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As two individuals with a long history in real estate as well as community behavioral health, Alex Ruggieri and Jerry Ramshaw spent much of 2018 collaborating on several major transactions in excess of $8,000,000 that will change the face of substance abuse and recovery in Champaign/Urbana.  Alex explains, “our company has been involved in behavioral health Champaign or Urbana for over 25 years. I had the privilege of serving on the board of the mental health center for 10 years, Jerry Ramshaw served on their board for 10 years, and now Jay Ramshaw continues this legacy of our office’s commitment to behavioral health as a standing board member of Rosecrance.”

In September, the PASS Program, represented by Alex Ruggieri, sold their building on Moreland Blvd to Rosecrance to create a “Center of Recovery” with 32 residential beds and a 12-bed recovery home. Rosecrance’s entrance into Champaign/Urbana involved mergers with Community Elements and Prairie Center, both of whom had real estate throughout town. To consolidate services and focus efforts on their primary mission in treating substance use disorder, Rosecrance, counseled by Jerry Ramshaw, sold two buildings over the course of the year – one on Fox Drive and one on Hill Street.

These three transactions, while very significant at present, will create opportunities and a great impact on the community for many years to come.  Jerry, in speaking of the gravity of the new services created in Champaign County, extends “great thanks to Rosecrance for allowing Ramshaw Real Estate to assist in their growth this year” and believes “this is a huge win for all parties and the community.”

In August 2018, the PASS Program moved their operations to Lincoln Square in Urbana with assistance from Marty Smith of Ramshaw Real Estate. After a bit of “musical buildings” throughout the year, it seems all parties have settled into spaces ideally suited for their business models and clients served, with the bonus of great advancement for our community.  

REALTOR® Todd Salen, a licensed real estate broker with SVN®/Ramshaw Real Estate in Champaign has been named the 2018 REALTOR of the Year for the Champaign County Association of REALTORS®. Salen received the award at the CCAR annual awards banquet on October 19^th at the Champaign Country Club.

The award is based on involvement to the REALTOR® Association, real estate industry and contributions to the community.

In 2005, Salen obtained his real estate license and joined the Champaign County Association of REALTORS® (CCAR). He obtained his Managing Broker’s license in 2011 and this year obtained his Continuing Education Instructor’s license. He has been involved in CCAR having served as a past president of the Association (2012-13) and as a member and chairman of the Commercial Multiple Listing Service Committee and as a member of the Grievance Committee and CCAR Board of Directors.

“We recognize Todd Salen for his outstanding contributions to not only the real estate industry but through his involvement with the Champaign County Association of REALTORS® and the Champaign-Urbana community,” said Eric Porter, president of the Champaign County Association of REALTORS®. “Todd is a distinguished leader within the real estate industry and can be counted on for his involvement and has truly stepped forward in many ways to make a difference in the REALTOR® association. We thank him for the tremendous work he has done for our association and we recognize him for how he has set an impressive example for other REALTORS to emulate through his level of dedication to our community.”

Salen received his Bachelor of Arts degree in advertising from the University of Illinois at Champaign.

Salen is active in the Champaign community, having produced numerous musicals for the Champaign-Urbana Theatre Company. He is also involved with the Champaign Rotary Club, the Champaign County Humane Society, Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity, the University of Illinois Board of Fraternity Affairs and the Urbana Sweetcorn Festival. Salen also co-founded the annual local community day of service, Austin’s Day.

The Champaign County Association of REALTORS® is a voluntary organization serving Champaign County and surrounding areas, and is the leading resource for REALTOR® members and an advocate for homeownership and private property rights.

Congratulations to our brokerage team for extremely productive second and third quarters! Several transactions involved multiple brokers within our office, others were years in the making. Thank you for your hard work! We look forward to closing out a great year and meeting (or exceeding!) our $1.2M goal.

Lease/Sale	Property	Price	Brokerage	Transaction Date
3 Commercial Leases	Lincoln Square, Urbana IL	$298,800	Marty Smith & Ruggieri Team	06/2018
Sale	3202 Apollo Dr, Champaign IL	$3.3M	Ruggieri Team	06/2018
Sale	4814 S. Paradise, Mattoon, IL	$325,000	Ruggieri Team	06/2018
Sale	122 W. Hill St, Champaign IL	$925,000	Jerry Ramshaw and Ruggieri Team	06/2018
Sale	2302 Moreland Blvd, Champaign IL	$4.8M	Jerry Ramshaw and Ruggieri Team	06/2018
Sale	601 N. Country Fair, Champaign IL	$2.35M	Marty Smith	06/2018
Sale	900 Lake Land Blvd, Mattoon IL	$212,500	Ruggieri Team	07/2018
Sale	09 S. Prairieview Rd, Mahomet IL	$400,000	Ruggieri Team	07/2018
Sale	601 N. Lincoln, Urbana IL		Ruggieri Team	08/2018
Sale	25551 Center Ridge Road	$465,000	Noah Ruggieri	08/2018

 

Dubbed the “Mayor of the Mall” during one of May’s What’s in Your Square discussions, Marty Smith, Broker with Ramshaw Real Estate, was commended for his recent and ongoing success acquiring new, exciting tenants at Lincoln Square. While the new tenant buzz is strong, several current Lincoln Square organizations are also expanding and relocating within the space. And the train doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon! Smith is currently working through additional lease proposals and will have further introductions soon.

