Features

By Miles Berger The City of Newark, New Jersey, is enjoying a renaissance punctuated by a tightened Class A office market, heightened entertainment and culture, and an enhanced transit infrastructure. Add to that skyrocketing lodging rates in Manhattan and an ever-expanding passenger volume at Newark airport, and the city’s hotel inventory — a sometimes overlooked component of its commercial real estate sector — is poised for new levels of growth and prosperity. Traditionally, Newark’s hotel stock has been largely dependent on traffic from Liberty International Airport. While the airport continues to be a strong contributor to the city’s hotel industry, many other moving parts are in play, beginning with the resurgence of the office market. The corporate migration toward cities continues in New Jersey, bolstered recently by programs like the state’s new urban tax incentive. Additionally, under the administration of Newark Mayor Cory Booker, the city has seen a strong increase in Manhattan firms interested in relocating their back office operations, and even their headquarters, to Newark. With New York City rents skyrocketing to approach $100 per square foot, Newark offers a tremendous alternative. Typically, B and C+ buildings run near $27 per square foot, with Class A rates at …

By Brian Patton, Capital Listings Live, work, and play has become a mantra of progressive thinking communities throughout the nation. Evidence is mounting that consumers not only want to live near their work because of the convenience, but also because of the rising costs of energy. In the north Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta, one such business owner that I spoke with has taken advantage of a little known allowance in the zoning code. That portion of the code allows business owners in certain commercial districts to live in the same building as they work. He loves being close to downtown and is able to walk to nearby conveniences. While he still maintains a car, it is no longer a necessity and his vehicle gas bills have dropped to almost nothing. Another measure of the popularity of the live and work concept is the number of people that are working from their homes. Home occupation licenses, as they’re called, have increased in Alpharetta, for example, by a large factor. Starting in 2004, the number of home occupation licenses issued doubled from 2003. And, again in 2007, the number doubled over the previous year. James Drinkard, Alpharetta’s assistant city administrator, speaking on …

By Cara Aliek In 2001, Thompson | Dorfman completed Phase I of Casa del Maestro, the first faculty housing community built for a public school district in California. Santa Clara Unified School District, the district that commissioned the work, has been so impressed with the success of lowering their attrition rate, they recently broke ground on Phase II. “It’s a great opportunity to give something back to the community. We started a non-profit (Education Housing Partners) to do this kind of work for school districts because we realized the importance of the public education system in the areas in which we’re developing,” said Bruce Dorfman, co-founder and principal with Thompson | Dorfman. The company primarily focuses on multifamily communities with mixed-use components and urban infill communities. The idea for teacher housing came about after the district came to the Thompson | Dorfman in need of a solution to its rising attrition rate and high housing costs in the area. According to Dorfman, Santa Clara Unified School District is one of the larger districts located in Silicon Valley. “The attrition rate for teachers with the same hiring date has been less than one-third of those who aren’t living in the communities. …

By Randy S. Gold, CPA Looking back at ICSC’s RECon in Las Vegas, I still feel there’s a great deal of energy to bolster these questionable market times. The overwhelming take-home was that although the market is experiencing a noticeable dip and deal flow may be slowing, the right deals can still get done – with the right mix of diligence and funding. As Rob Hellman, Managing Director at Ackman-Ziff in Manhattan said at the convention, “I’m not going to tell you life’s easy; we have turned away more business than ever before because we don’t think the deal is structured properly to get enough funding. Additionally, it is clear that sellers have not adjusted prices for the market.” Hellman, who is responsible for sourcing debt for client transactions and whose group put together $7.4 billion in financing last year added, “We are being very selective. We don’t want to mislead clients if we can’t get the job done, so we carefully consult with our clients to find the best way to structure the transaction.” “For example, we recently advised a hotel client who wanted to raise 85 percent debt but we felt like the only way for the deal …

By Keith Lesser, AIA, LEED What would happen if every building in this country was adapted with high-performance design components? The United States would no longer be dependent on foreign oil. With all the focus on improving energy efficiencies in automobiles and manufacturing, the tremendous cost and environmental impact associated with heating, cooling and lighting commercial and residential structures often is overlooked. Yet according to the US Green Building Council, this country’s buildings account for 39 percent of all energy consumption, 68 percent of all electrical consumption, 30 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions, 30 percent of raw material usage and 30 percent of all waste. The time has come to change that, and it appears that the commercial real estate industry and public sector are jumping on board. Almost all new public RFPs we receive, as well as a growing number of our private sector projects, have “green” components. It is important to note at the outset that a property does not have to be LEED certified to be a high-performance building. Many owners and developers are deterred by the costs associated with the LEED process. The term “high performance” refers to designing a building above the minimum criteria …

By Michael Merino, CCIM, SIOR Fledgling entrepreneurs, owners of accounting firms, machine shops, print shops, distribution companies, dry cleaning establishments or any other small businesses face the question of whether to lease or own the property housing their business. Unfortunately, for those seeking a quick fix, there is no “right” or “wrong” answer. A variety of factors pertinent to the individual business and the owner’s objectives, as well as local market factors, must be taken into account before an informed decision can be made. The company’s growth potential and future sustainability are two of the principal factors influencing the lease versus own decision. If the business is expected to grow dramatically over the next three to five years, owning is probably not a good option. By leasing, the entrepreneur avoids the prospect of purchasing a building that is too large and finding itself stuck with (costly) empty space. Alternately, the business may stumble by purchasing a building that only accommodates current space needs, which will be too small in a few years. Availability of flexible lease terms is key to an optimal leasing situation. Landlords in many markets offer a long-term lease of 5 to 10 years with a clause …

By Chris Meske and Jeff Muhlbach Landscape architects, architects, planners and developers nationwide are being challenged to change the way they design and build projects. Mixed-use and higher density developments have become more prevalent in the urban landscape as city cores and inner ring suburbs seek to stay vital by promoting infill and redevelopment opportunities. Communities are revising and rewriting zoning ordinances and design standards to allow for the development of more vertical and mixed-use projects. Strategies such as shallower building setbacks, fewer restrictions on building height and creative formulas for shared parking shed the statutes of traditional layer-cake zoning that have brought about the sprawling, uninspired suburb. This revolution in the way developers, designers and municipalities alike look at their projects comes at a time when the building industry is rethinking their approach to design in order to incorporate more environmentally sensitive and energy efficient systems. Together these objectives form a philosophy that is being adopted in all reaches of real estate development. For professionals in the allied industries, the guidelines set forth by the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system serve as a valuable resource, even when full certification might be out of reach. Local …

By Dan Marcec It’s one of the most recognizable brands in the United States, and possibly the most well-known of its kind in the world. You’ve seen it on television, in the workplace, on t-shirts everywhere and in the hearts and minds of millions. Coca-Cola? McDonald’s? These brands are popular — even ubiquitous — but they don’t hold the sentimental value represented by the Blue Star of America’s Team: the Dallas Cowboys. As the National Football League (NFL) retains a stronghold on America’s professional athletics market, the Cowboys are possibly the most recognizable sports organization in the U.S. Thus, when the decision came along to build the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium just outside of Dallas in Arlington, Texas, the Cowboys’ organization — led by owner Jerry Jones and his family — and its real estate team were compelled to undertake a careful balancing act in order to develop the largest and most technologically advanced stadium in the NFL while retaining the lasting image of their former home, Texas Stadium, and the rich tradition that the team has enjoyed over its storied history. In With The New, But Not Out With The Old A change of pace is always welcome in …