Guardian Resources, a retirement planning and financial advisory firm, moved this week to 8,000 square feet in Crescent Ridge II, a Golden Valley, Minnesota, Class-A office property owned by Piedmont Realty.
The company spent the last 20 years at Park Place West and was one of the building’s first tenants.
The new space is similar in size to the lease in Park Place West, but that space was split into two adjacent suites. The new space offers two reception desks, a coffee bar, a large employee break room, four client conference rooms, and collaboration spaces for employees. Crescent Ridge II also offers common areas, onsite parking, a cafeteria, a coffee shop, fitness center, and meeting spaces.
Katie Trevena, senior vice president – Forte Real Estate Partners, led the search for Guardian. With a focus on the West End/Golden Valley submarket to accommodate employee and client proximity, she identified options that provided a Class-A experience and spec or pre-built spaces.
After Guardian signed the lease in August, Forte’s Vice President of Project Management Wally Tufvander began to complete the tenant improvements, which included leveraging some existing infrastructure. Other project partners were BDH, which designed an elevated reception and employee break room, and Crawford Merz, the general contractor. Matt Elder and Steve Shepard from Newmark represented Piedmont.
Guardian partners with Johnson Law Firm to provide complete retirement planning for clients from pre-retirement through estate planning. The 30-person firm was founded in 2010 and has experienced 70% growth in the last three years. Employees work full-time in the office to support the company’s mission to offer clients high-level customer service.
