Malachowski of Hunt brokers $1.85 million sale of former 109,000 s/f paper company site; Purchased by architect/developer Schneider

Hunt Commercial Real Estate has completed the sale of 136 North Division St. The deal was brokered by Hunt's downtown specialist Chris Malachowski, between AC Eagle LLC to AC Lofts LLC. Eyeing a renovation to provide for student housing, the 109,000 s/f building was purchased by the group which is fronted by Jacob Schneider, a well respected architect and developer. Schneider and his fellow investors purchased the property for $1.85 million and have already begun work on the building with hopes of welcoming its first tenants in late summer 2010. Schneider and his group are transforming the former Ailing & Cory paper company site geared towards students who are enrolled at the downtown campus of Erie Community College (ECC) and are interested in residing in close proximity to the campus (there are however, no formal ties between the developers and the college.) It has long been known that ECC would desire and benefit from a dorm-like building that would be accessible to its students both physically and economically but until now the right pieces of the puzzle could not be put together. The complex, consisting of three buildings, was built in 1905 and remained a paper company for the duration of its existence until the early 1990s. Schneider's recent successful housing venture at 210 Ellicott was also once a former paper distribution site, a deal also brokered by Malachowski in 2006. Hunt is a full service commercial real estate firm providing real estate brokerage and consulting services throughout upstate N.Y.