The new owners of Place 400 in Saint John have big plans for the office building — and none of them involve turning it into residential space.

R2 Capital Partners recently purchased the commercial building on Main Street in the city’s north end for around $2.8 million.

The 160,000 sq. ft. space was initially listed for $6.2 million, but the sale price was recently cut in half to $3.1 million.

Brock Rogerson, co-founder of R2 Capital, said he is excited to expand their footprint in the Port City.

“Our confidence has grown in the Saint John market as we’ve found that buildings that have good locations and are priced right and with good communications with our tenants, that we can find demand for office space,” Rogerson said in an interview with our newsroom.

R2 Capital also owns two other properties in Saint John, including an office building at 75 Prince William Street uptown, which Rogerson said they have been able to fully lease over the past year.

The co-founder said while Place 400 was a “heck of a price” at $2.8 million, there are a lot of deferred capital expenditures that they have to invest in the building.

“Some of the systems are older because they have not been upgraded since it was built back in the 80s, so for the most part, it can be delayed and we can do it as we’re fitting the building up,” he said.

“The roof is going to need a little bit more attention immediately. And then beyond that, what we really want to invest in is the tenants and the potential tenants.”

Since the building went up on the market, there has been lots of discussion about turning the commercial space into residential, given its location and proximity to the city’s uptown core.

Brunswick Brokers, which listed the property, said it was believed the highest and best use for the site was to demolish the existing structure in favour of a brand-new high-rise residential development.

Rogerson said his company has no plans for residential on the site, adding that it “wasn’t really realistic” due to the building’s floor plates and the need to bring it into current requirements.

“The proof of that is just that three different buyers looked at it and after their due diligence had all come to the same conclusion that it just can’t be done. Like you’d be better off to just knock the whole thing down and start again, and the truth is that the bones of the building are really good,” he said.

“We’re going to fix it up. It’s going to be a great place to work. We’re open and ready to talk to locals about moving their businesses into the building.”

Rogerson said he thinks the certainty of knowing what the future holds for the building will really change things for the property because people can make long-term plans.

Currently, about one-third of the 160,000 sq. ft. building is leased. He anticipates the 100,000 sq. ft. that are currently vacant will be leased within a two-year time frame.