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Amazon Selects New York City, Northern Virginia for $5B Second Headquarters, Nashville for Operations Hub

by John Nelson

SEATTLE — Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) has officially selected New York City and Arlington, Va., as the homes for its second headquarters, confirming reports last week of the e-commerce giant’s decision to split HQ2. Amazon will invest $5 billion and create more than 50,000 jobs across the two new headquarters locations, with more than 25,000 employees in each new headquarters. Both campuses will feature 4 million square feet of new office space, which is expandable up to 8 million square feet at each location. New York City and Arlington will join Seattle as the company’s three headquarters in North America. “These two locations will allow us to attract world-class talent that will help us to continue inventing for customers for years to come,” says Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon. “The team did a great job selecting these sites, and we look forward to becoming an even bigger part of these communities.” The New York location will be in Queens’ Long Island City neighborhood. The Arlington office will be in River Landing, a newly branded neighborhood encompassing parts of Pentagon City and Crystal City in Arlington and Potomac Yard in nearby Alexandria. Amazon estimates the incremental tax revenue to exceed $10 billion for the New York location …

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AcquisitionsCompany NewsDistrict of ColumbiaMultifamilyOfficeSoutheastVirginia

DivcoWest Opens D.C. Office, Acquires 392-Unit Apartment Community in Northern Virginia

by Amy Works

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Divco West Real Estate Services (DivcoWest), a real estate investment firm based in San Francisco, has opened an office in Washington, D.C. Located at 1620 L St. N.W., the new location joins the firm’s roster of offices in Boston, Los Angeles and New York. Additionally, DivcoWest has acquired Avalon Woodland Park, a 392-unit apartment community in Herndon, Va., for an undisclosed price. The company purchased the asset in partnership with Arlington, Va.-based Blackfin Real Estate Investors and renamed the property as Adara Herndon. The gated community features a fitness center, resort-style pool, picnic tables and park benches, sand volleyball court, children’s playground and private garages.

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Company NewsNortheast

Avison Young Acquires United Kingdom’s Largest Commercial Real Estate Firm

by David Cohen

TORONTO — Avison Young has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire GVA, the largest full-service, commercial real estate firm in the United Kingdom. Based in London, GVA employs approximately 1,500 people across 15 offices in the U.K., Ireland and Poland. Toronto-based Avison Young has about 2,700 employees across its 85 global offices. The deal, which is expected to close during the first quarter of 2019, follows a $250 million (in Canadian dollars) preferred equity investment by Canadian institutional fund manager CDPQ in Avison Young’s strategic growth plan. Credit Suisse and KPMG LLP are acting as Avison Young’s financial advisors. BofA Merrill Lynch is acting as financial advisor to GVA’s parent company, Apleona Ltd., a portfolio company owned by global private-equity firm EQT.

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Company NewsNorth CarolinaRetailSoutheastTop Stories

Private Equity JV Agrees to Acquire Fast-Food Chain Bojangles’ for $593.7M

by David Cohen

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A joint venture between private equity firms Durational Capital Management LP and The Jordan Company LP has agreed to acquire chicken-and-biscuits chain Bojangles’ Inc. for $593.7 million in an all-cash transaction. Bojangles’ (NASDAQ: BOJA) stockholders will receive $16.10 in cash for each share held, representing a 15 percent premium to the closing share price of Sept. 27, a day prior to a published report by Reuters that the company was exploring alternatives including a sale. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2019 and is subject to shareholder approval. Once the transaction closes, Bojangles’ will operate as an independent, privately held company based in Charlotte. “For the Bojangles’ family of employees, franchisees, and our customers, today’s announcement represents an exciting next phase for this great brand,” says Randy Kibler, Bojangles’ interim president and CEO. “The new ownership group is committed to maintaining the qualities of this brand that have sustained it for over four decades.” Jack Fulk and Richard Thomas founded Bojangles’ in Charlotte in 1977. As of July 1, 2018, the company had 766 locations, of which 325 were company operated and 441 were franchised. The locations are primarily located in the Southeastern United States. “Bojangles’ is …

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Company NewsNorth CarolinaRetailSoutheastTop Stories

Lowe’s to Close 20 Underperforming Stores in U.S., 31 in Canada

by John Nelson

MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Lowe’s Cos. Inc. (NYSE: LOW) has unveiled its plans to close 20 underperforming stores in the United States as part of its ongoing strategic reassessment. Additionally, the company will close 31 Canadian stores. The Mooresville-based home improvement retailer stated that most associates at these stores will be extended opportunities to transition to a similar role at a nearby Lowe’s store. The majority of affected stores are located within 10 miles of another Lowe’s store. Lowe’s expects to close the impacted stores by Feb. 1, 2019, which is the end of the company’s 2018 fiscal year. The list of the closed stores can be found here. The company intends to conduct store-closing sales for most of the impacted locations, with the exception of select stores in the U.S. that will close immediately. “The store closures are a necessary step in our strategic reassessment as we focus on building a stronger business,” says Marvin Ellison, president and CEO of Lowe’s. Previously the CEO of J.C. Penney, Ellison was appointed over the summer to lead Lowe’s, taking over for Robert Niblock. Shortly after the hire, Lowe’s announced plans to close all 99 Orchard Supply Hardware stores, as well as a …

