RACER Trust Sells Interest in Pontiac Centerpoint Business Campus

Centerpoint Associates, LLC, Will Continue Operations of Business Park

PONTIAC, Mich. — RACER Trust announced today that it has sold its interest in the Pontiac Centerpoint Business Campus to Centerpoint Associates, LLC, a wholly owned affiliate of Etkin, a prominent Southeast Michigan commercial real estate enterprise and property manager.

Etkin Equities, LLC, has operated the Pontiac Centerpoint Business Campus since 1994, originally in partnership with the General Motors Co. or “old GM.” Old GM’s ownership stake was transferred to RACER Trust as part of the automaker’s bankruptcy proceedings in 2011. Etkin Equities continued to market the properties to prospective tenants under terms of a lease that was transferred from old GM to RACER Trust.

Founded in 1982, Etkin has experience developing a wide range of properties, including office space, hotel and senior living developments across Southeast Michigan. In addition to GM, Etkin has executed build-to-suit projects for companies such as Volkswagen of America, TCF Bank, PricewaterhouseCoopers, BorgWarner, Compuware, DaimlerChrysler and Merrill Lynch. Etkin has developed more than 60 high-profile properties consisting of over 9.5 million square feet of commercial space in Michigan.

Centerpoint Business Campus is about 70 percent occupied, with tenants representing various commercial, retail, light industrial and recreational uses.

“RACER Trust’s mission is to sell properties to responsible buyers who will invest in economic development and beneficial reuse, and we’re pleased that the Etkin group stepped forward with an interest in acquiring our share of the Centerpoint Business Campus,” said Elliott P. Laws, of EPLET, LLC, administrative trustee of RACER Trust. “They have proven expertise in property management that leads to job creation, and we wish them continued success with their ownership and marketing of the Centerpoint Business Campus.”

“We are confident that the future is bright for Centerpoint,” Etkin Principal Douglas Etkin said. “We value our prior relationship with General Motors and appreciate our collaborative efforts with RACER during the past 5 years.”  

“Etkin is a known and respected business name in Southeast Michigan, and a good neighbor in Pontiac,” said Pontiac Mayor Dr. Deirdre Waterman. “Etkin’s proven track record, depth of experience and local market knowledge give it, and our community, an advantage in attracting businesses with the staying power to be successful over the long term.”  

About Etkin: Based in Southfield, Mich., Etkin has played a prominent role in Southeast Michigan real estate development for over 30 years. The privately owned company, formed in 1982, employs a collaborative approach to delivering superior results with integrity and quality. It has consistently been named one of Metro Detroit’s 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For by the Michigan Business and Professional Association and has received numerous awards and recognitions for its first-rate services. For more information, please visit www.etkinllc.com.

About RACER Trust: RACER (Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response) Trust was created to clean up and position for redevelopment properties and other facilities owned by the former General Motors Corp. before its 2009 bankruptcy. RACER is one of the largest holders of industrial property in the United States and is the largest environmental response and remediation trust in U.S. history. When the Trust was formed, it owned properties at 89 locations in 14 states, principally in the Midwest and Northeast. The Trust was created by a settlement agreement in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court between the U.S. Government, the 14 states where the former GM properties are located, and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, which owns land adjoining one of the properties in Upstate New York. For more information, please visit our website: www.racertrust.org.