CHICAGO — Reed Construction has completed the construction of 23,500 square feet of white-box spec suites within 500 N. Michigan Ave. in Chicago. The construction was completed on behalf of the property manager, Zeller Realty Group. The project included new ceiling grids and tiles, direct and indirect lighting, new supply and return grills, new sprinkler heads and interior paint. Hydzik Schade Associates provided architectural services for the project.
MONTVALE, N.J. — CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) has brokered the sale of One Paragon Plaza, a 107,221-square-foot, Class A office building located in Montvale. The property was 84 percent leased at the time of closing by a tenant roster that includes Cisco Systems, Volvo Financial Services, General Electric Corp. and Adecco Employment Services. Jeffrey Dunne, Kevin Welsh and David Gavin of CBRE's New York Institutional Group represented the seller, One Paragon Associates LP, an entity controlled by Ivy Realty Services. CBRE also procured the buyer, Samson Paragon LLC, an entity controlled by Samson Management Corp. The acquisition price was not disclosed.
NEW YORK CITY — Cosmetics retailer Avon has relocated its New York City corporate headquarters. The company will be moving from 1251 Avenue of the Americas to 777 Third Ave. Avon signed a lease for 246,500 square feet, which comprises floors two through 11. The lease carries a 15-year term that begins in the first quarter of 2011. Jon Zuckerman and Len DiMicelli of CB Richard Ellis and Dale Schlather of Cushman & Wakefield represented Avon. Frank Doyle and Peter Riguardi of Jones Lang LaSalle and Michael Lenchner of Sage Realty Corp. represented the landlord, the William Kaufman Organization.
CARROLLTON, TEXAS — Construction is complete for a 29,808-square-foot office building located at 4320 Marsh Ridge Road in Carollton. The building's owner, Wholesale Payment Solutions, plans to occupy approximately 8,000 square feet of space and lease the remaining space. The project architect was Seitz Architecture, and the general contractor was Christopher Builders. The leasing team is Eric Rutledge and Abbey Barnett of Cushman & Wakefield of Texas.
NEW YORK CITY — SL Green Realty Corp. has taken over as sole owner of 100 Church Street, a 1.05 million-square-foot office tower located in downtown Manhattan, New York City. SL Green initially acquired a 50 percent interest in the tower's senior mezzanine loan and two additional mezzanine loans from Gramercy Capital Corp. in 2007. In August 2009, SL Green obtained management and leasing control of the property on behalf of the mezzanine lender, which foreclosed on it. As part of the foreclosure, SL Green reached an agreement with Wachovia to provide additional capital to extend and restructure the property's current debt. Gramercy declined to fund its share of this transaction, and instead chose to transfer its interests to SL Green. SL Green has brought on Newmark Knight Frank to launch an aggressive leasing campaign for the property, which is currently 42 percent occupied. It will also complete capital improvements to the building.
DALLAS — The Dallas office of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler (HFF) has arranged a $65 million loan for the refinancing of 1700 Pacific, a 49-story, Class A office tower located in Dallas. 1700 Pacific contains 1.34 million square feet of space and is occupied by tenants that include Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Pension Worldwide. Retail tenants at the tower include Starbucks Coffee, Camille's, Subway, Café Solace and Elevation Fitness Club. HFF's Steve Heldenfels and Whitaker Johnson secured the loan on behalf of Berkeley Investments. The loan carries a 5-year term, a fixed interest rate and was provided by ING Investment Management.
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. — Career Education Corp. has leased a 317,198-square-foot office building at 231 N. Martingale Road in Schaumburg. Located within Woodfield Pointe Office Center, the 11-story building will house the company’s headquarters. The company is scheduled to begin occupying the building in December and consolidation of its current five offices will be complete in March 2011. James Whalen, Mark Pasquella and Chad Freese of CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant and the landlord, Keystone Property Group, in the transaction.
PHILADELPHIA — CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) Investors has purchased 2000 Market Street, a 29-story, 661,909-square-foot office building located in Philadelphia's central business district. The building has received $3.5 million in renovations over the past 5 years, and CBRE Investors plans to complete an additional $5.5 million in improvements. New features of the building will include a conference center and a fitness center. Occupancy was 76 percent at the time of closing. CBRE Investors made the purchase on behalf of its CBRE Strategic Partners U.S. Value 5 fund.
HOUSTON — Holliday Fenoglio Fowler (HFF) has brokered the sale of Timberway II, a three-story, 130,822-square-foot office building located in Houston's Energy Corridor submarket. The building is situated on approximately 4.5 acres at 15995 N. Barkers Landing. Dan Miller, Martin Hogan and Trent Agnew of HFF represented the seller, PS Business Parks, Inc. The buyer's name was not disclosed.
NEW YORK CITY — Rockrose Development Corp. has agreed to acquired the controlling interest in 300 Park Avenue South, a 15-story, 180,000-square-foot office building located in New York City. The owner of Rockrose, Henry Elghanayan, previously owned the property jointly with his two brothers, Tom and Fred Elghanayan, who recently branched off to form TF Cornerstone. Rockrose's immediate plans for the property included attempting to renew the property's existing leases, all of which expire at the beginning of 2011, while initiating a capital improvements program. Major tenants at the building include Interpublic, Wilhelmina Models and Rizzoli Publishing. The Cushman & Wakefield team of Andrew Peretz, John Peters and Mikael Nahimas has been retained to lease the property.