As of today, we are delighted to announce the following additions to Lincoln Square in Fall 2018:

The I.D.E.A. Store – doubling their retail space and moving into the former Art Mart space, the move will coincide with separation from The CU Schools Foundation and formation of its own, independent nonprofit. The Idea Store will remain at its current location (28 E. Springfield) until renovations are complete this Fall.
For more information on The Idea Store and its mission to provide our community with quality, reusable creative materials, visit their website here.

PASS Program – specializing in USMLE and COMLEX preparation, The PASS Program was created to provide “an environment in which a student felt no shame, no loss of pride, and no humiliation for the academic difficulties that he or she had suffered.” Dr. Francis Ihejirika, MD, Founder and CEO, started the program nearly 20 years ago in Champaign, Illinois. Dr. Francis and his team will be relocating from their current Moreland Blvd location and taking over 12,000 sq ft on the first floor, formerly occupied by Health Alliance Medical Plans. For more information on The PASS Program, please visit their website here.

Elliott Counseling Group – adding to their existing location in Champaign and relocating their Urbana campustown office, Elliott Counseling Group’s nearly 30 therapists will begin seeing clients at Lincoln Square in the Fall. Elliott Counseling Group works with all age groups and offers individuals, couples, and family therapy as well as group therapy. For more information about Elliott Counseling Group and their services, please visit their website here.

RACES – a community non-profit advocacy organization is relocating within Lincoln Square and adding additional space. “The mission of Rape Advocacy, Counseling, & Education Services is to challenge the rape culture and empower victims and survivors of sexual violence through advocacy, counseling, education, crisis intervention, and activism.” For more information or for resources for you or a loved one, visit their website here.

The former retail mall is headed in a new community epicenter direction and we couldn’t be more excited to see who and what else joins the dynamic space in its revival!
Stay tuned for more updates and tenant announcements as they are confirmed.

For questions or comments, please contact Lauren Ramshaw at [email protected].

Jordan Dunahee, Leasing Agent, has been with Ramshaw Real Estate a little over a year. As a newlywed, new homeowner, and newly licensed Realtor, Jordan was kind enough to spare a few, rare free moments to give us a little more insight into his life outside the company. Thank you for your excellent customer service, attention to detail and follow up. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for you; with your passion and knowledge of the real estate industry, we know it will be one of success!

A little more about Jordan:

Before working at Ramshaw Real Estate, what was the most unusual or interesting job you’ve ever had?
The most interesting job that I have had before working at Ramshaw was working for the Men’s Basketball team at U of I. It was an awesome experience and I was able to meet some great people and do things I may never have had the chance to do.

What is your favorite part about working for Ramshaw Real Estate?
My favorite thing about working for Ramshaw is the family-like environment. Everyone here looks out for one another and works together to make our company the best that it can be. I have developed close and lasting relationships and they have helped me put a great foot forward in my professional career!

How do you define success?
To me, success is a process as opposed to an end-all. Everyone will achieve or experience things on a different level or with a unique reference point. However, I believe if you work day-in and day-out on leading a meaningful life that positively impacts those around you, that’s really all the success you can ask for.

If you could meet anyone in the world dead or alive who would it be and why?
Michael Jordan. He was my childhood hero and I’ve always been inspired by his relentless pursuit of greatness.

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would you like to see cast as you?
I would like to see Chris Pratt cast as me. I love what Chris is all about and I think his personality and demeanor on and off the screen are admirable.

If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Sushi is one of my all-time favorite foods and it has great variety so I don’t think I’d ever get too sick of it!

Motto or personal mantra?
I don’t an exact motto or personal mantra, but I try to always put others before myself because I think that is what life is all about!

Top three life highlights?
Being baptized at my home church at age 10; Graduating from U of I in 2017; Marrying my wife, Lauren, almost a year ago now and starting our lives together!

What TV show or movie are you ashamed to admit you love?
I wouldn’t say that I am ashamed per se, but people seem to think it’s odd that my wife and I love watching Jersey Shore. We were very into the original series and now are watching the reunion episodes. We even went to see DJ Pauly D when he came to Champaign and it was a blast!

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In 5 years I see myself developing my professional career in commercial real estate and hopefully working on additional business ventures such as income properties. I see my wife and I starting our family and maybe having a kiddo or two running around as well!