BOSTON — Skanska, an international developer based in Sweden, has paid $177 million to acquire land in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood for the development of a 27-story office building. The building will be located at 380 Stuart St. and will also house street-level retail space and a below-ground parking deck. The seller of the land was John Hancock Life Insurance Co. A construction timeline was not disclosed.
VISTA, CALIF. — Realm LP has purchased Melrose Plaza, a six-building office campus located at 500-550 W. Vista Way in Vista. Melrose Plaza Complex LP sold the asset for $7.5 million. At the time of sale, the 58,483-square-foot property was 98 percent leased. Jeff Abramson of Lee & Associates North San Diego County represented the buyer and seller in the deal.
The ability to find debt and equity financing for acquisitions and new development has been deeply affected by the coronavirus. Heading into 2020, there was plenty of inexpensive capital available to real estate investors and developers. The once wide field of potential lenders has shrunk significantly over the past nine months. And as for equity availability, it will be important in the coming months to be patient and diligent. REBusinessOnline recently spoke with Gary Sopko, senior vice president – structured finance/investment sales of Lee & Associates and principal at Baden Advisors (an affiliate of Lee & Associates) via video conference about his company’s approach to investment sales, debt financing and equity placement for commercial real estate clients in the midst of an unprecedented year. Sopko interprets what the lower loan volume across the board means for the commercial real estate industry, trends he’s seeing and his role in educating borrowers/clients on how to navigate this challenging time. Changing Lender Pools At the start of the pandemic, a variety of lenders were still ready, willing and able to lend; however, as the pandemic continued and shutdowns spread, the lender pool shrunk. Many private debt funds had to suspend lending for a …
CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — Harrison Street and its investment partners The Bulfinch Cos. and National Real Estate Advisors have sold three life sciences buildings at Cambridge Discovery Park for a gross sale price of $720 million. Denver-based REIT Healthpeak Properties Inc. (NYSE: PEAK) purchased the properties, which are situated in Boston’s West Cambridge submarket. For Bulfinch, the master developer of Cambridge Discovery Park, the transaction with Healthpeak was a recapitalization of its stake in the development. The Boston-based firm entered into a joint venture transaction with Healthpeak whereby Bulfinch will retain a majority ownership stake in one of the buildings. Additionally, Bulfinch will continue to manage the property. The Cambridge Discovery Park acquisition, which also includes two parking garages, totals approximately 620,000 square feet. The buildings, called 100 CDP, 200 CDP and 400/500 CDP, were 94 percent leased at the time of sale to biotechnology, pharmaceutical and research companies with a weighted average remaining lease term of approximately 7.5 years. According to Healthpeak, the acquisition also includes an approximately 100,000-square-foot site for a future densification opportunity that the REIT plans to co-develop with Bulfinch. Cambridge Discovery Park includes six life sciences buildings and an AC Hotel by Marriott. The campus is …
FARMERS BRANCH, TEXAS — Weitzman has brokered the sale of a 95,488-square-foot building formerly occupied by Atlanta-based furniture retailer Haverty’s in the northern Dallas metro of Farmers Branch. The building offers a second-generation showroom/warehouse with highway frontage and visibility, as well as a mezzanine level for showroom and office space. David Zoller of Weitzman represented the seller, a Dallas-based limited partnership, in the transaction. Joe Doye of Westin Co. represented the buyer.
SAN ANTONIO — NorthMarq has arranged an $8 million loan for the refinancing of Crownridge Centre, a 41,590-square-foot office building located on the north side of San Antonio. Bryan Leonard of NorthMarq placed the debt through an undisclosed life insurance company on behalf of the locally based sponsor. The financing was structured with a fixed interest rate and a fully amortizing 20-year term. The building is leased to tenants in the financial, medical and energy sectors.
CHICAGO — Parkside Realty Inc. has opened Fulton East, a 12-story, next-generation office building in Chicago’s Fulton Market District. The speculative project features high-tech features for employee health, hygiene, safety and wellness such as hands-free elevators, a state-of-the-art air and surface disinfection system, open-air terraces and a rooftop park. The 90,000-square-foot development also features retail space and is located at 215 N. Peoria St. Each floor offers 10,605 square feet with a private outdoor terrace. The building’s top floors feature a multi-level penthouse office suite. An 8,000-square-foot rooftop park offers tenants additional outdoor space. Chicago-based Clayco and its in-house architect Lamar Johnson Collaborative served as builder and designer. Chicago-based interior designer Holly Hunt designed the building’s lobby.
NEW YORK CITY — Owners Rosemark Management and Levin Management have unveiled the redevelopment of the 850,000-square-foot Paramount Building, located at 1501 Broadway in Manhattan. MKDA designed the redevelopment of the 32-story office building, which was originally constructed in 1926 as the East Coast headquarters for Paramount Pictures. The property now offers prebuilt suites ranging in size from 1,000 to 45,000 square feet with various health and wellness features integrated throughout the workspaces and common areas. Rosemark and Levin began a $50 million capital improvement program at the Paramount Building in 2018, upgrading mechanical systems and corridors and adding new food and beverage uses. Newmark has been tapped to lease the office space.
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — New Jersey-based REIT Mack-Cali Corp. has sold a 203,335-square-foot office building located at 581 Main St. in the Northern New Jersey city of Woodbridge for $61 million. The property recently underwent a capital improvement program that featured a renovated lobby and a new café and conference center. A subsidiary of Plymouth Rock Group Cos. purchased the asset and will use the building as its New Jersey headquarters. Cushman & Wakefield brokered the deal. The transaction comes as part of Mack-Cali’s stated effort to divest its suburban office assets and follows the company’s $12.7 million sale of 7 Campus Drive in Morristown two weeks ago.
WALTHAM, MASS. — Dallas-based Lincoln Property Co. has broken ground on a 139,000-square-foot life sciences project that will be located at 300 Third Ave. in the western Boston suburb of Waltham. Designed by local architecture firm DiMella Shaffer, the building will offer traditional office and lab space, as well as five levels of parking. Callahan Construction Managers is the general contractor for the project, which is expected to be complete in January 2022.