Longtime Ann Arbor-based Atwell-Hicks Inc. made many changes over the past week, not the least of which is changing its name to Atwell and moving its remaining three Michigan offices.

Company officials would not discuss other changes at the private land development consulting firm, which has been in the Ann Arbor region since it was founded in 1905 - including whether there’s an ownership transition, too.

What is clear is that the move is resulting in a downsized presence in Ann Arbor, as the headquarters moves to Southfield.

And as the rest of the story unfolds, there’s also a tale of local real estate contrasts in the Atwell transition.

The company moved the day after an eviction order was signed in Washtenaw County Circuit Court, leaving its headquarters at 500 Avis Dr. near the entrance to Avis Farms in Pittsfield Township.

That building made news in 2007 when it sold for $5.7 million, making it one of the top office building deals in the area ever.

At over $206 per square foot, that price set a new plateau in the Ann Arbor commercial real estate market.

And at the time, out-of-state investors were considering the Ann Arbor area as a stable market that looked like a value play compared to the still-escalating prices - and razor-thin returns - from buildings on either U.S. coast.

So the buyers - a California couple - put up the cash for an 8.5 percent capitalization rate, or the simple rate of return, based on the purchase price and the net operating income.

That rate of return was based on the lease with Atwell -Hicks, the only tenant in the building at the time.

In recent years, as Atwell-Hicks downsized amid the building slowdown, portions of the building were put up for sublease. The most recent listing that I could find ended in the spring, when a tenant was sought for an undisclosed price.

Something in the Atwell-Hicks tenancy turned bad. People involved won’t disclose it yet, and public records offer few clues so far.

But that’s what brings me to the contrast part of this real estate story.

The new version of Atwell had quietly leased a new, much smaller office nearby at 4750 Venture Dr.

That property made news this year as one of the cheapest office deals recorded in this area. An entity related to Friedman Real Estate Group bought it and an adjoining property after they failed to sell at auction for $3.6 million.

Unclear is the final purchase price. I’m told it’s under $1.5 million. But one indicator is the advertised lease rate of $7.95 per square foot - another new floor in the South State office market.

We’re a few weeks away from learning that latest vacancy data in the Ann Arbor office market, but it’s expected to be higher than at the end of 2008, when the area-wide number was just under 15 percent.

But we’re catching a glimpse of the transition in today’s office market - from the value fluctuations to corporate downsizing to issues with tenants and their payments - just in the Atwell move.

About 2.5 years ago, the company was the key tenant in the biggest office deal in the market.

Today, they’ve moved to the cheapest space in the lowest-priced building sold in Ann Arbor during the downturn.

Meanwhile, the owners of 500 Avis Dr. are trying to move forward and find a tenant for the property.

Cameron McCausland, managing director of the Metro Detroit office of Colliers International, called the property “a nicely appointed building.”

He and Tim Guest are co-listing the building immediately, with an asking price of $15 per square foot for lease.

Or another buyer could step up. Today’s asking price, after Atwell’s eviction: $4.2 million.

Paula Gardner is business news director at AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at 734-623-2586 or by email.