This Week in Upper Arlington
June 2, 1999
Schenk Building Business as Tenant Representative
By Jeff Donahue
ThisWeek Staff Writer
 
Greg Schenk says he thanks God every day for the success he is enjoying today.
 
Just 12 years ago, Schenk was a rookie in the competitive real estate business, making a modest $12,000 a year. So far this year, the Schenk Company has closed on more than $22-million worth of business.
 
Schenk's tenant representation and real estate advisory services firm specializes in meeting the many needs of business clients, including relocation and expansion into new facilities.
 
While Schenk has helped a number of clients build or acquire new facilities this year, the recent acquisition of a new headquarters for his own business tops the list.
 
Schenk and Candida LLC closed last week on the Bischoff & Associates Building at 807 Kinnear Road.
 
Schenk and Candida LLC, one of his clients, purchased the 28,000-square foot building on the 4.5-acre site just west of Lenox Town Center. For Candida, it represented a new investment opportunity. For Schenk, it meant a highly visible headquarters for his business.
 
The future looks bright for Schenk's tenant representative business. So far this year, the company has handled a number of acquisitions for a wide variety of clients, including:
  • The Action Group's purchase of a 155,500-square-foot headquarters at 411 Reynoldsburg - New Albany Road.
  • The McIntyre COmpany's purchase of its new corporate headquarters being built on Manning Parkway in Liberty Township.
  • Khempco Building Supply Company's acquisition of a 15.5-acre site for a lumber yard in Union County.
  • The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms' relocation to its new regional headquarters at 37 W. Broad St.
  • Definitive Homecare Solutions' purchase of its new headquarters at 4150 Indianola Ave.
  • Five Seasons Landscape Management's new headquarters at the Westborne Commerce Center.
  • Specialized Flooring's new headquarters at 6767 Commerce Court Drive.
  • Caspian Software's new 15,000-square-foot offices and training facility at 6600 Busch Blvd.
  • The Learning Center's new daycare site on Sunbury Road in Westerville.
  • Zero Base Advertising's new corporate headquarters at 7003 Post Road in Dublin.
  • Foresight Corporation's new corporate headquarters at Dublin Techmart on Frantz Road.
  • Aurora Imaging's new Ohio office at 6200 Avery Road.
  • Bloomfield Computer Solutions' relocation to Dublin's Upper Metro Place.
  • New offices for Micro Motion, a division of Rosemont, Inc., at 555 Metro Place in Dublin.
"Our goal is to form good, long-term relationships with companies," Schenk said. "We try to look out their needs, not only today but in the future."
 
Schenk accomplished that in Worthington while working with Christmas Village/Curio Cabinet.
 
After helping the businesses search for other possible, lease, purchase or build sites, he advised them to investigate purchasing the 12,000-square-foot, mixed-use, office, and retail building, which they did.
 
Schenk also recently worked with the Toledo-based Scrambler's Restaurant chain, advising the breakfast- and lunch- only operation on expansion strategies in the Columbus market.
 
"I went and ate at the Scrambler's on Cleveland Avenue one morning," Schenk said. "I called him up and told him they needed a better location."
 
That telephone call led to a decision to open a Scrambler's Restaurant in Powell's Greystone Center this fall and a Bethel-Sawmill restaurant early in 2000.
 
Schenk was also involved in negotiations for the Carlile Club, downtown Columbus's newest night club, across High Street from the convention center, which is slated to open in July. A highlight of that grand opening will be a charity fundraiser for the Jeff Schenk Memorial Cancer Fund at Children's Hospital. Schenk founded the fund in memory of his brother, who died of the disease. (See article)
 
"Everything we do, we try to find some way to give back to the community," Schenk said. "This fund is obviously a very special cause for me."