AUBURN AND GREENFIELD, MASS. — CBRE has brokered the $26.2 million sale of the Lundgren Honda dealerships located in the Central Massachusetts cities of Auburn and Greenfield. The Auburn property was built in 2012 and spans 55,870 square feet. The Greenfield property was constructed in 2005 and totals 12,807 square feet. The family-owned and -operated dealership and its affiliate real estate company, Lundgren Equity Partners, sold the sites to Pennsylvania-based Legacy Automotive Capital. Karly Iacono of CBRE represented both parties in the transactions.
PORTLAND, MAINE — Metro Boston-based mortgage banking firm Fantini & Gorga has arranged a $23 million permanent loan for Danforth Heights, a 166-unit mixed-income community located in between Portland’s historic and waterfront districts. According to Apartments.com, the property was built in 1973 and features one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units. Tim O’Donnell and Derek Coulombe of Fantini & Gorga placed the debt through Eastern Mortgage Capital on behalf of the undisclosed borrower.
PHILADELPHIA — BioLabs, an incubator for life sciences companies, has signed a 30,151-square-foot lease expansion at The Curtis, a facility in Philadelphia’s Center City District that is a redevelopment of a historic publishing house. The tenant’s footprint is now 53,529 square feet, and the move-in is scheduled for early 2023. Other tenants at The Curtis, which also houses traditional office space, include Aro Biotherapeutics, IMVAX Inc. and Vivodyne. Keystone Development + Investment owns the property.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Triple Five Group, the owner of the 3 million-square-foot American Dream shopping, dining and entertainment destination in Northern New Jersey, will soon open a 10,000-square-foot food hall. The food hall will feature seven concepts, including Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, Best Pizza and Vanessa’s Dumpling House, as well as wine bar Vinoteca and confectionary Lady M. The space will include seating and game areas and will be located near the live music and performance stage. A grand opening with a cornhole tournament, kids’ game and live music will take place on Wednesday, July, 13.
NEWPORT, R.I. — Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE: PEB) has acquired Gurney’s Newport Resort & Marina, a 10-acre waterside resort located on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, for $174 million. The 257-room hotel is located on Goat Island in Newport and features unobstructed views of Newport Harbor and the Newport Bridge. The hotel grounds include a historic lighthouse; 3,000-square-foot spa; coffee shop; 3,200-square-foot waterside pavilion; resort-style swimming pool with cabanas; indoor pool; fitness center; seasonal ice-skating rink; 80,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor event space; and several waterside restaurants, including Showfish Newport and The Pineapple Club. The property also features a 22-slip full-service marina, which was not included in the sale, but will be available for PEB to purchase in 2027. The new ownership is evaluating a number of capital expenditures at the resort, which could include full renovations to guest rooms; upgrades to the lobby; updated landscaping; refurbishment of the property’s restaurants and bars; the addition of a new market; relocating and updating the spa; and updates to the hotel’s grand ballroom, south lawn and outdoor pavilion spaces. “Gurney’s Newport is the only resort-style property in Newport, drawing strong demand from New York, Boston and Providence,” says …
By Jim Prichard of Ball Janik LLP The 13-story, L-shaped Champlain Towers decorated the Surfside coastline. In the early morning of June 24, 2021, the pool deck suffered a partial collapse, triggering more destruction in the structure’s central section and eastern wing. In less than 30 seconds, approximately half of the 136 units in the building were destroyed, leaving 98 residents dead and establishing a horrific legacy as one of the deadliest structural engineering failures in U.S. history. In the wake of the tragedy, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava ordered an immediate audit of all high-rise buildings that were more than 40 years old and five stories tall constructed by the developer. The attention to South Florida development prompted a review of hundreds of older buildings. There was also an onslaught of editorial investigations, including features by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Miami Herald. Florida International University conducted its satellite analysis of the site as well. All investigations, first-hand experiences, and post-collapse engineering findings reported that there had been concerns about the structural integrity of the building and that the collapse was based on faulty construction and deterioration. As a law firm, our biggest …
By Al Silva, senior managing director, investments, Marcus & Millichap; and Ford Braly, first vice president, investments, Marcus & Millichap The multifamily segment in Fort Worth is in a great position. The metro’s vacancy rate slid down to a multi-decade low of 3.1 percent last year, which facilitated stellar rent growth as the number of available rental units plummeted. Fort Worth’s average effective rent grew more than 15 percent in 2021 to $1,276 per month, and the elevation in 2022 is expected to remain in the double digits. Behind this momentum is robust household formation as citizens relocate to the metro for greater job availability, cost-of-living considerations and quality of life. An average of 16,300 new households were created annually in the Fort Worth metro area over the past decade, and the 2022 addition is expected to eclipse that benchmark by about 20 percent. This rate of household creation is about twice as fast as the national pace and is happening at a time in which the barriers to homeownership have rapidly intensified, pushing much of the new demand toward the rental segment. Barriers to Homeownership The median price of a single-family house in the Fort Worth area climbed to …
EL PASO, TEXAS — Kansas City-based developer VanTrust Real Estate has broken ground on Phase II of El Paso Logistics Park, a project that will add 483,698 square feet of Class A industrial space across two buildings to the local supply. VanTrust completed Phase I of the 59-acre development in February. Each building will feature 32-foot clear heights, 52 dock positions, ESFR sprinkler systems and parking for more than 150 cars and 85 trailers. Upon completion of Phase II in April 2023, El Paso Logistics Park will total nearly 1 million square feet across six buildings. CBRE is leasing the development.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Steel products provider Andes Coil Processors will open a 151,693-square-foot manufacturing facility in Fort Worth. The facility will be situated within the 64-acre Sylvania Industrial Park, which is located at the site of former American Manufacturing of Texas plant on the city’s north side. Andes Coil Processors plans to hire 30 to 50 new employees as part of a $5 million capital investment in the local economy. Dallas-based CanTex Capital acquired Sylvania Industrial Park in December, and the space is now ready for occupancy.
PLANO, TEXAS — Cheer Athletics, which provides instructional cheerleading classes and camps, will relocate its corporate headquarters and flagship gym to a 70,045-square-foot space within Plano Commerce Center. With the move, which should occur before the end of the year, Cheer Athletics will be doubling its footprint within the northern Dallas suburb. Allison Johnston Frizzo and David Harris of Hart Commercial represented Cheer Athletics in lease negotiations. Mike McCartan and Jeff White of Mark V Commercial represented the landlord, Provident Realty Advisors.