Exhibit 99.1
August 13, 2014
FSP 303 East Wacker Drive Corp.
The Board of Directors of FSP 303 East Wacker Drive Corp. (the "Company") has continued its suspension of dividend distributions for the quarter ended June 30, 2014 due to the fact that the Company’s property is not expected to generate positive cash flow for the near term.
The Company owns a 28-story, multi-tenant office tower located in downtown Chicago, Illinois containing approximately 860,000 square feet of office and retail space and a 294-stall underground parking garage (the “Property”). The Property was approximately 56% leased at the end of the second quarter of 2014. During the second quarter, management finalized a new lease with FirstService Residential for 13,759 square feet, and an existing tenant, National Tax Search, expanded by approximately 13,000 square feet. Management continues to make slow progress with leasing the existing vacancy. There has been steady touring activity at the Property by smaller prospective tenants (under 20,000 square feet) over the past six months. However, management believes that office buildings in the East Loop, the Property’s specific CBD (central business district) submarket, continue to struggle with attracting larger prospective users. As a result, management believes that the trend of high vacancies and disappointing net absorption has continued within the submarket. The East Loop office market has had difficulty stabilizing since the recession in 2008, with multiple office properties losing anchor tenants and experiencing declining occupancies. During this period of time, users in fields such as the technology sector have absorbed significant amounts of quasi-office and warehouse spaces along the Chicago River in the River North submarket and in locations considered to be on the fringes of downtown Chicago. Many of the retrofitted buildings that have been attracting these tenants were built in the early 20th century with very large floor plates that allow for extremely dense populations on a single floor.
As previously communicated to shareholders, the Property’s two largest tenants (KPMG and Groupon) departed during calendar years 2012 and 2013, which significantly decreased occupancy. Management has been able to partially mitigate the impact of those departures by finalizing leases for more than 270,000 square feet, including transactions with XPO Logistics, Senior Lifestyle Management, Maximus, Kelly Scott & Madison, Narrative Science, McGraw Hill Global Education, Smithfield Foods, FirstService Residential, National Tax Search and AECOM Technology.
Although management has plenty of work remaining to stabilize the Property, we believe that the Company has the capital to fund the estimated tenant improvement costs and leasing commissions necessary to re-lease a significant portion of the vacant space. We have been saving rental cash flow over the last few years by keeping dividend levels lower. We expect no or lower dividend distributions will continue until occupancy levels at the Property recover, and we have a better idea of the Property’s actual future capital and leasing needs. In August 2011, we secured a $35,000,000 loan from John Hancock Life Insurance Company to further assist in the re-leasing costs.
Management continues to be very focused on leasing the Property’s large existing vacancy. It is important to remember that Franklin Street Properties Corp., the Company’s sole common shareholder and the Property’s asset manager, has a large equity investment in the Company totaling $82,813,000, owning the same preferred shares as all other investors. If successful in re-leasing the large vacancy under favorable terms, the opportunity for increased dividends and/or a sale of the Property at an attractive price would be targeted objectives. Any sale of the Property would be subject to a number of conditions, including approval by the Company’s Board of Directors and approval by a majority of the holders of the Company’s preferred stock.
The Property continues to be maintained in excellent physical condition and has never looked better. Any shareholder who would like to visit the Property is welcomed and encouraged to do so. Just let us know when you will be in Chicago, and we will arrange a tour.
Please feel free to contact our Investor Services group (800-950-6288) and speak directly with Georgia Touma, Assistant Vice President and Director of Investor Services, or with one of the Investor Services Specialists, Lara Ryan or Michelle Sullivan, with any questions you may have.
George J. Carter
President – FSP 303 East Wacker Drive Corp.
The Company’s quarterly filing on Form 10-Q will be submitted to the SEC within approximately 45 days after the end of the quarter, and you will be able to access the document via the SEC’s website. To view Company filings with the SEC, access the following link:
http://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001431766
If the link does not work properly, go to www.sec.gov, Filings & Forms, Search for Company Filings; Company or fund name, ticker symbol, CIK (Central Index Key), file number, state, country, or SIC (Standard Industrial Classification); Company Name: type FSP 303 East Wacker (no need to type complete name, but be sure to include FSP); click on Find Companies at bottom of page and you should be brought to the correct location to view filings.
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| QUARTER | DIVIDEND | DIVIDENDS | ANNUALIZED | DIVIDENDS | |
| ENDING | PER SHARE | PAID | YIELD* | PER SHARE | |
| TOTAL PAID TO DATE | |||||
| (1/5-3/31) | |||||
| 3/31/2007 | $1,340 | $2,961,400 | 5.6% | ||
| 6/30/2007 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 9/30/2007 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 12/31/2007 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 2007 | $5,540 | ||||
| 3/31/2008 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 6/30/2008 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 9/30/2008 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 12/31/2008 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 2008 | $11,140 | ||||
| 3/31/2009 | $1,400 | $3,094,000 | 5.6% | ||
| 6/30/2009 | $1,013 | $2,238,730 | 4.1% | ||
| 9/30/2009 | $1,013 | $2,238,730 | 4.1% | ||
| 12/31/2009 | $1,011 | $2,234,310 | 4.0% | ||
| 2009 | $15,577 | ||||
| 3/31/2010 | $997 | $2,203,370 | 4.0% | ||
| 6/30/2010 | $914 | $2,019,940 | 3.7% | ||
| 9/30/2010 | $914 | $2,019,940 | 3.7% | ||
| 12/31/2010 | $1,040 | $2,298,400 | 4.2% | ||
| 2010 | $19,442 | ||||
| 3/31/2011 | $679 | $1,500,590 | 2.7% | ||
| 6/30/2011 | $859 | $1,898,390 | 3.4% | ||
| 9/30/2011 | $859 | $1,898,390 | 3.4% | ||
| 12/31/2011 | $859 | $1,898,390 | 3.4% | ||
| 2011 | $22,698 | ||||
| 3/31/2012 | $859 | $1,898,390 | 3.4% | ||
| 6/30/2012 | $859 | $1,898,390 | 3.4% | ||
| 9/30/2012 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 12/31/2012 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 2012 | $24,416 | ||||
| 3/31/2013 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 6/30/2013 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 9/30/2013 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 12/31/2013 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 2013 | $24,416 | ||||
| 3/31/2014 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 6/30/2014 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| 2014 | $24,416 |
*Yield based on original offering amount of $221,000,000 and $100,000/share
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this letter that state the Company’s or management's intentions, beliefs, expectations, or predictions for the future may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This letter may also contain forward-looking statements based on current judgments and current knowledge of management, which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned that our forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainty, including without limitation, disruptions in the debt markets, economic conditions, risks of a lessening demand for the real estate owned by us, changes in government regulations and regulatory uncertainty, uncertainty about government fiscal policy, geopolitical events and expenditures that cannot be anticipated such as utility rate and usage increases, unanticipated repairs, additional staffing, insurance increases and real estate tax valuation reassessments. Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. We will not update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this letter to conform them to actual results or to changes in our expectations that occur after such date, other than as required by law.
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