NEW YORK CITY — Ariel Property Advisors has brokered the sales of two properties in Upper Manhattan and the Bronx totaling $5.85 million. In the first transaction, a 75-foot wide development site at 531 West 159th St. in Washington Heights sold for $3.3 million. The property features approximately 25,779 buildable square feet as of right for residential development and 48,711 buildable square feet if a community facility is included. Victor Sozio, Michael Tortorici, Jesse Deutch and Josh Berkowitz of Ariel Property Advisors represented the seller and buyer, both private investors, in the transaction. In the second transaction, a 19,800-square-foot mixed-use property at 576 Southern Blvd. in the Longwood section of the Bronx sold for $2.55 million. Scot Hirschfield, Jason Gold, Shimon Shkury and Victor Sozio of Ariel Property Advisors represented the seller and buyer, which were both private investors.
Mixed-Use
HOUSTON — MetroNational, owner, manager and developer of Memorial City, a 250-acre mixed-use property in Houston, has completed its newest building, The Treehouse. The building uses green technology and includes office and meeting space. The Treehouse is a two-story, 14,700-square-foot structure featuring a geothermal cooling and heating system, solar panels, rainwater collection, a wind turbine and rooftop garden. Located at 963 Bunker Hill Road, the building’s owners hope to receive LEED Platinum certification.
NEW YORK CITY — Madison Realty Capital (MRC) in partnership with RWN Real Estate Partners has acquired 2053 Frederick Douglass Boulevard and 300 West 112th Street in Harlem for $30 million. The two five-story mixed-use buildings offer of total of 55,000 square feet, including 50 residential units and two retail units totaling 3,750 square feet. Additionally, the properties offer 30,000 square feet of additional residential development rights. The buyers plan to renovate both properties to maximize rents, lease vacant units and explore the potential of future development. Steven Schultz and Josh Malka of NGKF Capital Markets represented both parties in the off-market transaction.
NEW ROCHELLE AND NORTH SALEM, N.Y. — NorthMarq Capital’s Greater Westchester NY/CT regional office has secured financing for two properties in New York totaling $6.8 million. In the first transaction, NorthMarq arranged $6 million in refinancing for 20 Cedar Street, a 63,591-square-foot office building in New Rochelle. Sidney Frank Importing Co. is the major tenant at the property. The 10-year loan, which features a 25-year amortization schedule, was arranged through a regional bank for the borrower, Cedar Plaza Associates LLC. In the second transaction, NorthMarq secured $875,000 for the refinancing of 56-62 June Road, a 23,300-square-foot mixed-use property in North Salem. The U.S. Postal Service and M&T Bank occupy the property. The seven-year loan features a 30-year amortization schedule and was arranged for the borrower, North Salem Brothers Realty LLC, through a regional bank. Robert Ranieri of NorthMarq Capital secured the financing for both transactions.
CEDAR HILL, TEXAS — Trademark Property Co. has agreed to manage and lease Uptown Village at Cedar Hill, a 610,000-square-foot, mixed-use center in Cedar Hill, Texas. Located 20 minutes south of downtown Dallas, Uptown Village includes 350,000 square feet of retail and 35,000 square feet of office space. The center features 72 tenants including Dillard’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Barnes & Noble. Trademark begins management and leasing duties immediately.
NEW YORK CITY — A joint venture between Siras Development and Kuafu Properties has completed the acquisition of a development site in Midtown Manhattan’s Hudson Yards for approximately $62 million. The site comprises five adjacent parcels located at the southeast corner of 38th Street and 11th Avenue. The joint venture plans to develop a 380,000-square-foot mixed-use project on the site, which is directly across from the Jacob Javits Center. The property will include 50 condominium units in the top 15 floors of the tower; a 400-room high-end hotel on 20 floors; and the Shanghai Club, a members-only club, on three floors, as well as office, ground-floor retail and lifestyle space. Archilier Architecture designed the 47-story tower, which will have a sleek, modern appeal with a distinctive Asian influence.
NEW YORK CITY — Madison Realty Capital (MRC) has sold an uptown Manhattan real estate portfolio to an undisclosed foreign investor for $23.4 million. The portfolio consists of 125 apartment units and two retail stores located at 528-538 West 59th Street, 220 West 149th Street and 2546-2548 Seventh Ave. MRC initially purchased the properties from a regional savings bank for $10.5 million in December 2012. The company implemented a renovation and upgrade program after acquisition to enhance rent roll and lease the retail portion. Yosef Katz and Roni Abudi of GFI Realty Services and Peter Von Der Ahe from Marcus & Millichap brokered the transaction.
HOUSTON — Peska, a seafood restaurant, will open a 6,000-square-foot store at Phase II of BLVD Place, a new mixed-use development under construction in Houston’s Uptown/Galleria. Ed Wulfe, chairman and CEO of Wulfe & Co., is managing partner of the development. Stockbridge Capital Group of San Francisco serves as equity advisor in the transaction. Peska is owned by the Mexico-based Ysita family, which runs four restaurants in Mexico under the La Trainera brand. BLVD Place is located on the southwest corner of Post Oak Boulevard and San Felipe Street in Houston. The complex is 80 percent leased, with a 52,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market and a 55,000-square-foot regional headquarters for Frost Bank serving as the major tenants.
CHASKA, MINN. — The Opus Group plans to develop a mixed-use project on 60 acres in Chaska, a small town about 25 miles southwest of Minneapolis. The property is located at the southwest corner of U.S. Highway 212 and County Road. Plans for the site include approximately 500,000 square feet of industrial and office space and a 15-acre, grocery-anchored retail development. Opus Development Co. LLC has retained Colliers International to market the site. The population of Chaska was nearly 24,100 as of 2012, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
WELLINGTON, FLA. — Johnson Capital has arranged a $12 million loan to refinance Wellington Reserve, a Class A office and retail park in Wellington, a town in Palm Beach County. The complex contains approximately 93,000 square feet of office and retail space in seven buildings. Warren Factor and Eric Fixler of Johnson Capital’s Boca Raton office arranged the seven-year loan with a 25-year amortization schedule through a national bank. The borrower, an unnamed real estate investor active in Orlando and Miami, purchased the asset from Wells Fargo in March 2013 for $10.5 million.