Uber co-founder’s ghost kitchen startup buys into Scott’s Addition

6.29R ghostkitchen1

Formerly an industrial building, 2812 W. Broad St. is currently vacant and is likely to be converted into a ghost kitchen. (Mike Platania photo)

A ghost kitchen startup from an Uber co-founder has taken a bite out of Scott’s Addition.

Earlier this month an entity tied to City Storage Systems bought the building at 2812 W. Broad St. for $750,000. The one-story, 6,100-square-foot building is just east of the Hofheimer Building.

City Storage Systems is the parent company of Cloud Kitchens, a ghost kitchen startup from Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick.

Kalanick resigned from the ride-sharing company, under pressure from investors, in 2017 as it faced controversies surrounding allegations of sexual harassment and sexism in the workplace.

He then started Cloud Kitchens, which through the ghost kitchen model offers rentable kitchens to restaurateurs for delivery-only business.

The Broad Street deal is the first known investment for Cloud Kitchens in the Richmond area. The firm has spent over $130 million on real estate all over the country in similarly structured deals, the Wall Street Journal reported last fall.

6.29R ghostkitchen2

A screenshot of Cloud Kitchens’ website.

The 0.14-acre property, near the intersection of Broad and Arthur Ashe Boulevard, was most recently assessed by the city at $501,000.

Commonwealth Commercial’s Ryan Fanelli and Colton Konvicka represented the sellers, Richard and Roslyn Blankenship, who had owned the building since 1994, when they purchased it for $85,000. Ben Bruni, also with Commonwealth Commercial, represented the buyer.

In March, the Blankenships filed a zoning confirmation letter to the city seeking to verify that uses including a commercial kitchen, catering and food manufacturing were permitted on the property. The uses are allowed, city records show.

It’s unclear what Cloud Kitchens’ timetable for the project is. Requests for comment sent to the company and its attorneys at Missouri-based Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner went unreturned.

The 2800 block of West Broad Street has been busy in the last year.

The Hofheimer Building went on the market last fall, and despite early interest from a buyer, a deal never materialized. The building’s no longer listed for sale.

To the west of the Hof, at 2820 W. Broad St., Bank Street Advisors is planning a seven-story mixed-use project that would add 73 apartments and ground-floor retail space.

6.29R ghostkitchen1

Formerly an industrial building, 2812 W. Broad St. is currently vacant and is likely to be converted into a ghost kitchen. (Mike Platania photo)

A ghost kitchen startup from an Uber co-founder has taken a bite out of Scott’s Addition.

Earlier this month an entity tied to City Storage Systems bought the building at 2812 W. Broad St. for $750,000. The one-story, 6,100-square-foot building is just east of the Hofheimer Building.

City Storage Systems is the parent company of Cloud Kitchens, a ghost kitchen startup from Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick.

Kalanick resigned from the ride-sharing company, under pressure from investors, in 2017 as it faced controversies surrounding allegations of sexual harassment and sexism in the workplace.

He then started Cloud Kitchens, which through the ghost kitchen model offers rentable kitchens to restaurateurs for delivery-only business.

The Broad Street deal is the first known investment for Cloud Kitchens in the Richmond area. The firm has spent over $130 million on real estate all over the country in similarly structured deals, the Wall Street Journal reported last fall.

6.29R ghostkitchen2

A screenshot of Cloud Kitchens’ website.

The 0.14-acre property, near the intersection of Broad and Arthur Ashe Boulevard, was most recently assessed by the city at $501,000.

Commonwealth Commercial’s Ryan Fanelli and Colton Konvicka represented the sellers, Richard and Roslyn Blankenship, who had owned the building since 1994, when they purchased it for $85,000. Ben Bruni, also with Commonwealth Commercial, represented the buyer.

In March, the Blankenships filed a zoning confirmation letter to the city seeking to verify that uses including a commercial kitchen, catering and food manufacturing were permitted on the property. The uses are allowed, city records show.

It’s unclear what Cloud Kitchens’ timetable for the project is. Requests for comment sent to the company and its attorneys at Missouri-based Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner went unreturned.

The 2800 block of West Broad Street has been busy in the last year.

The Hofheimer Building went on the market last fall, and despite early interest from a buyer, a deal never materialized. The building’s no longer listed for sale.

To the west of the Hof, at 2820 W. Broad St., Bank Street Advisors is planning a seven-story mixed-use project that would add 73 apartments and ground-floor retail space.

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Ed Christina
Ed Christina
2 years ago

I suppose that location has a lot of delivery demand, but I’m surprised that a less attractive building location would not be selected.

Does this location have access to the type of parkin that is conducive to drivers picking up for multiple trips?

Ed Christina
Ed Christina
2 years ago
Reply to  Ed Christina

Right, but where are all those Grub Hub cars going to go?
5 or 6 cars waiting on Broad Street with hazards flashing is going to cause a big impact on traffic at that intersection. Can they use the alley in back?

Holly Ulrich
Holly Ulrich
2 years ago
Reply to  Ed Christina

Where did the cars park when the Hof was Adams Camera?