Broward County’s office market continues to heat up like the South Florida summer. Vacancy is decreasing while office rental rates in the market increase. Broward County added 32,100 jobs in the past year, the 4 percent nonagricultural employment growth leading to a second quarter unemployment rate of 4.2 percent, outpacing the state (4.5 percent) and national (5.0) averages. “Many factors drive Broward County’s strong economy, including a talented and diverse workforce, our proximity to Latin America and the Caribbean, and access to three international airports and three seaports,” says Bob Swindell, president and CEO of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance, the county’s public/private partnership for economic development. Broward County’s office sector performance is a big story in an area of very positive commercial real estate headlines. It can be argued that South Florida trails only the two Bay Area bellwethers, San Francisco and the Silicon Valley, in property performance nationwide. Office rental rates in the county — CoStar reported that the market’s average rate increased 1.4 percent during first quarter to $25.14 per square foot — are most likely reaching the top of the arc in the present economic cycle. “Some of our strongest job growth has been in high-wage …
SANTA ANA, CALIF. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of Hacienda Plaza, a retail and medical office property located at the corner of West 17th Street and College Avenue in Santa Ana. A private 1031 exchange investor acquired the 77,610-square-foot asset for $16.7 million, or $215 per square foot. The two-building property comprises a 28,800-square-foot retail/medical building on 17th Street and a 29,310-square-foot medical/warehouse building on 19th Street. Built in 1976, the properties are occupied by Northgate Market, Don Roberto Jewelers and Hacienda Restaurant. Michael Lawrence and Michael Woolbright of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, while Rob Duong, also of Marcus & Millichap, represented the buyer in the transaction.
NEW YORK CITY — Himmel + Meringoff Properties and The Swig Company have received a $200 million mortgage loan for the refinancing of 8 Times Square, a 220,000-square-foot office and retail property located at 1460 Broadway in New York City. The loan was provided by Citigroup. The 16-story property offers 185,000 square feet of office space and 35,000 square feet of retail space. Current tenants of the property include WeWork and Foot Locker. Robert Sorin, Julianne Befeler, Chad Sandler and Jason Robinson of Fried Frank acted as counsel to the companies in the transaction.
PHILADELPHIA — Hollwich Kushner, serving as architect, has opened Pennovation Center, the centerpiece of the new 23-acre development at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia dedicated to innovation. The 69,314-square-foot project transformed a 20th century paint factory. The project team includes KSS Architects, Land Collective, Bruce Mau Design, Ballinger, Atelier Ten, Pennoni Associates, Focus Lighting and Hunter Roberts.
NEW YORK CITY — Cushman & Wakefield has facilitated the sale of a medical office building located at 407-409 E. 70th St. in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. An undisclosed buyer acquired the five-story building for $17 million, or $1,133 per square foot. The 15,000-square-foot property was sold by a group of doctors who practice in the building. Upon sale, the former owners inked a long-term leaseback for the space. Mitchell Levine, Guthrie Garvin and James Nelson of Cushman & Wakefield brokered the transaction.
The booming land market in north Texas reflects a convergence of economic and demographic trends resulting in a dramatic expansion of residential communities, new mixed-use developments and the transformation of retail centers across the region. The result is higher land values, shifting land uses and developers, planners and designers adapting to the evolving lifestyles of a new generation of workers. Demand for well-located land parcels across multiple property types is reaping handsome returns for landowners. The land market in Dallas/Fort Worth is experiencing strong transaction volume and record prices due to a range of factors. Developers are responding to strong housing demand by building new residential communities that are accessible to Dallas/Fort Worth employment centers. Multifamily construction continues as some 360 people move into the region daily, many not ready for home ownership. New mixed-use developments are catering to a steady stream of corporations relocating to the area and seeking work settings that provide live/work/eat/play environments. Neighborhood grocery stores and restaurants are multiplying to support growing demand, while regional malls are being repurposed as spending habits shift. These trends have played a major role in the growth of urban centers like Dallas’ central business district, Uptown Dallas and Fort Worth’s …
NEW YORK CITY — Oxford Properties Group and Crown Acquisitions has completed a 175,000-square-foot lease extension through 2035 with the National Basketball Association (NBA) at Olympic Tower, located at 646 Fifth Ave. in Midtown Manhattan. The property owners plan to significantly modernize the office property’s lobby and public space to deliver a more engaging, customer-focused experience. Adam Frazier of Oxford, along with Paul Amrich, Howard Fiddle, Neil King and Patrice Meagher of CBRE, represented the owners, while Mary Ann Tighe, Gregory Tosko, Andrew Sussman and Munish Viralam of CBRE represented the tenant in the transaction.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Kissel Co. has purchased the Sweet Candy Building in downtown Salt Lake City for an undisclosed sum. The historic building is located at 200 West and 224 South. The 97,000-square-foot property was built in two phases between 1911 and 1922. The Sweet Candy Building was renovated in 2001, at which time it was converted into retro tech space. It is fully leased. CBRE’s Marty Plunkett and Craig Thomas represented the seller, Olafson II LLC, in this transaction.
SAN ANTONIO — On behalf of Seavest Healthcare Properties, Trammell Crow Co. has begun construction on a medical office building located at 1434 E. Sonterra Blvd. in San Antonio. Seavest Healthcare Properties will own the new three-story, 60,000-square-foot Children’s Hospital of San Antonio Health Pavilion at Stone Oak. The medical office building will focus on pediatric services. CHRISTUS Santa Rosa will lease 88 percent of the property, with the remaining space leased to MedCare Associates, a primary healthcare group. Construction has already begun and is scheduled for completion in fall 2017. The development team includes general contractor Joeris, architect MKS Associates, Cooper-Lochte Landscape Architecture, Pape Dawson, RGM Engineering and Alpha Consulting Engineers.
TULSA, OKLA. — CBRE has arranged the sale of BOK Place at Southern Hills, a 126,656-square-foot, Class A office building in Tulsa. The eight-story asset was 89 percent occupied at closing. Mary Martin of CBRE’s Tulsa office represented the seller, Allegiancy Houston LLC, in the transaction. The building is located at 5727 S. Lewis Ave. near the intersection of East 61st Street and South Lewis Avenue with close proximity to Southern Hills Country Club. Building amenities include high-speed internet, on-site banking with drive thru lanes and an on-site deli. Major tenants include Bank of Oklahoma and The Home Depot.