PHILADELPHIA — Vine Street Matthews, a joint venture between Matthews Southwest and Vine Street Developers, is developing a dual-branded hotel facility located at 15th and Chestnut streets in Philadelphia. Designed by Cope Linder Architects, the 51-story project will feature the 295-room W Philadelphia and the 460-room Element Philadelphia Hotel, both operated by Starwood Hotel & Resorts Worldwide. Slated to open in 2018, the 773,500-square-foot property will feature panoramic city views, an outdoor pool bar and terrace, meeting and banquet facilities, food and beverage venues, prime retail space and parking for 171 cars. The property is owned by Chestlen Development, an entity controlled by Brook Lenfest. The project team also includes O’Donnell & Naccarato and Tutor Perini Building Corp.
Northeast
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the sale of an industrial property located at 51 Commerce Drive in South Brunswick. TIAA Global Asset Management purchased the 220,000-square-foot property from Ivy Equities for an undisclosed price. Situated on 14 acres, the property was fully occupied at the time of sale by Lenox, EDA International, Salesmaster Associates and Halsted Corp. Gary Gabriel, Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut, Brian Whitmer, Kyle Schmidt and Andrew MacDonald of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller in the deal.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based PMZ Realty Capital has arranged a $71 million loan to refinance a four-property Hilton portfolio. The proceeds will be used by the undisclosed borrower to repay the first mortgage and mezzanine debt that has matured, as well as fund upcoming capital expenditure improvements throughout the portfolio. The portfolio includes the 140-room Hilton Garden Inn Ridgefield Park in Ridgefield Park, N.J.; the 125-room Hampton Inn & Suites in Kissimmee, Fla.; the 150-room Embassy Suites in Palmdale, Calif.; and the 192-suite Homewood Suites by Hilton in Nashville, Tenn. Michael Sonnabend of PMZ Realty Capital arranged the loan for the borrower.
NEW YORK CITY — Equicap has arranged a $4.5 million permanent loan for a mixed-use property located in Brooklyn’s Cobble Hill neighborhood. The newly developed building features one ground-floor retail unit and 10 apartments. Daniel Hilpert of Equicap arranged the loan, which features a five-year fixed interest rate, 30-year amortization schedule and three years of interest-only payments.
MILLSBORO, DEL. — NAI Emory Hills has arranged the sale of Back Bay Center, a retail center located in a grocery-anchored neighborhood center along Route 24 in Millsboro. Back Bay Center LLC acquired the 10,000-square-foot property from TBB Long Neck LLC for an undisclosed sum. Situated on 2.1 acres with a pad site for future development, the property is occupied by Subway, Liberty Tax and Loan till Payday. Jim O’Hara Jr., Jim O’Hara III and Kevin O’Hara of NAI Emory Hills brokered the sale.
Joint Venture Acquires 326,000 SF Commercial Building in NYC for $89M, Plans Redevelopment
by Amy Works
NEW YORK CITY — Metropolitan Realty Associates and joint venture partner TIAA Global Asset Management have acquired HUB LIC, a four-story commercial building located at 47-25 34th St. in Queen’s Long Island City, for $89 million. At the time of acquisition, the 326,000-square-foot property was 48 percent leased to a mix of tenants, including POLO Ralph Lauren, TEC Systems (Honeywell), Eleni’s Bakery, Gracie and Richelieu. The buyers plan to redevelop the property into office and retail space to attract a large-format retailer and offer 80,000 square feet of contiguous office space on a single floor. The building features 16- to 21-foot ceilings, a floor-to-ceiling window line, a 7,000-square-foot pitched skylight on the second floor, skylights throughout third floors, abundant parking and eight loading docks. Doug Harmon, Adam Spies, Adam Doneger and Josh King of Eastdil brokered the sale of the property, while Grant Frankel and Rob Turner, also of Eastdil, arranged acquisition financing for the transaction.
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA. — Simon has completed a 155,000-square-foot expansion at King of Prussia Mall, a shopping center located about 25 miles northwest of Philadelphia in King of Prussia. The project, which broke ground in summer 2014, adds 50 new retail and dining storefronts and increases the mall’s footprint to 2.9 million square feet. The expansion involved connecting the five-anchor, 1.7 million-square-foot plaza and the two-anchor, 902,000-square-foot court, which were separated by a roadway since initial construction. The expansion is also bringing first-to-market brands and new dining and retail options to the mall, including Altar’d State, Calligaris, Cartier, CH Carolina Herrara, Club Monaco, David Yurman, Diane von Furstenberg, Gap, Jimmy Choo, MCM, Robert Graham, Stuart Weitzman, Superdry, Vince Hai Street Kitchen, Nicoletta and Shake Shack.
NEW YORK CITY — Cushman & Wakefield has launched an Automotive Specialty Practice group in response to the recent transformation and growth in the auto industry. Led by Jeffrey Green, the group includes a global, cross-discipline team of real estate and business advisors to auto manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and retailers. Cushman & Wakefield is the first commercial real estate service firm to market a global comprehensive Auto SPG offering. The offering’s mission is to deeply understand and address the distinctive challenges of the automotive sector from labor issues, logistics, infrastructure, technology, credits and incentives to the unique requirements of the real estate itself. Cushman & Wakefield has has relationships with various automotive industry clients around the world, including Toyota, BMW, FCA, Mercedes Benz, Magna International, Hyundai and JLR.
NEW YORK CITY — Meridian Capital Group has arranged $7 million in financing for the acquisition of a warehouse located in the Astoria section of Queens. The one-year loan, provided by a local balance sheet lender, features full-term interest-only payments. Located at 19-79 Steinway St., the single-story, 10,000-square-foot warehouse offers easy access to New York City’s major distribution channels and close proximity to the N and Q subway lines. Bryan Geffen and Brian Flax of Meridian negotiated the loan for the undisclosed borrower.
BRANFORD, CONN. — O,R&L Commercial has arranged the lease of an industrial building at 16 Commercial St. in Branford. New England Orthotic & Prosthetic Systems plans to consolidate three locations into the 20,000-square-foot building. Tim McMahon of O,R&L Commercial represented the landlord, 16 Commercial Street Associates, while Frank Hird, also of O,R&L Commercial represented the tenant in the deal.