NEWBURGH, N.Y. — Third-party logistics firm National Freight Inc. has signed a 60,143-square-foot industrial lease at Northeast Business Center, a 141-acre industrial park in Newburgh, about 70 miles north of Manhattan. Bob Scherrik of Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Brian Sekel represented the landlord, National Realty & Development Corp., on an internal basis.
NEW YORK CITY — Knotel Inc., a New York City-based flexible workspace provider, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. Knotel concurrently has agreed to sell the business to an affiliate of commercial real estate services firm Newmark Group Inc. (Nasdaq: NMRK), which is providing Knotel with $20 million of debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing to help fund day-to-operations. The DIP financing, provided by a Newmark-backed entity known as Digiatech LLC, is subject to court approval. Founded in 2016, Knotel provides custom offices for company’s using an in-house team of architects, interior designers and workplace strategists. The total number of existing Knotel locations was not available, but Knotel has a presence in several global cities, including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Berlin, Boston, Dublin, London, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo, Toronto and Washington, D.C. Amol Sarva, co-founder and CEO of Knotel, cites the COVID-19 pandemic as a black swan event for his firm, which was hampered by companies opting to work from home during the outbreak. “The pandemic created a uniquely challenging operating environment, with significant impacts on leasing velocity and the rate of renewals in key markets, particularly New York …
BUFFALO, N.Y. — ACRES Capital Corp. has provided a $32.5 million construction loan for Auden Buffalo, a 481-bed student housing project that will be located a mile from State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo’s campus. The 154-unit property will offer a fitness center, clubroom, study lounges and a pool. Richard Horowitz, Nicholas Barbato and Justin Horowitz of Cooper Horowitz LLC arranged the debt on behalf of the sponsor and developer, New York City-based DMG Investments. An expected completion date was not released.
NEWTON, MASS. — Dana-Farber has opened a 140,000-square-foot cancer treatment center at the site of the former Atrium Mall, located at 300 Boylston St. in Newton, a western suburb of Boston. The Bulfinch Companies led the redevelopment of the two-story facility, which offers a range of cancer therapy practices, clinical trials and supportive services for adult patients and families throughout the region. Bulfinch acquired the property in 2012 with plans to convert it into a medical and wellness facility.
STONEHAM, MASS. — RK Centers, a retail investment firm with offices in New England and Florida, has acquired a 119,568-square-foot building leased to BJ’s Wholesale Club in the northern Boston suburb of Stoneham. The sales price was $20 million. The building is situated on a 9.2-acre site near the junction of Interstates 93 and 95. Eastern Retail Properties represented the locally based seller, IYH Corp., in the transaction.
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of the Holiday Inn Buffalo International Airport, a 207-room hotel, for $3.9 million. The property was built in 1968 and features banquet facilities, a fitness center, shuttle service, business center and an outdoor pool. Jerry Swon, Daniel Zagoria, Luke Prybylski and Will Nollmann of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, DSM California LLC, in the transaction. The team also secured the buyer, Stephen Development LLC.
RANDOLPH, MASS. — Cornerstone Realty Capital has arranged a $14.8 million acquisition loan for Reed Street Apartments, an 88-unit multifamily property in Randolph, a southern suburb of Boston. The property’s unit mix consists of 15 studios, 49 one-bedroom apartments and 24 two-bedroom residences. The borrower, True North Capital Partners, plans to upgrade unit interiors, common areas and amenity spaces. The financing was structured with a fixed interest rate, a 30-year amortization schedule and 36 months of interest-only payments.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based mortgage banking firm Meridian Capital Group and global investment manager Barings have launched a new multifamily lending platform that will be headed by former Freddie Mac CEO David Brickman, who left the agency late last year. Under the terms of the agreement, the joint venture will acquire the assets and liabilities of Barings Multifamily Capital and operate that entity’s origination and servicing businesses for its portfolio of agency loans. The philosophy behind the new venture centers on leveraging the depth and reach of the platform of Meridian Capital, which in 2020 closed approximately $40 billion in loans via deals with more than 250 unique lenders. The newly created platform will be operated as a standalone business under its own name and branding, which will be announced prior to the transaction closing. Meridian will own a majority of the newly created platform, the day-to-day operations of which will be overseen by Brickman. “Our partnership with Barings will enable us to join forces with one of the world’s leading asset managers and reintroduce Meridian to the direct agency lending arena,” said Ralph Herzka, chairman and CEO of Meridian Capital. “The addition of David Brickman to our executive …
CANANDAIGUA, BROCKPORT AND FAIRPORT, N.Y. — Greystone has provided a $61.2 million Fannie Mae loan for the refinancing of a portfolio of multifamily properties totaling 769 units in Upstate New York. The portfolio comprises the 295-unit Centerpointe Apartments & Townhomes in Canandaigua, the 160-unit Willowbrooke Manor Apartments in Brockport and the 314-unit Highview Manor Apartments & Townhomes in Fairport. Drew Fletcher, Matthew Hirsch and Paul Fried of Greystone originated the financing, which was structured with a 10-year term and a fixed interest rate, on behalf of the borrower, locally based investment and development firm Sinatra & Co. Real Estate.
NEW YORK CITY — JLL has negotiated the sale of the 443-room New York LaGuardia Airport Marriott hotel in Queens. The building spans 224,620 square feet and houses the Ditmars Bar & Grill restaurant, a fitness center and 13,000 square feet of meeting and event space. The property received $30 million in renovations in 2018, including reconfigurations of public spaces and meeting areas, as well as remodeling of guest rooms and upgrading of parking lots. K.C. Patel, Kevin Davis and Nikhil Chuchra of JLL represented the seller, Rubicon Cos., in the transaction. California-based ASAP Holdings purchased the asset for an undisclosed price.