NEW YORK CITY — A joint venture between an affiliate of The Carlyle Group and full-service real estate firm Stonehenge NYC has begun renovations of The Ritz Plaza, a 479-unit apartment building located within Times Square in Manhattan, to the tune of $235 million. Deutsche Bank provided the financing for the project, which will fund capital improvements to unit interiors and common areas. Hodges Ward Elliot arranged the funds. Stonehenge has owned and managed the property, which offers studio, one- and two-bedroom units plus amenities like a pool, fitness center and rooftop terrace, since 1996.
NEW YORK CITY — PGIM Real Estate Finance, the commercial mortgage banking arm of Prudential, has provided a $72 million Fannie Mae loan for the refinancing of Olympia House, a 240-unit apartment complex located in Manhattan’s Turtle Bay neighborhood. The 21-story property, which is within two blocks of Grand Central Station, includes ground-floor commercial space and offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The loan features a 10-year term and an unspecified period of interest-only payments. The borrowers in the transaction were real estate investors Isaac Hakim, Steven Elghanayan and Michael-Henry Krayem.
NEW YORK CITY — Janus Property Co., a developer and manager of residential and mixed-use properties, has broken ground on the Taystee Lab Building, a 350,000-square-foot life sciences property in West Harlem. The 11-story building, located at the site of the former Taystee bread bakery, will be marketed to firms in the life sciences, technology, academic, and arts sectors. Specific features will include floor plates ranging in size from 36,000 square feet at the base to 15,000 square feet at the penthouse level, floor-to-ceiling glass and 20,000 square feet of outdoor space. Designed by architecture firms LevenBetts and SLCE, the project is expected to be complete by late 2020.
MANAHAWKIN, N.J. — Locally based developer Walters has completed Cornerstone at Stafford, a 100-unit seniors housing community in Manahawkin, located east of Philadelphia in coastal New Jersey. The development is open to adults age 55 and above earning less than 60 percent of the county’s median income. Monthly rents range from $874 to $994 for one-bedroom units and from $1,048 to $1,250 for two-bedroom residences. Units feature granite countertops and full appliance packages, washers and dryers and emergency alarm systems. Amenities include a full kitchen, outdoor grilling areas, exercise areas and a resident clubhouse.
PORTLAND, MAINE — Huntington, New York-based URS Capital Partners has acquired seven acres within a qualified opportunity zone in Portland, Maine, for the development of a 256-unit multifamily project. Local lender Bar Harbor Bank provided an undisclosed amount of construction financing for the project, the groundbreaking of which is slated to occur this month. Following stabilization of the property, URS plans to hold the asset for 10 years. Opportunity zone legislation provides tax breaks and incentives for developers who deliver affordable housing within economically distressed neighborhoods.
ATLANTA — Piedmont Office Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: PDM) has acquired Galleria 100, an 18-story office building located in Atlanta, for $95.1 million. The sale includes a 1.5-acre parcel for future development. Galleria 100, which spans approximately 414,000 square feet, was 91 percent leased at the time of sale. The property is located within The Galleria mixed-use development on the city’s northwest side. The property is connected via footbridge to the Atlanta Braves’ SunTrust Park and the surrounding entertainment destination known as The Battery. Piedmont already owns two office buildings that are adjacent to the acquired property within The Galleria, an 86-acre development with office and retail uses, as well as a hotel and convention center. Tenants at Galleria 100 include insurance giant Aflac, law firm Freeman Mathis & Gary and private dining venue The Georgian Club. With this acquisition, Piedmont, which is based in the northern Atlanta suburb of Johns Creek, now owns roughly 1.3 million square feet of office product within this submarket. The company’s total portfolio consists of nearly 17 million square feet of office space across eight major markets, holdings that are valued at roughly $5 billion. “This transaction underscores our overall strategy of acquiring and …
In January, during his annual State of the State address, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland emphatically exclaimed, “Memphis has momentum!” Memphis, the biggest little town in America, is definitely in a period of unparalleled economic growth. Memphis has momentum on its side with the $10 billion, nine-year expansion at St. Jude Hospital and an infusion of hospitality that includes a new convention center and no fewer than 17 new hotels, which all started, will start or will be completed in downtown in 2019. Additionally, $4 billion in building permits have been awarded in the last few months with another $5 billion planned by developers. Most importantly, the highly anticipated Memphis 3.0 plan — the first comprehensive growth strategy for the city in 30 years — will ensure growth is sustained for many years to come. What are others saying about Memphis? Many respected publications are putting Memphis back on the map. Food & Wine put Memphis in its top 50 places to go and eat in 2019. Frommer’s Travel named the city the best place to visit in 2019. TravelChannel.com lists Memphis as the hottest Southern destination in 2019. And Forbes stakes Memphis as the best bet for real estate investments. …
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Northwood Office has broken ground on an 11-story, 328,000-square-foot office building located at 13146 Ballantyne Corporate Place in Charlotte’s Ballantyne district. The building will offer a 2,500-square-foot fitness center, 10 stories of office space with the top floor featuring a rooftop terrace with tables, seating, a fire pit, audio/visual and provisions for outdoor food and beverage service. Northwood Office also plans to add an apartment tower in collaboration with its affiliate firm Northwood Ravin. The office portion is expected to deliver in early 2021. Ballantyne Corporate Park is a 535-acre master-planned business park that Northwood Investors acquired from The Bissell Cos. Inc. in March 2017 for $1 billion. The new building will join an existing 4 million square feet of office space and 600 hotel rooms within the business park. This is the first new office tower to be built under Northwood’s ownership. Northwood Development will manage the office project, working with architectural firm LS3P Associates and general contractor Rodgers Builders.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte-based Parker Poe will occupy 86,000 square feet of office space across three floors at 620 S. Tryon, the first phase of Legacy Union in Charlotte. Parker Poe is expected to move into the space in mid-2020 and have signage on the 33-story, 850,000-square-foot building. Amenities at 620 S. Tryon will include an indoor/outdoor entry plaza for gatherings, fitness center and a walkable promenade lined with restaurants and retailers. A pedestrian bridge above Church Street will provide tenants with direct access to the building. Lincoln Harris is developing Legacy Union, which spans two city blocks and will feature offices, retail shops, restaurants, hotels, residences, a parking garage, public green space and a pedestrian promenade. Ridr Knowlton and Campbell Walker internally represented the developer in the lease transaction. Taylor Senter of Newmark Knight Frank (NKF) represented the tenant.
HOOVER, ALA. — Intercapital Group has sold three multifamily properties totaling 825 units in Hoover. The portfolio includes the 431-unit The Park at Galleria, the 150-unit The Place at Galleria and the 244-unit The Renaissance at Galleria. The properties are situated within 3.5 miles of each other. Sunbelt Residential acquired Park at Galleria, BAF Associates bought Place at Galleria and Myers Apartment Group purchased The Renaissance at Galleria. According to Jimmy Adams of Cushman & Wakefield, each property will undergo renovations in the near future. Adams and colleague Josh Jacobs represented the seller in the transaction. Sales prices for the properties were not disclosed.