Northeast

Gilbane Building Tops Out 500,000 SF Life Sciences Project in Metro Boston

by Taylor Williams November 3, 2020

WALTHAM, MASS. — General contractor Gilbane Building Co. has topped out 225 Wyman Street, a 500,000-square-foot life sciences project in the western Boston suburb of Waltham. Designed by Gensler, the property will offer space for both laboratory/research and development users as well as traditional office users. Amenities will include green space with walking trails, a three-acre courtyard, fitness center, conference center, dining facility and a 1,500-space covered parking garage with electric vehicle charging stations. Hobbs Brook Management LLC is the developer of the project, which is expected to be complete in March 2022.

November 3, 2020

Company News Massachusetts Northeast Restaurant Retail

Restaurant Chain Friendly’s Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, Enters into Sale Agreement

by Taylor Williams November 3, 2020

WILBRAHAM, MASS. — FIC Restaurants Inc., which operates the Friendly’s brand, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and entered in an agreement to sell all of its assets to Amici Partners Group LLC. Nearly all of Friendly’s 130 corporate-owned and franchised restaurant locations, known for burgers, sandwiches and ice cream, are expected to remain open subject to COVID-19 limitations. Friendly’s stated that it has sufficient cash on hand to continue operations, meet its obligations to employees, franchisees and vendors. Upon the sale closing, Amici expects to retain most employees at Friendly’s corporate-owned restaurant locations. Amici is an affiliate of BRIX Holdings, an owner-operator whose brands include Red Mango Yogurt Café Smoothie & Juice Bar, Smoothie Factory Juice Bar, RedBrick Pizza Kitchen Café and Souper Salad.

November 3, 2020

Company News Northeast Pennsylvania Restaurant Retail

Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

PHILADELPHIA — Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as of Sunday, Nov. 1. PREIT (NYSE: PEI), which is based in Philadelphia, owns and operates 22.5 million square feet of retail space including 19 mall properties in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maryland, Virginia, Michigan, North Carolina and South Carolina. PREIT has reached a Restructuring Support Agreement (RSA) with its bank lenders, under which an additional $150 million will be committed to recapitalize the business and extend its debt maturities. The announcement coincides with the Chapter 11 filing of Tennessee-based CBL & Associates (NYSE: CBL), which owns and manages a portfolio of 107 properties totaling 66.7 million square feet across 26 states, including 65 enclosed, outlet and open-air retail centers and eight properties managed for third parties. “Today’s announcement has no impact on our operations — our employees, tenants, vendors and the communities we serve — and we remain committed to continuing to deliver top-tier experiences and improving our portfolio,” says Joseph Coradino, CEO of PREIT. “With the overwhelming support of our lenders, we look forward to quickly emerging from this process as a financially stronger company.” DLA Piper LLP and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz are …

November 2, 2020

Acquisitions Industrial New Jersey Northeast

HGI, Turnbridge Sell 550,000 SF Warehouse in Parsippany, New Jersey, for $85.2M

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — A partnership between Harbor Group International (HGI) and Turnbridge Equities has sold a 550,000-square-foot warehouse located at 100 Jefferson Road in the Northern New Jersey city of Parsippany for $85.2 million. The building’s primary tenants are electronics manufacturer PNY Technologies and dietary supplement provider Vitaquest. The partnership acquired the property from PNY Technologies in 2018 in a $60.3 million sale-leaseback deal and implemented a value-add program that brought the occupancy rate from 28 percent to its current mark of 64 percent. The buyer was not disclosed.

November 2, 2020

Acquisitions Connecticut Northeast Office

CBRE Arranges Sale of 153,000 SF New Haven Plaza Office Complex for $6.8M

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

NEW HAVEN, CONN. — CBRE has arranged the sale of New Haven Plaza, a 153,000-square-foot office complex located less than a mile from Yale University in New Haven, for $6.8 million. David Hansen and Matthew O’Hare of CBRE represented the seller, New Haven Plaza LLC, which acquired the site in 1972 and developed a third building for New Haven Adult Education in 1990, in the transaction. The buyer was SP Capital LLC.

November 2, 2020

Development Massachusetts Multifamily Northeast Seniors Housing

DiMella Shaffer Completes Second Expansion at Seniors Housing Property in Lexington, Massachusetts

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

LEXINGTON, MASS. — DiMella Shaffer, a Boston-based architecture and design firm, has completed its second expansion project for the 26-acre Brookhaven at Lexington seniors housing community located north of Boston. The project featured renovations to all common areas, and expansion and improvements to the assisted care and long-term care facility. A four-story wing that houses new amenities has also been added. Brookhaven Senior Living owns the property.

