Darwin Investment Group has locked down full control of a sprawling industrial portfolio stretching from southeastern Wisconsin into the Chicago area, completing a $130 million refinancing on 39 buildings that total more than 2 million square feet. The deal, completed by Sept. 21, also saw the firm's two principals buy out their partners entirely, taking their ownership stake from 51 percent to 100 percent.
Buyout Gives Cibula and Lewandowski Full Control
George Cibula and Matthew Lewandowski acquired the 49 percent ownership interest previously held by their partners, bringing their stake in the 39-building portfolio to full ownership, according to Connect CRE. The portfolio stretches from Chicago's south suburbs through southeastern Wisconsin and is home to more than 225 tenants, the outlet reports. Financing for the refinancing came from a dedicated Middle Market Real Estate team within Wells Fargo Commercial Banking, according to DarwinPW Realty.
Per the same account, the firm announced completion of the $130 million refinancing covering the 39-building portfolio exceeding 2 million square feet. The geographic footprint is notably wide: the acquired properties extend as far north as Racine and as far south as Alsip, as reported by The Real Deal. Lewandowski told the outlet the properties are 99 percent leased.
A Decades-Deep Chicago Industrial Player
Darwin has operated in the Chicago industrial real estate market for upwards of five decades, The Real Deal notes. The company now owns more than 70 properties in total, spanning over 3 million square feet and featuring more than 300 tenants — a scale that places this latest refinancing as one piece of a much larger operation rather than a standalone bet.
Lewandowski has said he and Cibula prefer to buy and hold properties for the long term, and the pair plan to keep growing the portfolio for the foreseeable future, though they may sell individual properties if the price is right. Should they sell off portions of their broader holdings, the two may also turn to 1031 exchanges, a tax deferral strategy tied to reinvesting proceeds from property sales.
Betting on Chicago's Logistics Muscle
Lewandowski pointed to Chicago's logistics advantages as a reason for the firm's continued bullishness, saying the city is well positioned for national distribution thanks to strong railroad access and airports. Going forward, the pair will focus on acquiring and holding properties long term in the greater Chicago area, the surrounding Midwest, and Florida — a shift that comes as the southeastern Wisconsin market finds a more balanced footing.
That regional context matters. Southeastern Wisconsin's industrial vacancy rate rose to approximately 7.8 percent by the end of 2025, according to REBusinessOnline, even as more than 3 million square feet of new industrial space was delivered there last year. The region still posted roughly 1.5 million square feet of net absorption in 2025, but leasing activity has since become more measured, with tenants growing more selective and underwriting timelines stretching out, the publication reports.
Chicago Industrial Market Trends
Transaction volume across southeastern Wisconsin's industrial capital markets slowed in 2025 as buyers and sellers worked to align on pricing amid higher interest rates, and cap rates expanded modestly, particularly for secondary assets, even as investor interest in industrial properties remained strong. The broader Chicago market has also seen shifts in industrial construction activity and asking rates.
This isn't Darwin's first large-scale refinancing in the region. In May 2025, the firm refinanced a 40-building, 2.2-million-square-foot portfolio across greater Chicagoland with a $100 million loan, also through Wells Fargo. Other investors have been active in the space too — JLL arranged $35.6 million in acquisition financing for a four-property Chicago industrial portfolio totaling 411,781 square feet in the O'Hare, Northwest Cook and North DuPage submarkets, and deals like Ares Management's $46 million investment in an Aurora property and Stag Industrial's $74 million Chicagoland portfolio purchase from CBRE Investment Management underscore continued institutional appetite for warehouse and distribution space in the region.
