locally operated and national operators – including food and beverage concepts. “The tenant mix will be based on providing good fits that support the current residents and businesses in this area, as well as future growth,” Atkielski says. Flex/R&D spaces will be designed specifically to cater to entrepreneurs and businesses that the Research Triangle region is known to attract and foster.
Wake Forest Mayor Vivian Jones says the St. John Properties project fits neatly with her hopes that the town can be a more dynamic environment for smaller retailers and other enterprises. “I’d like for us to be considered ‘the’ community for small businesses,” says Jones, who has served as mayor since 2001. She is also eager to see additional high-quality commercial development along that stretch of Capital Boulevard. “This certainly fits in with what I think Wake Forest should be.”
As a resident of Wake Forest since 1981, Mayor Jones has witnessed the town’s rise from a sleepy suburban outpost into a bustling destination for people and businesses. “In 1981, the joke was, you had to go into Raleigh to buy underwear,” Jones recalls with a laugh. “We had one grocery store and Shorty’s Hot Dogs.” These days, of course, far more retail options are available locally. But gaps still exist, Mayor Jones says, “This is going to be a good thing for the town,” she says of Wake Forest Exchange.
With an office in north Raleigh, Dustin Atkielski is among St. John Properties’ large team of results-focused real estate professionals. Baltimore entrepreneur Edward St. John founded the firm in 1971 with a mission of delivering best-in-class products and services. Today, it’s one of the country’s largest privately-held commercial real estate firms. The company’s diversified portfolio consists of Class ‘A’ flex/R&D, office, retail, and warehouse properties, as well as mixed-use communities collectively spanning more than 3,000 residential units. NAIOP, the national commercial real estate development association, named St. John Properties its 2018 National Developer of the Year.
“It’s so encouraging to have such a prestigious national name investing so boldly in Wake Forest’s inventory of business product,” says WFBIP’s Jason Cannon. The company’s reputation for long-term commitment to its properties and communities makes it a great fit for the Town’s strategy for creating livable jobs and welcoming businesses of all kinds. “Bringing tens of millions in new tax base investment and some 500 new jobs, this project will be a game-changer for a part of the community that is currently underserved,” Cannon explains. “I look forward to continuing this exciting collaboration with Dustin as he leads St. John Properties’ vision to create best-in-class commercial real estate here in Wake Forest.”
For more information on Wake Forest Exchange, see here. For further details on St. John Properties in North Carolina, see here.
