Ryan Cos. purchases century-old office building near Downtown East

Developer Ryan Cos. has added another investment to its portfolio in northeast quadrant of downtown Minneapolis by purchasing a century-old office building that is skyway-connected to a booming stretch of the city.

The Minneapolis-based firm bought the six-story, 72,000-square-foot building for just over $4 million last month, according to a certificate of real estate value filed last week.

Tony Barranco, vice president of development at Ryan, said "it is a value-add opportunity" -- meaning the company will invest in some upgrades to the property, but doesn't have plans for a major redevelopment of the site.

The building, built in 1906, is home to Kinney & Lange, an intellectual property law firm. The seller, Skyway Properties LLC, is a Florida-incorporated entity composed of some members of the law firm.

While the building may be humble by itself, it is strategically located just two blocks from Ryan's marquee project -- the new Wells Fargo towers in Downtown East, a major redevelopment effort currently underway -- and is connected via skyway.