PHILADELPHIA — An affiliate of Aquinas Realty Partners LLC has received a $13.2 million loan for the refinancing of AQ Overbrook, a 128-unit multifamily asset in Philadelphia. The borrower acquired the property, which formerly served as a student housing complex for St. Joseph’s University, in 2018 and implemented a capital improvements program to reposition the asset as a market-rate apartment community. Cronheim Mortgage arranged the loan, which carries a five-year term and a fixed interest rate, through an undisclosed local bank.
NEW YORK CITY — Brandon Singer, formerly of Cushman & Wakefield, has launched Retail by MONA, a leasing and advisory firm that will serve New York City. MONA is an acronym for Making of a New Age. The company has strategic partnerships with property owners including Aby Rosen and Michael Fuchs, founders of RFR Holding. Singer will serve as CEO of the new entity, which will offer both tenant and landlord representation services. Michael Cody, also formerly with Cushman & Wakefield, will serve as director and co-founder.
BOSTON — HYM Investment Group has received approval from the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) for the redevelopment of Suffolk Downs, a 161-acre former thoroughbred horse track and racing facility, into a mixed-use district. Approved plans for the project include 10,000 residential units, 20 percent of which will be designated affordable housing; 40 acres of publicly accessible parks and open space; and 3 million square feet of office and retail space. HYM purchased the property in 2017 for $155 million and the racetrack officially closed in summer 2018. Thursday’s vote of approval marks the end of a three-year community review process, during which the company held over 450 meetings with community group members, elected officials and staff, and neighbors to hear and incorporate community feedback. HYM is now cleared to begin construction on the project, which might take up to 20 years to complete and will cost $8 billion, according to reports by WBUR, Boston’s NPR news station. Designs for the project also include the construction of a major extension of the Mary Ellen Welch Greenway, a public pathway and park in East Boston connecting Piers Park, Memorial Stadium, Bremen Street Park, Wood Island Bay Marsh and Belle Isle Marsh. …
By Brian Tranetzki, Principal, Taylor Street Advisors Multifamily is staying strong despite COVID-19. That’s because this product type was coming off an extremely hot market at the end of 2019 and early 2020 before the pandemic hit. The Phoenix metro area remains one of the few markets nationally with positive rent growth due to the steady population increase. Now, just months away from 2021, the market is faced with many unknown factors, such as unemployment, election outcomes, continued COVID uncertainty and the risk of eliminating 1031 exchanges. In turn, buyer sentiment also remains intense with a flurry of activity on those very exchanges. Development is still robust in the valley, with significant increases in downtown Phoenix, downtown Tempe and Chandler/Gilbert. There are currently more than 15,000 units under construction in the region. The building sizes are getting larger, while individual units are getting smaller. Developers are focused on building Class A properties with an emphasis on higher-end amenities, pool areas and concierge services. The class type determines whether it’s a landlord or tenant market. Tenants have several options in the Class A rental space, particularly as new units are delivered, which makes this a tenant-friendly environment. Class A vacancy is …
ATLANTA — Preferred Apartment Communities (PAC) has entered into an agreement with TPG Real Estate Partners to sell an eight-property student housing portfolio for $478.7 million. The portfolio is located in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Texas. The Atlanta-based seller expects the sale to close by the end of the year. The Arizona property is SoL, a 639-bed community serving students in Tempe. The Florida properties are NxNW, a 679-bed community in Tallahassee, and Knightshade, an 894-bed complex in Orlando. In Georgia, PAC will sell Stadium Village, a 792-bed property in Kennesaw. PAC will also sell Rush, an 887-bed asset in Charlotte, N.C. The Texas communities included in the sale are The Tradition, an 808-bed complex in College Station, and The Bloc, a 556-bed property in Lubbock. CBRE represented the seller in the transaction. PAC is a REIT whose portfolio includes apartment communities, grocery-anchored shopping centers, Class A office buildings and student housing communities.
ALPHARETTA, GA. — Crescent Real Estate LLC has acquired The Hotel at Avalon, a 330-room property within Avalon in Alpharetta. The hotel, which is part of the Marriott Autograph Collection brand, opened in 2018 and features a 65,000-square-foot conference center, 44,000 square feet of multi-function space, a fitness center, pool, full-service Starbucks and a South City Kitchen restaurant. The Fort Worth, Texas-based buyer has retained HEI Hotels & Resorts to manage the property. Bill Hodges, Mark Elliott, Todd Ratliff, Pete Dannemiller, Nate Ries, Coby Campbell and Nic Howe of Hodges Ward Elliott represented the seller, a partnership between Stormont Hospitality Group, North American Properties and Long Wharf Capital, in the transaction. The sales price was not disclosed. Avalon is a $1 billion mixed-use development spanning 86 acres. Developed in phases by North American Properties, Avalon features 500,000 square feet of retail space, more than 20 restaurants, 600,000 square feet of office space and more than 600 residential units. The Hotel at Avalon is the only hotel on the property. Avalon’s tenant base includes Whole Foods Market, Tesla, Apple, Microsoft, Sundance, Arhaus, The Container Store, lululemon athletica, Peloton, Pottery Barn, a 12-screen Regal theater, West Elm and Williams Sonoma, among others.
BLOOMINGDALE, GA. — PCCP LLC and Panattoni Development Co. Inc. have formed a joint venture to develop a 2.4 million-square-foot industrial campus within Savannah Portside International Park in Bloomingdale. The spec project will be built in phases, with Phase I comprising a 518,400-square-foot facility. The building will feature 40-foot clear heights and can be expanded to 1.1 million square feet. A timeline for completion was not disclosed. The developers are targeting tenants seeking anywhere from 200,000 square feet to 2.4 million square feet. Savannah Portside International Park is situated near Interstate 16, 19 miles from the Port of Savannah.
ORLANDO, FLA. — Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) has reported its sales fell 28.4 percent in its fiscal first quarter, which ended Aug. 30. The Orlando-based company owns restaurant brands including Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze and Eddie V’s. Darden reported that sales in its fine dining restaurants fell 38.9 percent year-over-year. Sales at Olive Garden slid 27.7 percent, while LongHorn saw a decrease of 16.3 percent. At the beginning of its first quarter, Darden had 68 percent of restaurants in its portfolio open, compared with 91 percent on Sept. 1. Despite the fall in sales, Darden is still progressing with its full-year outlook, which includes the addition of 35 to 40 new restaurants and total capital spending of $250 million to $300 million. As of Aug. 30, Darden operated 1,807 restaurants.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Schluter-Systems, a German provider of tile products for the homebuilding industry, has opened a 500,000-square-foot distribution center at Alliance Northport 1 in Fort Worth. The facility was designed to house approximately 300 employees and offers proximity to Interstate 35, State Highway 114 and Fort Worth Alliance Airport. Tom Pearson and Chris Teesdale of Colliers International originally represented Schluter-Systems in its site selection and lease negotiations when the company committed to the 26,000-acre AllianceTexas development last fall.
DALLAS — BioLabs, a Cambridge, Mass.-based biotechnology firm, has signed a 37,000-square-foot life sciences lease at Pegasus Park, a new 23-acre mixed-use development in Dallas. BioLabs expects to take occupancy of the new facility, which will feature both lab and coworking office space, in 2021. The lab will be equipped with an array of scientific equipment and will offer additional services and amenities for tenants. Pegasus Park is a redevelopment of the former campus of jewelry retailer Zale Corp. in the city’s Design District. The developer is a partnership between J. Small Investments and Lyda Hill Philanthropies.