SUSSEX CO., DEL. — Two new retail businesses, Creative Floors and Wings-to-Go, have opened in Sussex County, located in southern Delaware. Creative Floors, a national flooring provider franchise, leased 1,886 square feet at the Vineyards at Nassau County on Old Vine Blvd. in Lewes. The new store is the second to open in Delaware with the other located in Newark. Wings-to-Go, a national buffalo chicken wings franchise, leased 1,560 square feet in Bayshore Plaza, a new shopping center anchored by Giant Foods in Millsboro. The store is the 10th to open in Delaware. Ann Bailey of NAI Emory Hill’s Lewes office represented the landlords in both transactions.
Northeast
FAIRFIELD, CONN. — Regency Centers Corp. has closed on a $150 million, three-property acquisition in Fairfield. As previously reported in December, the company has acquired an 80 percent majority stake in a portfolio of centers — Black Rock Shopping Center, Brick Walk, and Fairfield Center — as a part of a joint venture with local real estate developer Kleban Properties. Together, the three centers feature 315,000 square feet of mixed-use space, with the retail portion representing 73.5 percent of portfolio revenues. The largest center, Brick Walk, boasts 121,000 square feet of retail, office and residential space. The 92,000-square-foot Fairfield Center is located one block from the Metro North rail station on the New Haven line into New York City. The third property, Black Rock Shopping Center, includes 98,000 square foot of retail space and is anchored by Old Navy, GAP, Massage Envy, and Carter’s stores. All properties are currently fully leased.
PHILADELPHIA — Harbor Group International has funded an $8 million mezzanine loan for the purchase of Charter Court Apartments in Philadelphia. An affiliate of Treetop Development purchased Charter Court, a 496-unit apartment property that includes two 11-story buildings, for $47.3 million. The multifamily community amenities include a resort-style pool area, business center, fitness center, pet spa and a doorman.
NEWTON, MASS. — Bierbrier Development Inc. has broken ground on Needham Street Village Shops, a 19,200-square-foot retail development located at 55 Needham St. in Newton. Needham Street Village Shops will be LEED Silver-certified and ready for occupancy by this summer. The retail center will also feature 79 parking spaces. Bowdoin Construction is serving as the general contractor, Prellwitz Chillinski Associates is the project architect and Atlantic Retail Properties is the leasing agent for the property.
DREXEL HILL, HAVERTOWN AND LANDSDOWNE, PA. — Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. (MMCC) has arranged $4.9 million in financing for four multifamily properties totaling 90 units throughout Pennsylvania. The properties include 4200 Woodland Ave. and 3823 Garrett Road in Drexel Hill; 1333 East Darby Road in Havertown; and 4-8 Owen Ave. in Lansdowne. The loan-to-cost ratio was 80 percent.
The rapid evolution of e-commerce — including the relationships between the companies that manufacture product and the e-tailers that distribute and sell that product — is arguably the most significant factor impacting the Philadelphia-area and larger regional industrial real estate market today. And for those of us following this phenomenon closely, it feels like we may just be in the second inning of a nine-inning game at Citizens Bank Park. Simply put, e-commerce is creating strong industrial demand. A number of new companies are popping up on the radar, particularly along Pennsylvania’s I-81/I-78 distribution corridor. In the fourth quarter, Walmart’s 1.2 million-square-foot lease at a Liberty Property Trust asset in Bethlehem announced a new neighbor — Walmart again! Adjacent to Liberty’s building will be an additional 1 million square feet to be occupied by Walmart and the space is being developed by Majestic specifically for e-commerce. Earlier in 2013, One Kings Lane leased 500,000 square feet from DCT Industrial in Kutztown. Amazon now has a 4.8 million-square-foot footprint in Pennsylvania with constant threats of additional growth. The list goes on. These sizable transactions drove leasing volume up to nearly 9.7 million square feet at the end of the third quarter …
NEW YORK CITY — Mesa West Capital has provided $119 million in first-mortgage debt to a joint venture led by New Jersey-based Normandy Real Estate Partners. The joint venture plans to use the funds to recapitalize The Exchange, a 1.4 million-square-foot office portfolio located in Westchester County. The Exchange includes 12 suburban low- and mid-rise office buildings spread across four business parks along Interstate 287 near White Plains. Normandy has invested more than $11 million in capital upgrades throughout the portfolio in an effort to stabilize the assets. A portion of the loan proceeds will go to a targeted leasing campaign, which will be implemented on an asset-by-asset basis, as well as to allow the sponsor to continue to selectively upgrade the properties. Eastdil Secured arranged the financing.
BELLEVILLE, N.J. — Cronheim Mortgage has arranged $8 million in financing for a ShopRite-anchored retail center located in Belleville. The loan, placed with Athene Asset Management, was structured with a 10-year term and 25-year amortization, with five years of interest-only payments and a 4 percent interest rate. Belleville Center LLC was the borrower. Belleville Center is a 70,450-square-foot shopping center, anchored by a newly built, 60,000-square-foot ShopRite. The remaining space is fully occupied by Pizza Hut, Kelly's Liquors and a local jeweler. Allison Moravec and Andrew Stewart of Cronheim arranged the loan.
SOUTHBOROUGH, MASS. — Vantage Builders Inc. has completed an 84,000-square-foot renovation project for Olympus Surgical Technologies America at 136 Turnpike Road in Southborough. The multi-phase project included the renovation of the company’s executive areas, a new training area and carpet installation. Olympus Surgical Technologies America, a technology leader in the field of minimally invasive surgery device development and manufacturing, recently signed a lease renewal and was awarded a tenant allowance for office upgrades. Vantage Builders constructed a 2,100-square-foot training area that included new air conditioning via a 25-ton rooftop unit. Vantage Builders worked closely with the property managers, Capital Group Properties and Holm & Associates. The architects on the project were Fine Associates and the engineers were Avid Engineers and Hung & Associates.
NEW YORK CITY — Colliers International has arranged expansion space with Shopbop at 230 West 41st St. in Times Square West between the N.Y. Times building and 11 Times Square. The women’s clothing division of Amazon now occupies approximately 25,000 square feet in the building. Shopbob relocated to 230 West 41st St. from Soho about 18 months ago — initially signing a long-term, 13,340-square-foot lease for the entire 19th and 20th floors. The firm nearly doubled its space last year, expanding to about 24,000 square feet, with a lease for the entire 18th floor and space on the 16th floor. Now with a third expansion, also on the 16th floor, Shopbop occupies 24,954 square feet total in the building. Built in 1923, 230 West 41st Street is a 20-story building situated between Seventh and Eighth avenues.