NEW YORK CITY — Steve Cohen, owner of the New York Mets baseball team, will develop Metropolitan Park, an $8 billion sports-anchored entertainment district in Queens. The development will occupy the 50 acres surrounding the team’s ballpark, Citi Field. The land is currently vacant. Plans for the project include a food hall, an entertainment complex including a Hard Rock hotel, live music venue and gaming, 20 acres of open green space, five acres of community athletic fields and playgrounds, new connections to the waterfront, a renovated mass transit station and improved roads, bike paths and parking infrastructure. Hard Rock International will partner with Cohen for the development, and the project team includes SHoP Architects, landscape architect Field Operations and design and construction firm McKissack. Metropolitan Park is expected to create roughly 15,000 permanent and construction jobs, according to Hard Rock. A construction timeline was not disclosed.
BABCOCK RANCH, FLA. — Katz & Associates has signed several retail tenants to leases totaling more than 120,000 square feet at Babcock Ranch, a solar-powered mixed-use community currently underway in South Florida. The project is entitled for 6 million square feet of commercial space, in addition to residences. Jon Cashion and Eric Spritz of Katz & Associates represented the landlord and developer, Kitson & Partners, in the lease negotiations. Upon completion, the development will feature 4 million square feet of retail space, including shopping centers The Shoppes at Yellow Pine and Crescent B Commons. Marshalls, Ace Hardware, Five Below, Oar & Iron, Tipsy Salonbar, Fountain Pools, Seymour Orthodontics, Yummy Thai & Chinese, Verizon Wireless, Papa John’s Pizza, Carvel and Laser Lounge will occupy space at The Shoppes at Yellow Pine. Starbucks Coffee, Fifth Third Bank and Fiore + Ela Salon recently signed leases at Crescent B Commons. A total of 24 retail tenants have now signed leases at Babcock Ranch. The Shoppes at Yellow Pine, which will comprise 120,000 square feet, is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2025, with retailer openings scheduled to begin early that year.
NEW YORK CITY — Locally based firm Simone Development Cos. will undertake a 1.8 million-square-foot expansion of Hutchinson Metro Center, a mixed-use development located in the Morris Park neighborhood of The Bronx. Specific plans for the expansion are still being finalized, but the development can support additional life sciences, technology, healthcare and academic space, as well as hospitality, housing and retail uses. Upon completion, Hutchinson Metro Center will consist of more than 4 million square feet across 75 acres.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Swinerton will serve as the design coordinator and general contractor for a $21 million build-to-suit office and industrial facility south of Raleigh. The location of the 75,000-square-foot development and name of the tenant, a Fortune 150 electrical utilities provider, were not disclosed. Set to open on a 33-acre site in spring 2025, the project will comprise a 45,000-square-foot, single-story mobile substation storage facility and a 30,000-square-foot command center that will feature eight office spaces and four large collaboration areas.
SPRING HILL, FLA. — The Sembler Co. has completed the $13.3 million redevelopment of Hernando West Plaza, a Publix-anchored shopping center in Spring Hill, approximately 35 miles northwest of Tampa. Publix closed its store at the center last December to make way for its new 45,000-square-foot store, which opened earlier this month. Originally built in 1980 along U.S. Highway 19, Hernando West Plaza features 54,800 square feet of inline retail space in addition to the Publix store, as well as 3,200 square feet of small shop space and an outparcel. The center is 94 percent leased to tenants including Beall’s Outlet, AAA Auto Club, Little Caesar’s, Miracle Ear and other soft goods, dining and service retailers. Forge Real Estate Partners IV, a joint venture between Sembler and Forge Capital Partners, has owned the center since 2020.
MELBOURNE, FLA. — Axiom Capital has arranged a $2.1 million loan for the acquisition of an industrial property located 1.5 miles from I-95 in Melbourne, a city on Florida’s Space Coast. Constructed on a 4.2-acre site in 1998, the 30,000-square-foot property features 18- to 20-foot ceiling heights, two dock doors, three drive-in doors and 101 car parking spaces. The borrower was not disclosed.
YONKERS, N.Y. — MediaPro North America, a provider of Spanish programming, in partnership with Great Point Media, has broken ground on a new film and entertainment production studio at 1500 N. Broadway in Yonkers, a northern suburb of New York City. The campus will feature three sound stages totaling 20,000 square feet, as well as post-production facilities and other amenities to support a range of media production and entertainment endeavors. First Citizens Bank provided construction financing for the project. Completion is slated for next fall.
NEWVILLE, PA. — Northmarq has negotiated the sale of Big Spring Terrace, a 159-unit manufactured housing community in Newville, about 140 miles west of Philadelphia. The property was originally constructed on a 94-acre site in 1975 and was roughly 94 percent occupied at the time of sale. Anthony Pino and Ari Azarbarzin of Northmarq represented the seller, Pennsylvania-based Big Springs Properties, in the transaction. The buyer and sales price were not disclosed.
UPPER DARBY, PA. — Dwight City Group, the investment arm of New York City-based lender Dwight Capital, has completed a multifamily adaptive reuse project in Upper Darby, a western suburb of Philadelphia. The project converted a 125,000-square-foot warehouse at 901 Quarry St. that was constructed in 1925 and had been dormant for three decades into an 84-unit apartment complex. The complex now features one- and two-bedroom units and amenities such as a playground and dog park. Rents start at roughly $1,500 per month for a one-bedroom apartment.
CRYSTAL LAKE, ILL. — Mid-America Real Estate Corp. has brokered the sale of Crystal Point, a 317,006-square-foot shopping center in the Chicago suburb of Crystal Lake. The sales price was undisclosed. The grocery-anchored property is 87 percent leased and features a vacant Bed Bath & Beyond space. Tenants include TJ Maxx, Best Buy, Ross Dress for Less, The Fresh Market, Ulta, Steinhafels Furniture and Cost Plus World Market. Ben Wineman, Rick Drogosz and Joe Girardi of Mid-America represented the seller, IRC Retail Centers/DRA Advisors. PMAT Real Estate Investments was the buyer. The sale marks the 100th transaction for PMAT since its inception in 2003. The property was managed by Pine Tree.