CORAL GABLES, FLA. — 396 Alhambra LLC is eyeing a February groundbreaking of a two-tower, 285,000-square-foot office development at 396 Alhambra Circle in Coral Gables. The $130 million property is being developed by a joint venture of the companies Alhambra Investors and Agave Florida Investments. Coral Gables-based Fullerton Diaz designed the project, which will be built to silver LEED standards. More than 900 employees will work at the building, which is slated for completion in the spring of 2010.
ROSEMONT, ILL. — The Naperville, Ill.-office of Ryan Cos. US Inc. and Oak Brook, Ill.-based The Harp Group are breaking ground on Rosemont Corporate Center, a 121,000-square-foot office building located near the corner of Balmoral Avenue and River Road in Rosemont. The Class A, four-story building is being designed to achieve LEED Silver certification. Sustainable features of the building include an under floor air distribution system, energy efficient mechanical and electrical systems, and water conservation plumbing features. San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco Systems has signed on as the building’s lead tenant, occupying 82,000 square feet of space. Cisco System’s space will also be LEED certified.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based The Nicotra Group has acquired Teleport I and II, two three-story office buildings located in the Staten Island borough of New York City, for $25 million. The two properties contain approximately 300,000 square feet of Class A office space. The buyer has renamed the buildings Corporate Commons, and plans to incorporate them into its existing office park, The Corporate Park of Staten Island, which contains five additional office buildings, two hotels, a conference center, and a restaurant and cabaret within a 415-acre wildlife preserve. The office park is currently the only one of its kind in New York City. The Nicotra Group plans to invest between $10 and $15 million to renovate the two buildings, and will also donate 25 percent of Corporate Commons’ profits to the newly created Lois and Richard Nicotra Foundation. The sellers were Murray Construction and Silverstein Properties.
FRISCO, TEXAS — Hartford, Conn.-based The Hartford has signed a 5-year lease for 29,685 square feet of space at Hall Office Park, a 162-acre office campus located in Frisco. The company will occupy the fifth and sixth floors of a newly constructed building located at 3000 Internet Blvd. Terms of the agreement also include building signage. Jean Farris provided in-house representation on behalf of the landlord, locally based Hall Financial Group. The Hartford was represented by Frank Ricca of Jones Lang LaSalle. The lease commences in February 2009.
LOS ANGELES — Hines has acquired an approximately 4.5 million-square-foot office portfolio from Cabi Developers, the U.S. arm of Mexico’s Gicsa, for approximately $1.4 billion. The portfolio consists of 31 properties comprising more than 50 buildings. The properties, which include the 243,000-square-foot Century Park Center in Los Angeles, are located in Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura and San Diego counties.
TAMPA, FLA. — Nova Southeastern University of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has leased 81,500 square feet in Tampa’s Sabal Corporate Center from Orlando, Fla.-based Eola Capital. The university plans to open the Tampa Student Educational Center, which will allow students to complete degrees in anesthesiologist assistance as well as other pursuits. Sabal Corporate Center is a three-story office building located at 3632 Queen Palm Dr. in Tampa. Palmaple Corp.’s Jamie Puddicombe represented Nova in negotiations for the 10-year lease. Nova will move in during the first quarter of 2009.
PHILADELPHIA — Minneapolis-based NorthMarq has secured a 303,149-square-foot lease extension for two members of the AmeriHealth Mercy Family of Companies in Philadelphia. The companies, Keystone Mercy Health Plan and AmeriHealth Mercy Health Plan are headquartered at 100 and 200 Stevens Dr. in Philadelphia, located near Philadelphia International Airport. The buildings are owned by Edison, N.J.-based Mack-Cali. The new leases extend to 2020.
CORONA, CALIF. — Irvine, Calif.-based Timberline Commercial Real Estate in partnership with SE Corp. has developed a six-story, 160,000-square-foot office tower in Corona’s master-planned community of Dos Lagos. Located at 4160 Temescal Canyon Rd., the project is the first of three buildings planned for Lakeshore Plaza, which will ultimately total 473,000 square feet. The building features an advanced HVAC system, flexible and expandable telecommunications and efficient floorplans for easy expansion. Designed by Ronald Frink Architects, the property is currently completing the LEED registration and certification processes. Irvine-based Snyder Langston served as general contractor for the project.
SAN DIEGO — H.G. Fenton Property Co. has acquired Ruffin Road Business Park, a two-building office complex located at 3949 and 3959 Ruffin Rd. in San Diego. The 45,842-square-foot park sold for $8.6 million. The property is currently occupied by Honeywell, Access Professional, Nsoro LLC and United Tote. Nick Psyllos and Paul Komadina of CB Richard Ellis represented the buyer and the seller, Buie San Jacinto LLC and 3949 & 3959 Ruffin Road LLC, c/o Shidler West Investment Partners LP, in the transaction.
BRIDGEPORT, CONN. — People’s United Bank has disposed of a nine-property portfolio covering approximately two blocks of downtown Bridgeport. The portfolio totals 255,548 square feet of commercial space, and includes 167, 177, 189 and 211 State St.; 779, 815, 855 and 899 Main St.; and 830/880 Broad St. The bank’s headquarters building, located within the portfolio’s area at 850 Main St., was not included in the sale. The portfolio was acquired by Main State Ventures, a partnership between Norwalk, Conn.-based companies Forstone Capital and Spinnaker Real Estate Partners. The acquisition brings Forstone’s downtown Bridgeport holdings to approximately 425,000 square feet of commercial space. Jeffrey Dunne and Steven Bardsley of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller. Immediate plans for the portfolio were not disclosed.