November 2, 2020

Industrial Leasing Activity NAI New Jersey Northeast

NAI James Hanson Negotiates 28,900 SF Industrial Lease in Elizabeth, New Jersey

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

ELIZABETH, N.J. — NAI James Hanson has negotiated a 28,900-square-foot industrial lease at 475 Division St. in Elizabeth, located just south of Newark. The 175,000-square-foot building features 18-foot ceiling heights, five loading docks, 10 trailer parking spaces and 2,000 square feet of office space. Barry Cohorsky and John Koch of NAI James Hanson represented the landlord, Tree Realty, in the lease negotiations. Robin Ritter-Ceriello of Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant, locally owned trucking company Motion Express.

November 2, 2020

Content Partner Features Industrial New York Northeast Northeast Feature Archive Walker & Dunlop

New York Industrial Innovation Spreads Nationwide

by Sarah Daniels November 2, 2020

Despite the negative impact of the pandemic on many areas within commercial real estate, industrial assets continue to attract interest as a favored sector of many lenders and investors. The industrial market is outperforming others throughout this period of disruption. E-commerce growth has resulted in growth in the industrial sector as the need for last-mile delivery and third-party logistics space increases. Similarly, urban infill demand has grown in supply-constrained markets. Finally, the supercharging the industrial sector has created a need for new construction in this asset class, and construction lenders are finding new opportunities to earn higher returns. View higher resolution version of chart above here. Industrial Market Trends In major urban markets — New York City included — residents increasingly expect two-day delivery, next-day delivery and even same-day delivery. As a result of these shrinking delivery windows, the need for local distribution centers and last-mile facilities has increased significantly. The way people purchase and receive products has changed drastically, and the industrial sector must adjust to meet the demand. The nation-wide stay-at-home orders implemented at the outset of the pandemic caused e-commerce to experience exponential growth. People who had never shopped online began adapting to this trend. This created …

November 2, 2020

Company News Georgia Massachusetts Northeast Retail Southeast Top Stories

Inspire Brands Agrees to Acquire Dunkin’ in $11.3B Transaction

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

ATLANTA AND CANTON, MASS. — Inspire Brands has agreed to acquire fast-food breakfast chain Dunkin’ Brands (NASDAQ: DNKN) in a transaction valued at $11.3 billion. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year. Atlanta-based Inspire Brands is the parent company of restaurant chains such as Arby’s, Jimmy John’s, Sonic Drive-In and Buffalo Wild Wings. In addition to its namesake coffee and breakfast chain, Canton, Mass.-based Dunkin’ Brands also owns ice cream parlor chain Baskin-Robbins, which respectively have about 12,500 and 8,000 locations worldwide. Dunkin’ has about 9,600 locations in the United States. The deal’s price tag equates to $106.50 per share, to be paid in cash, and includes the assumption of all Dunkin’ Brands’ debt. The share price represents a 30 percent premium over the Dunkin’ Brands 30-day weighted average price and a 20 percent premium over its closing stock price of $88.79 per share on Friday, Oct. 23. “We are excited to bring meaningful value to shareholders who have been with us on this journey and believe that Inspire Brands, a preeminent operator of franchised restaurant concepts, will continue to drive growth for our franchisees while remaining true to all that is unique and special …

November 2, 2020

Development Industrial Northeast Pennsylvania

Endurance, Blue Vista Sell 1 MSF Distribution Center in Pittston, Pennsylvania for $96M

by Taylor Williams October 30, 2020

PITTSON, PA. — A partnership between Endurance Real Estate Group LLC and Blue Vista Capital has sold the 1 million-square-foot Interstate Distribution Center in Pittston, located south of Scranton, for $96 million. The partnership purchased the 225-acre former Techneglas manufacturing site in 2012 and redeveloped the property into a modern bulk warehouse/distribution asset. The new cross-dock building features 40-foot clear heights, 193 dock doors, 421 car parking spaces and 129 truck parking spaces. Gerry Blinebury and Dan Walsh of Cushman & Wakefield represented the partnership in the sale. Jason Webb and Kris Bjorson of JLL represented the undisclosed buyer.

October 30, 2020

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