FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — Apartment Investment and Management Co. (Aimco) has hired Steve Witten to focus on acquisitions as the new senior advisor to the REIT’s chairman and CEO, Terry Considine. Witten previously worked with Marcus & Millichap for the past 20 years, where he helped found the firm’s Institutional Property Advisors (IPA) division. Witten will be based in Fort Lauderdale and will focus on providing support for Aimco to increase its multifamily portfolio across South Florida. Witten graduated from Temple University in 1972 and completed the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) program in 1984.
NEW YORK CITY — HFF has secured $97.1 million in financing for 111 Leroy, a luxury condominium development in Manhattan’s West Village. HFF arranged the two-year, floating-rate financing through Rialto Capital Management on behalf of the borrower, Property Markets Group. Loan proceeds were used to finance unsold condo inventory at the development, which consists of 13 residences and four townhomes totaling approximately 50,000 square feet. HFF previously arranged construction financing for the project, which is now in the final stages of development. The property will include a 24-hour doorman, gym, resident’s lounge and landscaped yard with a fire pit and barbecue area. Christopher Peck and Kristen Knapp of HFF made up the debt placement team.
SHREWSBURY, N.J. — Investment and development firm Capitol Seniors Housing and operator Chelsea Senior Living have opened The Chelsea at Shrewsbury, an assisted living and memory care community located approximately 20 miles south of New York City. Development costs were estimated at $29.3 million for the three-story, 73,000-square-foot property. The community features a total of 85 units, 27 of which are for memory care. Meyer Senior Living Studio, based in the Philadelphia area, designed the community. Chelsea will collaborate with Shrewsbury’s Guild of Creative Arts, the oldest and largest art community in New Jersey, for amenities and activities. Chelsea Senior Living operates more than 17 communities, including 14 in New Jersey. In addition to The Chelsea at Shrewsbury, Capitol Seniors Housing is currently building another community Chelsea will operate in Greenburgh, N.Y., slated to open this September.
NEW YORK CITY — Knotel, a locally based designer and builder of flexible office space, has signed leases to open two locations totaling 70,924 square feet in New York City. Knotel will open a 43,520-square-foot space at 88 Pine Street in the Financial District and a 27,404-square-foot space at 1407 Broadway in Times Square. Elie Reiss of Skylight Leasing represented Knotel in negotiations for the first lease, and Michael Cohen and John Pavone of Colliers International represented Knotel in the second deal, which is a sublease from web hosting company GoDaddy. Jon Wheels and Chris Perry of Aquila Commercial represented GoDaddy in the latter transaction. Knotel, which operates locations in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Paris and Brazil, now has a global footprint of more than 3 million square feet across 200 sites.
PITTSBURGH — CBRE has arranged a 20,000-square-foot office lease for the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh at Warner Centre, located at 332 Fifth Ave. in downtown Pittsburgh. The agency will occupy the entire fourth floor of the building. CBRE’s Christopher Koch, leasing agent for Warner Centre, negotiated the lease on behalf of the building’s owner, JJ Operating Inc., a family-owned real estate investment and management company based in New York City. The Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary, plans to occupy Warner Centre this summer. The move will provide the agency with the efficiency of operating on a single floor versus multiple floors at its existing Wood Street location. Warner Centre is situated in the center of downtown Pittsburgh, located next to the newly completed Point Park Playhouse. The landlord recently made improvements to the lobby of Warner Centre and plans to make upgrades to the elevators beginning this year. The mission of the Urban League is to enable African Americans to secure economic self-reliance, parity and power, and civil rights. The HUD-certified housing counseling agency offers a wide variety of programs.
NEW YORK CITY — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $1.6 million sale of a retail building in Ridgewood, Queens. Located at 57-45 Myrtle Ave., the three-story property is currently operating as a pet store but the tenant is expected to vacate the space. Stephen Preuss and Andreas Efthymiou of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, Robert F. Gentile, in the transaction. The buyer was investor Isaac Azizian.
SANTA MARIA, CALIF. — MBK Rental Living has acquired a 14.5-acre land site in Santa Maria for the development of Azure, a multifamily property. Easton Plaza LP sold the site for an undisclosed price. Upon completion, Azure will feature 318 two- and three-story garden-style apartments ranging in size from 406 square feet to 1,211 square feet. Community amenities will include two swimming pools, two hot tubs, a dog park, sports court, fitness center and playground. Grading of the site is slated for this spring, with leasing expected to begin in mid- to late-2020.
GOODYEAR, ARIZ. — Fairlife, a milk production company, plans to develop a 300,000-square-foot production and distribution facility in Goodyear. Slated to begin operations in late 2020, the $200 million facility will house product lines to accommodate growing demand. Working with the United Dairymen of Arizona to source milk from numerous dairy farmers in Goodyear, the new Fairlife plant will enable increased production of all its products, including different varieties of ultra-filtered milk, Core Power, fairlife YUP!, fairlife smart snacks and fairlife nutrition plan. Located at the corner of Cotton Lane and Thomas Road within Palm Valley 303 Business Park, the new facility will feature advanced manufacturing technologies and energy-saving equipment to reduce power consumption, while creating more than 140 local jobs.
EL SEGUNDO, CALIF. — Madison Partners has arranged the off-market sale of an office building, located at 2221 Park Place in El Segundo. Powerscourt Partners purchased the property from 2221 PPA LLC for $31 million, or $564 per square foot. Bob Safai, Matt Case and Brad Schlaak of Madison Partners represented the seller, while Geoff Ludwig of Colliers International represented the buyer in the deal. The 55,000-square-foot office building was vacant at the time of sale.
LANCASTER, CALIF. — Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura has negotiated the sale of Aurora Village Apartments, a low-income seniors housing project in Lancaster. The property is located in what city planners hope will be a “Medical Main Street” district for the city, which is north of Los Angeles in the western Mojave Desert area. It features 132 units on a 3.4-acre site within the city’s Amargosa Creek Master Plan, which envisions a mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly district with retail and medical amenities. The seller, Aurora Village LP, was the original developer and used federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit funding to finance the project. Afton Properties acquired the community for $8.7 million. Matt Benwitt of Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura represented the seller in the transaction. Edward Mulflur of Re/Max Commercial represented the buyer. “With the expiration of the 15-year initial operation period, the new buyer is able to sell new tax credits,” says Benwitt. “The buyer will also benefit from the property’s location in an Opportunity Zone. Recent installation of solar electric and water heating systems by the seller presented an attractive package to the buyer.”