WALNUT CREEK, CALIF. — Cohen Financial has secured $19 million for the refinancing of a 105,000-square-foot office building in Walnut Creek. The loan includes $17 million at close and $2 million earn-out upon stabilization of the property, which is located at 500 Ygnacio Valley Rd. Paul Schroeder of Cohen Financial’s San Francisco office arranged the 5-year, 70 percent loan-to-value floating-rate loan for the undisclosed borrower. The lender is Lansing, Mich.-based Jackson National Life, PPM Finance’s U.S. subsidiary.
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ORLANDO, FLA. — Shelton Granade and Luke Wickham of CB Richard Ellis’ Orlando office represented Colonial Properties Trust in its sale of the 496-unit Colonial Grand at Hunter’s Creek to an undisclosed buyer for $57.7 million. The apartment complex is located across from the Hunter’s Creek Golf Course on John Young Parkway in Orlando.
NEW YORK CITY — Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) has negotiated a 260,000-square-foot lease renewal and expansion at 125 West 55th Street, a 23-story office tower located in New York City. Sydney, Australia-based Macquarie Group will renew its lease for 100,000 square feet within the building, and is expanding by 160,000 square feet by leasing an additional six floors, plus portions of the ground and eighth floors. Josh Kuriloff and Robert Tanzmann of C&W represented Macquarie Group in the lease transaction; Andrew Levin provided in-house representation to the building’s owner, Boston Properties. 125 West 55th Street contains approximately 590,000 square feet of office space; major tenants at the building include Katz Media Group and Air France. A joint venture in which Boston Properties is a majority partner acquired the building in August of this year.
BOSTON — Newton, Mass.-based Diversified Project Management (DPM) has completed the renovation of Safety Insurance’s 104,000-square-foot office located at 20 Custom House St. in Boston. Renovations were made to all nine floors, the lobbies, the cafeteria and the main reception area. The space remained occupied during construction, with multiple staff relocations occurring during different stages of construction. DPM served as construction manager during the project, with Maugel Architects and Elaine Construction providing design and construction services, respectively.
GARDEN CITY, N.Y. — New York City-based Meridian Capital Group has arranged $32.35 million in acquisition financing for 501 Franklin Avenue, a three-story office building located in Garden City. Situated on 8 acres, the building comprises 134,992 square feet, and also includes 550 parking spaces and its own Long Island Railroad station. The property is fully occupied by Doubleday Publishing Co. and Jet Blue Airways Corp. Abe Hirsch and Howard Abrams of Meridian arranged the financing on behalf of the borrower, Great Neck, N.Y.-based Jonis Realty. Terms of the financing include a fixed interest rate and a 5-year term.
ORANGE, CALIF. — An entity in a 1031 exchange controlled by Anaheim, Calif.-based Milan Capital Management Inc. has acquired Orange Financial Center, a three-tower office complex located at the intersection of Town & Country Road and Parker Street in Orange. The 312,000-square-foot property consists of an eight-story main tower and two adjacent three-story buildings. At the time of acquisition the property was 98 percent occupied by several tenants, including Word & Brown and Calsurance, a division of publicly traded Brown & Brown. The acquisition price was not disclosed. Bob Smith, Mike Kane, Paul Jones and Karen Scholte of CB Richard Ellis represented the undisclosed seller.
LA PALMA, CALIF. — An undisclosed East Coast-based pension fund has acquired Centerpointe La Palma, a 10-building office/retail property in La Palma, for an undisclosed price. The 532,000-square-foot complex features nine office buildings and a retail building. At the time of acquisition, the property was 92 percent occupied by credit tenants, including BP and Honeywell. Bob Smith, Mike Kane, Paul Jones and Karen Scholte of CB Richard Ellis represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction.
ATLANTA — Hotel Equities has renewed its 3,475-square-foot lease with RB41 PCE for its Atlanta headquarters, located at 41 Perimeter Center East in Atlanta, and is planning this month to start construction on an expansion. By adding 4,282 square feet to its headquarters, Hotel Equities will more than double the size of its offices. CresaPartners’ Ed Riggins represented Hotel Equities in the lease renewal, and Caroline Nolen of Barry Real Estate represented the landlord.
QUINCY, MASS. — Griffith Properties has held the grand reopening for the recently renovated HarborSouth Tower, a 10-story office tower located at 100 Hancock St. in Quincy. The building contains 206,000 square feet of Class A space. Many of its renovations focus on the project’s pursuit of LEED – Core & Shell Certification. The building’s indoor air quality and use of natural light have been improved. Drought-tolerant landscaping has been planted, and the building has preferred parking for fuel-efficient cars and carpoolers. Other improvements include a new lobby, new windows, an upgraded façade, a new multi-level parking deck, a café, a fitness center and a shared conference facility. The project was undertaken by a joint venture between Griffith, and Urdang Capital Management and the company’s Value-Added Fund II. Griffith acquired the property in 2007. The general contractor for the renovation project was Suffolk Construction; ADD Inc. served as project architect. Andy Majewski, Kat Kessler and Ogden White of CB Richard Ellis are serving as exclusive leasing agents.
PLANO, TEXAS — Groundbreaking has occurred for CIGNA’s new regional headquarters located at the corner of the Dallas North Tollway and Plano Parkway in Plano. The four-story, 210,000-square-foot office building will be divided into two wings, with each floor containing approximately 50,000 square feet of space. The façade of the building features brick, aluminum and painted surfaces, as well as a glass curtain wall. The building’s top floor contains a glass and aluminum façade, as well as a taller floor height. Building amenities will include a gym and a company cafeteria. The project will be seeking LEED certification, and sustainable features will include a rain-capture roof system, an east-west orientation to minimize sun exposure and the use of recycled construction materials. The project is being designed by Dallas-based Corgan Associates. The building will be located on the northern 13 acres of a 43-acre, master-panned development; the CIGNA headquarters is the first building to be constructed in the development. Future plans for the development include walking paths, picnic areas, and the possibility of retail areas, additional office buildings, and hotel and residential units. Upon completion in September 2009, CIGNA will consolidate employees and operations from four separate facilities in the Dallas/Fort …