BOSTON — Dallas-based developer Trammell Crow Co. will open a new office in Boston. Charles Leatherbee, who joins the company from Skanska USA Commercial Development and most recently served as executive vice president in that firm’s Boston office, will head the new Trammell Crow office beginning Monday, May 6. The exact location and square footage of the new office is still being negotiated. The company hopes to announce that information in the coming weeks. Trammell Crow CEO Matt Khourie cited Boston’s diversified economy and deep pool of talent as key reasons behind the company’s decision to open the Boston office, which will offer development services for office, multifamily, life sciences and industrial product.
NEW YORK CITY — Real estate consulting firm Vanbarton Group has signed a 10,024-square-foot office lease at Penn Plaza, located at 132 W. 31st St. in Manhattan’s Midtown area. The lease term spans seven years. Mitchell Konsker, Matthew Astrachan, Adam Haber and Kyle Young of JLL represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Gabe Marans and Justin Greenstone of Savills Inc. represented the landlord, ExecOnline. The company is relocating from 860 Broadway.
Strengthening office performance in the northern New Jersey marketplace signals good things to come as 2019 unfolds. The market yielded approximately 292,000 square feet of net occupancy gains in 2018. This was fueled by three straight quarters of more than 1 million square feet in new leasing activity, with annual demand finishing 15.4 percent ahead of 2017. This progress runs parallel to improving employment numbers. At year-end, the Garden State unemployment rate registered at 4 percent, its lowest point since mid-2001. This marks a 70-basis-point decline year-over-year, with private-sector employment increasing by almost 62,000 jobs. Within this context, the diversity of New Jersey’s tenant mix is making itself apparent. No one sector is predominantly making waves. We are seeing healthy Class A leasing activity among life sciences, technology, financial, professional services and a range of other space users that comprise the state’s balanced occupier base. Last year was proof that both urban and suburban submarkets continue to thrive. Where one company prefers the Hudson Waterfront with immediate access to mass transit and ability to draw talent from New York City, another may seek a suburban campus that draws upon a labor force of commuters driving from the state’s western counties …
HOUSTON — Local developer BCTS Partners LLC has sold Copper Lakes Shopping Center, a commercial property in west Houston that consists of 16,080 square feet of retail space and 7,000 square feet of office space. Copper Lakes was 91 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Fitness 19, Snowflake Donuts, Homebase Pizza and Hollywood Fashion Nails. Austen Baldridge and Brad Elmore of Houston-based NewQuest Properties represented BCTS Partners, which developed the property in 2007, in the sale. The buyer was Parkway Brothers Investment Inc.
MAKEFIELD, PENN. — Rubenstein Partners LP, an investment firm focused on value-add office deals, will redevelop two office parks totaling 466,736 square feet in Makefield, about 40 miles northeast of Philadelphia. The Makefield Crossing North campus consists of five office buildings totaling 190,183 square feet, plus a Hampton Inn hotel that was not included in the acquisition. The Makefield Crossing South campus consists of four office buildings, of which Rubenstein acquired three buildings totaling 276,533 square feet. At both campuses, Rubenstein will convert the interior parking lots to open green spaces, renovate the common areas of the buildings, replace signage and add new amenities, including a fitness center, conference center and a tenant lounge. Rubenstein will also rebrand the properties. JLL will handle leasing of the redeveloped spaces.
CHICAGO — Skender has started interior construction of the Chicago headquarters for Spaces, a coworking company owned by IWG. Spaces will fully occupy the former Sports Authority building, which spans eight stories and 80,000 square feet and is located at the corner of LaSalle and Ontario streets. Project features include a roof terrace, café, gym, reception area, conference rooms, private offices and open office workstation areas. Next Realty is the building owner. Skender is collaborating with WB Interiors, Loring Engineers and Himes Associates. Completion is slated for September.
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — SunTrust Bank’s commercial real estate division has originated $40 million in acquisition financing for Gramercy Woods Southside, an office complex in Jacksonville. Anchored by Aetna Life Insurance Co., the property comprises 420,000 square feet of rentable space and two structured parking garages. The borrower was Atlanta-based Glenfield Capital. Specific loan terms were not disclosed.
BURLINGTON, MASS. — R.W. Holmes Commercial Real Estate has negotiated a 14,011-square-foot lease for flex space at 141 Middlesex Turnpike in Burlington, about 20 miles northwest of Boston. The tenant was Zimmer Northeast, a subsidiary of Zimmer Biomet (NYSE: ZBH), which manufactures and distributes orthopedics products. Mike Ogasapian and Garry Holmes of R.W. Holmes represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Jordan Yarboro and Madison Chambers of JLL represented the landlord, The Berman Cos.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of Avenue J, a 29,770-square-foot office building in Arlington. The multi-tenant property was built in the 1980s and offers proximity to Interstate 30. Cody Payne and Wayne Bares of Marcus & Millichap marketed the property on behalf of the seller and procured the buyer, both of which were private investors. Additional terms of sale were not disclosed.
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the sale of an office building, located at 745 Space Center Drive in Colorado Springs. A private individual sold the property for $9.1 million, or $177 per square foot. Booz Allen Hamilton fully occupies the two-story, 51,700-square-foot office building, which features covered parking. The property was constructed in 2006. Aaron Johnson and Jon Hendrickson of Cushman & Wakefield’s Denver-based Capital Markets Group facilitated the transaction. The buyer was not disclosed.