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Company NewsOfficeWashingtonWestern

Amazon Reportedly Plans to Split HQ2 Evenly Between Two Cities

by Amy Works

SEATTLE — Amazon has decided to split its second headquarters (HQ2) location between two cities, instead of creating one HQ2 facility, according a source who spoke to The Wall Street Journal. According a person familiar with the company’s plans, the driving factor behind the new decision to create two equal offices is the ability to recruit the best tech talent from various geographical regions. Additionally, the decision will ease the potential community issues regarding housing and transit for potentially thousands of new employees in one specific city. Under the new plan, Amazon will create two equal HQ2 facilities, each with approximately 25,000 employees. While Amazon has not announced its final decision, it is in late-stage discussions with several cities — Crystal City in Northern Virginia, Dallas and New York City as front runners — according to The Wall Street Journal, and a decision may be announced as early as this week. Amazon plans to view all three of its main U.S offices as headquarters with similar executive and back-office functions, notes a person familiar with the decision. However, the split means the company is creating two smaller offices than its 45,000-employee Seattle headquarters.

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Company NewsMultifamilySeniors HousingSoutheastStudent HousingVirginia

Freddie Mac Names Deborah Jenkins as Executive Vice President, Head of Multifamily Business

by Amy Works

MCLEAN, VA. — Freddie Mac has announced that Deborah Jenkins will be named executive vice president and head of its Multifamily division, effective immediately. Additionally, Jenkins has assumed a role as member of the company’s Senior Operating Committee. “Debby’s transition into her role as head of the Multifamily business has progressed very well,” said Donald Layton, CEO of Freddie Mac. “Debby is dedicated to ensuring this growing segment of our company continues to be an industry leader, innovator and a critical financier of rental housing that is affordable to low- and moderate-income families.” In September, Freddie Mac announced the retirement of CEO Donald Layton taking place in the second half of 2019, as well as the commencement of the CEO Succession Plan and the elevation of former head of Freddie Mac Multifamily, David Brickman, to president of the company. Since 2010, Jenkins has led Multifamily Underwriting and Credit, overseeing all credit approvals and due diligence processes, asset level securitization activities, as well as credit policies and governance for all Multifamily’s products.

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Company NewsHealthcareTexas

Former Trammell Crow, CBRE Executives Start New Healthcare Venture

by Taylor Williams

DALLAS AND HOUSTON — Former Trammell Crow Co. and CBRE healthcare executives Kevin O’Neil and Mark Allyn have launched Fidelis Healthcare Partners, a venture that will focus on developing and acquiring healthcare properties. The new company will be affiliated with Houston-based Fidelis Realty Partners Ltd. and will utilize the firm’s existing tools and relationships to align its operations with the growing trend of “retailization of healthcare.” Each founding member has more than 20 years of experience in commercial real estate.

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Company NewsDevelopmentRetailUtahWestern

Best Buy to Open its First New U.S. Store in Seven Years in Farmington, Utah

by Amy Works

FARMINGTON, UTAH — Best Buy has opened its first new U.S. store in seven years at Station Park in Farmington. The 36,000-square-foot retail property features a variety of appliances, premium audio and home theater technology, and other products. The store employs 91 people and plans to hire additional employees for the holiday season. The company operates more than 1,000 stores across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

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Company NewsDevelopmentGeorgiaOfficeSoutheast

BlackRock to Open Innovation Hub in Atlanta, Creating 1,000 Jobs

by Amy Works

ATLANTA — BlackRock, an asset management firm and a technology solutions provider, has selected Atlanta for the company’s newest Innovation Hub. The company plans to expand its presence in Fulton County, partner with the Atlanta business community and local universities and create 1,000 career opportunities over the next several years. This expansion will extend BlackRock’s technology capabilities, as well as provide close proximity to Georgia Tech, where BlackRock sponsors the BlackRock Hallac Scholarship for socioeconomically disadvantaged students pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). “Atlanta’s culture of collaboration with public and private stakeholders bolsters our region’s economy, creates well-playing jobs and expands economic opportunity,” says Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. “The opening of BlackRock’s Atlanta Innovation Hub continues this legacy, and we look forward to welcoming and working with them.” According to Dr. Eloisa Klementich, president and CEO of Invest Atlanta, the technology business expansions in Atlanta in 2018 alone are projected to create an economic impact of $500 million, as the companies create thousands of new jobs and millions of dollars of capital investment.

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