Property Type

Hub-on-Causeway-Boston

By J.F. Finn and Duncan Paterson of Gensler Across the globe, people have replaced in-person visits to sports and entertainment venues, retail centers, convention facilities and other mixed-use environments with virtual gatherings and Zoom meetings. Yet the prevailing view in commercial real estate is that virtual engagement is not a long-term solution for authentic human interaction. In fact, the current crisis is only reinforcing the vital role that public spaces play in bringing people together and promoting health and well-being. The question is, “What has to change for mixed-use developments to be both safe and vibrant?” Here are some scenarios and opportunities we believe can help designers and developers transition into the “new normal” requirements for mixed-use environments and public spaces. Modular Building Will Gain Traction COVID-19 has created an acute need for pop-up, flexible and adaptable spaces — facilities that are tailor-made for modular construction. This current surge in demand will both accelerate the removal of many existing barriers to the growth of modular construction and provide some very compelling advantages in the future. These changes should usher in more viable U.S. manufacturers to market as other industries begin to recognize the many benefits of modular construction. Fabricating and …

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By Chris Bruzas, Berkadia While the COVID-19 pandemic has had a dramatic impact on the commercial real estate industry, bright spots have emerged across the multifamily landscape. Nationally, secondary and tertiary markets demonstrate resilience and strong performance, despite challenging circumstances. One of these bright spots is Indiana. Since the start of the year, Berkadia’s investment sales and mortgage banking teams have closed more than $498 million in combined sales and financing across the state. While Indiana has long been a solid market in the Midwest, in recent years it has emerged as particularly attractive to investors for a few key reasons. Available scale The ability to acquire scale is increasingly important to investors looking to break into new markets and MSAs. Immediate scale is attractive for several reasons. For investors, acquisition at scale enhances geographic and unit diversification at the outset. It also allows investors, specifically those new to the region, to maximize business efficiencies on expenses. If a new buyer can acquire 1,000 units in proximity, they can reduce the burden of staff, construction costs and travel costs, to name a few. Additionally, it helps with leasing. If a prospective tenant tours a property that doesn’t have floor plans …

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Macy's

NEW YORK CITY — Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) reported approximately $3.56 billion in net sales across its Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury brands during its fiscal second quarter ending Aug. 1, a 34.7 percent decline from the same period in 2019. However, the New York City-based retailer said its second-quarter performance exceeded expectations, thanks largely to a 53 percent spike in year-over-year sales across its digital platforms. Digital sales represented 54 percent of Macy’s total revenue figure for the quarter. Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette also said that the successful reopening of a number of stores helped the company beat expectations for the second quarter, and that Macy’s top priority moving forward was the execution of a successful holiday shopping season. Macy’s stock price opened at $7.45 per share on Wednesday, Sept. 2, up 8 percent from the previous day but down nearly 50 percent from $14.65 per share a year ago.

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NEW YORK CITY AND HACKENSACK, N.J. — Locally based investment firm Sitex Group has acquired two industrial properties totaling 65,670 square feet in the New York City area. The first property is a 25,670-square-foot warehouse located at 1155 Commerce Ave. in The Bronx that is occupied by the New York City Department of Sanitation. The second building is a 40,000-square-foot maintenance facility located at 600 S. River St. in Hackensack, New Jersey, that was formerly occupied by truck repair company Deluxe International Trucks. Greiner Maltz’s Atanu Bhattacharjee, Waterstreet Capital’s Carl Bronstein and Douglas Elliman Commercial’s Rick Dana arranged the transaction.

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PURCHASE, N.Y. — Newmark Knight Frank (NKF) has negotiated a 25,000-square-foot office lease for law firm Milber Makris Plousadis & Seiden LLP at 100 Manhattanville Road in Purchase, located north of New York City in Westchester County. The four-story building spans 290,631 square feet, is situated on 23.8 acres and features a full-service cafeteria, fitness center and a concierge desk. Patricia Valenti of NKF represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Lawrence Ruggieri, also with NKF, represented the landlord, RPW Group Inc.

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BASKING RIDGE, N.J. — Mendham Capital Management, an affiliate of Raymond James, has signed a 3,243-square-foot office lease extension in the Northern New Jersey city of Basking Ridge. Rick Genthe and Sean O’Brien of Lincoln Property Co. represented the landlord, CIG Properties, in the lease negotiations. Lee Barnes of Woodman Group represented the tenant.

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FARMERS BRANCH, TEXAS — Los Angeles-based CIM Group has provided a $190 million bridge loan for the refinancing of International Plaza, a 780,000-square-foot office campus located in the northern Dallas metro of Farmers Branch. The Class A property consists of a 13-story building and a 15-story building that were recently upgraded to offer new indoor and outdoor amenities. Rob Rubano, Greg Napper and Brian Share of Cushman & Wakefield arranged the loan, which was structured with a five-year term and a floating interest rate. The borrower, Taconic Capital Partners, acquired the asset in 2018.

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GRAND PRAIRIE, TEXAS — Dallas-based Mohr Capital has sold a 400,000-square-foot warehouse in the central metroplex city of Grand Prairie to Boston-based investment firm TA Realty. The sale is Mohr Capital’s seventh transaction in 2020 and comes after more than 13 years of ownership of the property. Jonathan Bryan of CBRE represented Mohr Capital in the transaction. TA Realty was self-represented.

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One-Bethany-West-Allen

ALLEN, TEXAS — Kaizen Development Partners has completed One Bethany West, a 200,000-square-foot office building in the northeastern Dallas suburb of Allen. One Bethany West is the third office building in the One Bethany at Watters Creek development, which consists of two completed buildings totaling 300,000 square feet and the capacity for an additional 600,000 square feet of new development. BOKA Powell designed the eight-story property, which offers amenities such as a fitness center, conferencing center, tenant lounge, golf simulator and outdoor activity space. Highlands Residential Mortgage recently signed a lease to become the inaugural tenant.

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CHICAGO — NorthPoint Development has selected Cushman & Wakefield to market the three remaining sites at Commerce Park Chicago. The sites offer up to an additional 1.9 million square feet of Class A industrial space. Located at the former Republic Steel site in Chicago’s Hegewisch neighborhood, Commerce Park Chicago is a 2.4 million-square-foot industrial park. Larry Goldwasser, Jason West and Colin Green of Cushman & Wakefield will represent Kansas City-based NorthPoint in both for-lease and build-to-suit opportunities.

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