Greater Boston’s office market is continuing a very strong streak, closing 2016 and the fourth quarter on a good note. The year saw 1.4 million square feet positively absorbed with 789,000 square feet absorbed in the fourth quarter. The current vacancy rate is 12.7 percent, slightly lower than the market average over the last five years of 13.6 percent. Average Class A asking rents are $43.12 per square foot, which has appreciated 9.1 percent in the last three years. Neither the quarter nor the year are aberrations. The market is on an extended run of positive returns. Office space in the Greater Boston market has now seen positive absorption in 14 of the last 15 quarters, accumulating 12 million square feet positively absorbed over that period. The Boston CBD contributed 59,000 square feet of positive absorption in the fourth quarter, decreasing the vacancy rate 0.1 percentage points to 9.6 percent. The most absorption of the CBD submarkets occurred in the Financial District, which saw 69,000 square feet positively absorbed. Average Class A asking rents are currently $55.09 per square foot in the CBD, led by Back Bay, which has an average asking rate of $62.51 per square foot. Across the …
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — A joint venture between Stockdale Capital Partners and Jasper Ridge Partners has invested $142.5 million to recapitalize the 537,110-square-foot Galleria Corporate Center in Scottsdale. The center is located at 4343 N. Scottsdale Road. The building’s lobby and common areas will undergo a multi-million dollar renovation. The Galleria was originally built as a retail mall in the 1990s. It was converted to office use in 2000. Major tenants currently include Yelp, SAP and McKesson. Stockdale purchased the Galleria Corporate Center in 2013. The recapitalization includes the addition of more than two adjacent acres of land that is currently entitled for construction of up to 220,000 square feet of offices.
NEW YORK CITY — Eastern Consolidated’s capital advisory division has arranged an $85 million refinancing loan for a 12-story, 140,000-square-foot building with 133 residential and eight commercial units located at 2030 Broadway in Manhattan. Jonathan Aghravi and Charles Han represented the borrower, Ormonde Equities LLC, and secured the loan from a life insurance company. Since acquiring the property in 2004, the sponsor has repositioned it with a series of capital improvements. The property is located in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Lincoln Square, near the Lincoln Center. Transportation is available via the 1, 2, 3, B and C trains.
NEWARK, N.J. — The Berger Organization has acquired 33 Washington Street, a 450,000-square-foot, 18-story office tower located in downtown Newark. The property was built for Horizon Blue Cross/Blue Shield and is now home to multiple tenants. Located on 1.6 acres across the street from Washington Park, the building is in the James Street Commons Historic District. Nearby attractions include the Newark Museum, John Ballantine House and Newark Public Library. The property sits two blocks from the Newark Broad Street commuter light rail and a half a mile from Newark Penn Station. The tower, which was completed in 1970, features a fitness center, shared conference rooms, on-site parking, a granite lobby and views of the Manhattan skyline. HFF marketed the property on behalf of the seller, LNR Property.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — CBRE has arranged the sale of the Charlotte Industrial Park Portfolio, a 13-property asset totaling 486,512 square feet of Class A office and warehouse space throughout the Charlotte area. Patrick Gildea, Anne Johnson and Bryan Crutcher of CBRE represented the seller, Maryland-based Artemis Real Estate Partners, in the transaction. At the time of sale, the Charlotte Industrial Park Portfolio was 95 percent occupied. Boston-based Albany Road Real Estate purchased the properties.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS — Coldwell Banker Commercial has arranged leases on behalf of General Motors Financial Co. Inc. and Epic Health Services, a nursing and pediatric therapy firm, at Bardin Pointe, a 113,000-square-foot office property in Arlington. GM Financial leased 46,228 square feet and Epic leased 5,897 square feet within the two-story building, located at 1351 E. Bardin Road, to raise its occupancy to 96 percent. Rick Hopwood of Hopwood Commercial Real Estate represented GM Financial, and Cribb Altman of Cushman & Wakefield represented Epic Health.
ROUND ROCK — Equity Inc., an Ohio-based developer and broker, has opened Physicians Centre, a 21,000-square-foot, two-story medical office building located at 505 W. Louis Henna Blvd. in the Austin suburb of Round Rock. Austin-based general contractor The Burt Group oversaw construction of the building, and American Bank N.A. provided the financing. Tenants include Capital Surgeons Group, Snyder Dermatology and Parkway Primary Care.
TAMPA, FLA. — Meridian Development Group and joint venture partner Eightfold Real Estate Capital have acquired Beaumont Business Center, an 11-building, 252,235-square-foot office park located at the intersection of Hillsborough Avenue and Veterans Expressway in Tampa. Meridian and Eightfold acquired the 20-acre property, which will be rebranded as Meridian 589, from Lone Star Real Estate Fund for $18.5 million.
MELBOURNE, FLA. — CBRE Group Inc has negotiated the sale of Northrop Grumman Engineering Facility, a 107,4190 square-foot, single-tenant office building located at 3990 S. Babcock St. in the Orlando suburb of Melbourne. CBRE’s Ron Rogg and Chip Wooten represented the seller, BH Properties, in the transaction. California-based Rich Uncles NNN REIT acquired the property for approximately $13.3 million.
SUMMERVILLE, S.C. — Equity Inc., an Ohio-based developer and broker, has begun construction on Palmetto Primary Care Physicians Medical Campus in the community of Nexton, about 30 miles northwest of Charleston. The $32 million project will deliver a 100,000-square-foot Class A medical office with primary and specialty care services, an urgent care center and an imaging lab. Construction is scheduled for completion in late 2018.