MARQUETTE, MICH. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of three net leased properties in Marquette for $3.7 million. The properties include an 84,180-square-foot Kohl’s, an Applebee’s pad site and another pad site occupied by Verizon Wireless and H&R Block. The buildings are outparcels of Westwood Mall. Mark Taylor, Shannon Bona and Brian Sy of Marcus & Millichap marketed the portfolio on behalf of the seller, a private development company. Taylor, along with Donovan Mackey, secured the private equity buyer.
TROY, MICH. — The City of Troy Planning Commission has approved the final site plan for a new 9,844-square-foot retail center at the southeast corner of Tower Drive and Crooks Road. Plans call for three fast-casual restaurants and an additional commercial tenant. A new pedestrian path along Crooks Road will connect the retail center to the existing sidewalk and to the 901 Tower office building. Construction is expected to begin as early as this summer. No further site plan approvals, other than building permits, are required. NORR Architects, Engineers and Planners designed the property. Dominion Real Estate Advisors will market the property for lease.
Todd Harrop, executive vice president and national director of capital markets at Bellwether Enterprise in Columbus, Ohio, believes 2019 will be another opportunistic year for lenders and intermediaries. REBusinessOnline discussed with Harrop the abundance of capital in this market – and how discipline and changes in capital providers’ programs have put these funds to work. What is the biggest challenge you anticipate in 2019 as an intermediary in commercial real estate? Much like 2018, we continue to be optimistic about the commercial real estate finance market in 2019. In 2018, we were challenged with a variety of market disruptors including rising interest rates, market volatility, geopolitical risks, and signs of an overall slowing global economy. In 2019, we expect these disruptors to continue. Furthermore, the debt space remains very crowded as capital flows continue to rise and opportunities have declined due to fewer refinance opportunities. The good news is capital is far from complacent and underwriting remains very disciplined, which should enable the markets to continue to function well. Where do you see the biggest opportunity for your company in 2019? In general, I believe there is an increased opportunity for mortgage bankers/intermediaries in 2019. This is due to the fact …
Records were meant to be broken. That’s a phrase commercial lenders have become fairly familiar with over the past few years. Multifamily lending, in particular, has enjoyed a good run. In the fourth quarter of 2018, the Mortgage Bankers Association released the MBA Annual Report on Multifamily Lending. According to the report, strong market conditions helped fuel a 6 percent increase in multifamily lending in 2017. Lenders provided a record high of $285 billion in new mortgages for apartment buildings with five or more units. Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research for MBA, cited a few reasons for this uptick in activity. “The multifamily lending market in 2017 benefited from improving fundamentals, rising property values and low interest rates,” he says. “The result was larger loan sizes and record levels of overall borrowing and lending…Demand came from borrowers and lenders of all sizes, with loan amounts ranging from thousands of dollars to hundreds of millions.” This breakneck pace continued last year as low unemployment, job growth and overall economic strength gave investors and lenders confidence in the market. Freddie Mac had its best year ever in terms of multifamily production in 2018. The government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) closed …
It’s no secret that pop-up and experiential retail are hot topics. But it can be hard to figure out how best to engage audiences with an individual activation before, during and after the event. To help marketers solve this conundrum, Brandon Chesnutt, vice president and director of digital & development at Identity, hosted a session titled “Six Winning Pop-Up Retail Marketing Ideas Property Managers Can’t Ignore” during the 2019 Ancillary Retail Expo, a two-day conference produced by InterFace Conference Group and Ancillary Retail magazine. At issue during the session, which took place in mid-January at the Hilton Daytona Beach hotel, were a host of key topics for retailers looking to decide which pop-up retail marketing strategies generate the most attention, excitement and foot traffic. Chesnutt introduced the property owners and managers in attendance to tactics and campaign ideas that have the attention of retail marketers, including targeted social media advertising and tailored group activations. The Detroit native acknowledged that it’s an exciting time for marketers of all stripes, but said that excitement and energy comes with a host of questions about best practices in a rapidly changing industry. “The expectations of what is considered marketing are shifting,” said Chesnutt. “If …
TIFFIN, IOWA — The Ders Group is underway on the development of Park Place in Tiffin, about 10 miles west of Iowa City. The $275 million mixed-use development will be situated on 400 acres. In addition to retail and office space, plans call for approximately 2,000 apartment units and 200 single-family lots. The Ders Group, headquartered in Coralville, Iowa, acquired all of the land in 2016. The developer completed infrastructure construction last fall. Andersen Square, a city center, is the main attraction of Park Place. Phase I includes five buildings with first-floor commercial space and five floors of apartment units above. Completion is slated for summer 2020. Phase II includes six more buildings. The initial phase of commercial space is 75 percent pre-leased. Tenants include fast food retailers, local restaurants, a regional gas station, bank, health club and live entertainment restaurant.
OAK BROOK AND WARRENVILLE, ILL. — Cronheim Mortgage has arranged a $47.7 million loan for the acquisition of Oak Brook Gateway and Cornerstone I at Cantera in suburban Chicago. Oak Brook Gateway is a multi-tenant office building in Oak Brook. Tenants include Lewis University, the U.S. Census Bureau, Thomson Reuters and Oxford Bank. Cornerstone I at Cantera is a multi-tenant office building in Warrenville with 80 percent occupancy. A national lender provided the 10-year loan, which features an interest rate of 4.84 percent and a 30-year amortization schedule. The loan represented 75 percent of the acquisition price. Fairbridge Partners was the borrower.
JEFFERSONVILLE, IND. — Waypoint Residential LLC is developing The Walcott Jeffersonville, a 214-unit apartment project in Jeffersonville, just north of Louisville. The project will be located in the Old Jeffersonville Historic District opportunity zone. The Walcott will include a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units. Community amenities will include a resort-style pool, fitness center, Internet café, rooftop terrace and pet spa. Completion is slated for mid-2020.
NASHVILLE, ILL. — Stan Johnson Co. has brokered the $15.5 million sale of a 276,887-square-foot manufacturing facility in Nashville, about 55 miles east of St. Louis. Grupo Antolin, an automotive parts supplier, has occupied the building for 30 years and recently completed an expansion and renovation. Mike Sladich and Mollie Alteri of Stan Johnson Co. represented the seller, Agracel Inc. Jason Powell and Colin Couch of Stan Johnson Co. represented the buyer, a Blufton, S.C.-based private investment group managed by David Strong and Nick Dzendzel.
CHICAGO — Skender has started construction on the conversion of the former Soft Sheen building into a middle and high school for Perspectives Charter Schools (PCS). The 100,000-square-foot building is located at 8522 S. Lafayette Ave. in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood. The project will include classrooms, two gymnasiums and an auditorium with staircase seating. Skender is working with Perkins + Will and ConopCo Project Management. Completion is slated for August. Founded in 1997, PCS is one of the first charter schools in Illinois. PCS manages tuition-free public schools for grades 6-12 in the Auburn Gresham, Bronzeville and South Loop neighborhoods. Soft Sheen was a hair care products company that was acquired by L’Oreal.