SAN RAFAEL, CALIF. — BioMarin Pharmaceutical has acquired San Rafael Corporate Center, a 315,000-square-foot office campus in the city’s downtown region, for $116 million. The campus is located on Lindaro Street. The acquisition includes 5.5 acres of land for future development. The site is approved for a total of 406,000 square feet of buildings, including one new 89,000-square-foot office building and a 600-car parking structure. BioMarin currently occupies about 40 percent of the corporate center. The pharmaceutical company was represented by Colliers International. The sellers, Seagate Properties and its institutional investors, acquired the property in August 2007. They were represented by Eastdil Secured in this transaction. Seagate was also advised by advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management.
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NEW YORK CITY — Mesa West Capital has provided $119 million in first-mortgage debt to a joint venture led by New Jersey-based Normandy Real Estate Partners. The joint venture plans to use the funds to recapitalize The Exchange, a 1.4 million-square-foot office portfolio located in Westchester County. The Exchange includes 12 suburban low- and mid-rise office buildings spread across four business parks along Interstate 287 near White Plains. Normandy has invested more than $11 million in capital upgrades throughout the portfolio in an effort to stabilize the assets. A portion of the loan proceeds will go to a targeted leasing campaign, which will be implemented on an asset-by-asset basis, as well as to allow the sponsor to continue to selectively upgrade the properties. Eastdil Secured arranged the financing.
SOUTHBOROUGH, MASS. — Vantage Builders Inc. has completed an 84,000-square-foot renovation project for Olympus Surgical Technologies America at 136 Turnpike Road in Southborough. The multi-phase project included the renovation of the company’s executive areas, a new training area and carpet installation. Olympus Surgical Technologies America, a technology leader in the field of minimally invasive surgery device development and manufacturing, recently signed a lease renewal and was awarded a tenant allowance for office upgrades. Vantage Builders constructed a 2,100-square-foot training area that included new air conditioning via a 25-ton rooftop unit. Vantage Builders worked closely with the property managers, Capital Group Properties and Holm & Associates. The architects on the project were Fine Associates and the engineers were Avid Engineers and Hung & Associates.
NEW YORK CITY — Colliers International has arranged expansion space with Shopbop at 230 West 41st St. in Times Square West between the N.Y. Times building and 11 Times Square. The women’s clothing division of Amazon now occupies approximately 25,000 square feet in the building. Shopbob relocated to 230 West 41st St. from Soho about 18 months ago — initially signing a long-term, 13,340-square-foot lease for the entire 19th and 20th floors. The firm nearly doubled its space last year, expanding to about 24,000 square feet, with a lease for the entire 18th floor and space on the 16th floor. Now with a third expansion, also on the 16th floor, Shopbop occupies 24,954 square feet total in the building. Built in 1923, 230 West 41st Street is a 20-story building situated between Seventh and Eighth avenues.
LAS VEGAS — HMS Holdings Corp. has leased 65,000 square feet at The Gramercy in Las Vegas. The 500,000-square-foot, mixed-use development is currently under development just west of the 215 beltway at Russell Road. The cost containment solutions provider for the healthcare industry plans to move into the Class A space in early summer. The Gramercy is being developed by SWLV Development LLC, a collaboration between the principals of The Krausz Companies and WGH Partners. Wells Fargo provided the financing to complete the project.
WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. — A10 Capital has provided a $5 million acquisition loan for a mid-rise suburban office building in West Palm Beach. The 69,715-square-foot, Class B office building was 69 percent leased at the time of sale. Chuck Taylor of A10 Capital’s Atlanta office structured and closed the loan on behalf of the borrower, a local investor and office operator. Jason Hochman of CBRE arranged the debt placement. CBRE represented the seller in the transaction.
TAMPA, FLA. — The U.S. Green Building Council has awarded the Bank of America Plaza in Tampa LEED Gold certification. MetLife owns Bank of America Plaza, and CBRE’s Anne-Marie Ayers, Phil Weber and Erica Waltermire leases the building. CBRE’s on-site management team, which includes Julie Palmer-Nicholson, Lynn Vilmar and Doug Lawson, worked with the technical services team to garner energy savings and follow MetLife and CBRE’s commitment to sustainability.
SOUTH PLAINFIELD, N.J. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged a 17,000-square-foot headquarters lease for Petra Systems at 1 Cragwood Road in South Plainfield. The global provider of distributed-power electronic technologies is relocating to the Class A office property this winter from a nearby flex property. Slava Vaynberg, Marc Trevisan and David Sherman of Cushman & Wakefield arranged the lease on behalf of Petra Systems. Tanzanite Realty LLC owns the 160,000-square-foot 1 Cragwood Road building and was represented by Adam Englander from CBRE.
MIDDLEBURG HEIGHTS, OHIO — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of a 33,387-square-foot building occupied by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Middleburg Heights, a southwest suburb of Cleveland. The terms of the sale were not released. Geoff Ficke in Marcus & Millichap’s Dallas office marketed the property on behalf of the seller, an individual/personal trust. Michael Glass, also of Marcus & Millichap, assisted in closing the transaction. U.S. Customs and Border Protection property is located at 6747 Engle Road.
OLYMPIA FIELDS, ILL. — JCF Real Estate has completed the sale of a Fresenius Dialysis building in Olympia Fields, a southern suburb of Chicago. Located at 2609 W. Lincoln Highway, the 12,000-square-foot property is occupied by the Fresenius Dialysis Center. Chrastka teamed up with Bruce Harris and James Walsh of Marcus & Millichap in representing ownership in the sale of the property. A West Coast-based investment firm purchased the building. JCF Real Estate developed the Fresenius building as a build-to-suit in 2004 on behalf of the ownership and tenant.