SAN PEDRO, CALIF. — MWest Holdings has received a $24 million loan for the acquisition of San Pedro Bank Lofts in San Pedro. The property consists of two four-story buildings offering a total of 89 apartments. CIT Group’s Real Estate Finance division was the sole arranger for the senior loan.
PASADENA, CALIF. — Avison Young has arranged the sale the Artistry Theater Building, located at 600 E. Colorado Blvd. in Pasadena’s Playhouse District. Colorado Creative LLC sold the property to Morton Development Group for $5.3 million. The buyer plans to redevelop the long-vacant property into a retail and office asset. Built in 1931 as a United Artists theatre, the 15,060-square-foot property was first renovated in 1960, but the property has fallen into a long state of disrepair and neglect. Its tenant of more than a decade, Angels School Supply, vacated the building more than three years ago, and the property has been empty ever since. Andrew Berk and Chase Gordon of Avison Young represented the seller, while the buyer was self-represented in the transaction.
WHEATON, ILL. — FPA Multifamily LLC has acquired Wheaton Center, a 758-unit apartment property in the western Chicago suburb of Wheaton. The purchase price was not disclosed. Wheaton Center consists of six buildings, including two 20-story towers and four mid-rise buildings. Units average 927 square feet. Community amenities include a resort-style pool with cabanas, a fitness center, community room, conference room, pet spa, bark park and playground. The property was most recently renovated in 2017. Marty O’Connell, Sean Fogarty, Wick Kirby and Kevin Girard of HFF represented the seller, a joint venture between Draper and Kramer Inc. and Edge Principal Advisors LLC, which had purchased the property for $44.4 million in 2014, according to the Chicago Tribune.
SHAWNEE, KAN. — Timberland Partners has purchased The Retreat of Shawnee for an undisclosed price. The 342-unit multifamily property, originally built in 1984, consists of one- and two-bedroom floor plans. Amenities include a pool, fitness center and clubhouse. Timberland will undertake a $2.6 million improvement plan to renovate units and amenities. Jeff Stingley of CBRE represented the undisclosed seller. This is the seventh and final purchase for Timberland Partners Fund VI.
WEST DES MOINES, IOWA — The Boulder Group has arranged the sale of a single-tenant property net leased to BioLife Plasma in West Des Moines. The newly constructed building is located at 6380 Village View Drive. BioLife Plasma has approximately 14 years remaining on its lease. Randy Blankstein and Jimmy Goodman of Boulder represented the seller, a Midwest-based investment fund. A West Coast-based real estate fund was the buyer, which also purchased a BioLife Plasma property in Mount Juliet, Tenn.
SOUTHFIELD, MICH. — Money360 has provided a $3.2 million bridge loan for the acquisition of a 60,000-square-foot office building in Southfield. The two-year loan features a loan-to-value ratio of 74.4 percent. The borrower was not disclosed.
CHICAGO — Away Travel has signed a 1,200-square-foot retail lease at the corner of State and Cedar streets in Chicago. The travel and lifestyle brand offers high-quality luggage at affordable prices. Expected to open in time for the holiday shopping season, this will be the seventh retail storefront for Away Travel. The brand originally started as an online-only concept. Founded by two Warby Parker alumni, Away Travel will be located adjacent to a Warby Parker store. Janika Brenner and Adam Secher of Baum Realty Group LLC, along with Peter Block of Colliers International, represented the undisclosed landlord in the lease transaction. Jason Trombley of JLL represented Away Travel.
BOSTON — MP Boston, a local mixed-use and residential developer, broke ground Wednesday on Winthrop Center in downtown Boston. The $1.35 billion mixed-use development represents the largest private investment for a single project in Boston’s history. The site was formerly owned by the City of Boston and housed the Winthrop Square Garage. Set for a spring 2022 completion, Winthrop Center will feature 750,000 square feet of office space, 420 condominiums, retail and restaurants, as well as a public gathering space. The tower will rise 691 feet tall, making it the fourth-largest tower in Boston. At the base of Winthrop Center will be the Great Hall, an open civic space available to the public. The center will also feature an open mid-block alley between Winthrop Square/Downtown Crossing and Federal Street/the Financial District. Handel Architects LLP and Steven Winter Associates Inc. designed the tower to achieve LEED Platinum certification with hopes to also be a certified Passive House Pilot Project. Begun by Germany-based research organization Passivhaus Institut, Passive House is the only internationally recognized energy standard in commercial construction. If achieved, Winthrop Center would be the largest Passive House office building in the world. MP Boston is developing the tower in conjunction …
CARLSBAD, CALIF. — Institutional, private and foreign investors all continue to pour capital into the industrial sector in the Midwest and nationwide, confirming there is still “plenty of runway left,” according to the 2018 Industrial Investor Sentiment Report from Real Capital Markets (RCM) and SIOR. The steady flow of capital and positive momentum within the sector comes despite looming threats from rising interest rates, tariffs and a diminishing supply of quality assets. “The industrial market and those who invest in it have enjoyed an incredible, long run because of its ability to adapt to the needs of specific users and subsectors, and embrace the ongoing evolution of the global economy,” says Tina Lichens, COO of Carlsbad, Calif.-based RCM. “Given this performance and consistency, we have every reason to believe there is plenty of runway left.” RCM and SIOR compiled the study through a survey of RCM principals, SIOR members and subsequent interviews with key industry leaders. Year-over-year comparisons Questions in the survey tracked participants’ perceptions of investment activity, pricing and cap rates. Notably, more than 48 percent of respondents believe that industrial activity will remain at or about the current level. One year ago, that figure was 43 percent. More …
CHICAGO — Some 92 percent of executives from the seniors housing and long-term care industry expect the pace of mergers and acquisitions within the sector to remain the same or increase over the next 12 months, according to newly released findings in a Capital One survey. Conversely, only 8 percent expect M&A activity to decrease. Conducted in September, the e-mail survey asked professionals to provide their 12-month outlook on a number of issues in the seniors housing space. The survey netted 147 respondents. “I was a little surprised by people expecting M&A activity to increase next year. Obviously, the market has been fairly robust for a number of years,” said Chris Taylor, managing director at Capital One Healthcare, during an interview with Seniors Housing Business at the fall conference of the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC). The three-day event, held Oct. 17-19 at the Sheraton Grand Chicago, attracted more than 3,100 attendees. One possible explanation for survey respondents’ optimism over M&A prospects in the year ahead, according to Taylor, is that while it’s getting more difficult for investors to acquire Class A product in light of the compressed cap rates and rising interest rate environment, they see more …