SYLVANIA, OHIO — Friedman Integrated Real Estate Solutions has arranged the sale of Timberstone Center, a 35,347-square-foot retail property in Sylvania, approximately 15 miles west of Toledo, for an undisclosed price. CSFB 2004-C5 Sylvania Avenue LLC sold the center through Ten-X.com to Parviz Benhuri. Timberstone Center, situated on 6.8 acres at 7561-7633 W. Sylvania Ave., is shadow-anchored by Kroger. Other tenants include Hallmark, Pizza Hut, Subway and Weight Watchers. Rich Deptula of Friedman represented both parties in the transaction.
AMHERST, N.Y. — WS Development has commenced construction of the first phase of its redevelopment of Northtown Plaza in Amherst. The first phase will include a 50,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market, which will be the grocer’s first location in Western New York. The store is slated to open in 2017. Picone Construction will serve as general contractor for the building construction. WS Development acquired the 400,000-square-foot Northtown Plaza, located at the intersection of Niagara Falls Boulevard and Sheridan Drive, in 2015.
NEWTON, MASS. — Senior Housing Properties Trust (SNH) has acquired seven seniors housing communities from Five Star Quality Care for $112.4 million. Five Star will continue to operate the communities as part of the sale-leaseback deal. The portfolio totals 545 units in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. The lease with Five Star expires at the end of 2028 and includes renewal options. Five Star intends to use the proceeds it receives from the sale-leaseback transaction to repay in full amounts outstanding under its secured revolving credit facility, which had $60 million outstanding on June 28, 2016, and for general business purposes. The initial annual rent payable to SNH under the lease will be $8.4 million per year, resulting in an approximate capitalization rate of 7.5 percent. Starting after 2017, the rent may increase based upon a percentage of gross revenue increases realized by operations at the leased communities. SNH funded the purchase of the seven communities with cash on hand and drawings under its $1 billion unsecured revolving credit facility. Five Star was formerly SNH’s wholly owned subsidiary and both companies are based in Newton.
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FLA. — Crescent Communities has opened Crescent Gateway, a 249-unit apartment community located near the Maitland Boulevard exit on I-4 at 912 Innovation Way in Altamonte Springs. The property’s residences range from a 634-square-foot studio to a 1,476-square-foot, three-bedroom unit. Amenities include a clubhouse with Wi-Fi access, computer lounge with Macs and PCs and a poolside indoor/outdoor kitchen and lounge area. The community also has a yoga lawn, fire pit near the pool deck, bike storage, off-leash dog park and a media lounge with Xbox, PlayStation 4 and Apple TV. Unit interiors include granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, USB ports in the kitchen, walk-in closets and a washer and dryer in every residence.
RICHMOND, VA. — A partnership between L5 Investments and BH Equities has purchased Aspen Station Apartments, a 232-unit multifamily community located at 1500 Forest Run Drive near I-95 in Richmond, for $22.9 million. Built in 1980, the garden-style property features a swimming pool, clubhouse with a business center, lighted tennis and basketball courts, car wash and vacuum station and picnic areas with grill stations. Each unit features a full-size washer and dryer and a private balcony or patio. L5 Investments and BH Equities plan to invest $2.6 million in capital improvements such as remodeling amenities, upgrading unit interiors and landscaping. BH Management Services, BH Equities’ property management division, will manage Aspen Station. Laura Cathlina of Berkadia Commercial Mortgage arranged acquisition financing on behalf of the new ownership. Wink Ewing of ARA Newmark represented both the buyer and the undisclosed seller in the transaction.
DANIA BEACH, FLA. — Meridian Capital Group has arranged $15.4 million in construction financing for a new Wyndham Garden hotel located in Dania Beach. The 142-room, seven-story hotel will be situated one-and-a-half miles from the beach and near Las Olas Boulevard, Riverwalk, Dania Jai Alai, the Gallery of Amazing Things, American Offshore Marina, Boomers, K1 Speed and the Convention Center. Noam Kaminetzky of Meridian Capital’s Boca Raton office arranged the three-year, interest-only construction loan through BB&T. The loan converts to a four-year mini-perm loan with a 25-year amortization schedule after the initial term.
LOUISVILLE, KY. — Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corp. has purchased a new 137,500-square-foot industrial building located at 2311 S. Park Road in Louisville for $11.3 million. The building is situated on approximately 10.2 acres off I-65, roughly seven miles south of the Louisville International Airport. The property is net-leased for 10 years to Challenger Lifts Inc., a subsidiary of Snap-on Inc. The lease is guaranteed by Snap-on. Monmouth, a publicly traded REIT based in Freehold, N.J., has a portfolio comprising 97 properties located in 30 states, containing a total of approximately 15.1 million square feet.
CHICAGO — American Realty Advisors has acquired 1K Fulton, a Class A office property in Chicago, for $257 million. The complex consists of a 10-story building, formerly a cold storage facility that was built in 1923, and a six-story building that was added in 2015. Sterling Bay was the seller of the 550,000-square-foot property, which is currently 97 percent leased. Hartshorne Plunkard Architects designed the complex. Google’s Midwest headquarters currently occupies roughly two-thirds of the office space. “We were attracted to this asset because it has long-term leases with quality tenants, such as Google,” says Martha Shelley, senior portfolio manager for American Realty Advisors. “We anticipate that this property will remain a key driver of the continued growth of the River West Fulton Marketplace over time given the abundance of street level amenities, immediate proximity of public transportation, new hotels and housing adjacent to this asset.” Floor plates at 1K Fulton range from 38,500 square feet to 71,000 square feet. Amenities at the property include indoor parking, a rooftop deck, shuttle service, Pressbox dry cleaning, ZipCar, bicycle detailing and repair station, a fitness center and ground-floor retail and restaurants. “This acquisition fulfills all of our criteria: superior location, great tenants, …
Today’s apartment property managers wear a lot of hats. In addition to being responsible for leasing up residential buildings or knowing how to calculate a property’s return on investment, they must also maintain healthy relationships with their workers, owners and residents. Figuring out how to leverage technology is key to achieving this delicate balancing act. According to a 2015 survey by the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC), 37 percent of households within the United States rent versus own. That’s up from 32 percent in 2010. Approximately 26 percent of those who rent are under the age of 30. This shift from owning to renting by younger residents has changed the way the industry reacts to them. “It’s one of the interesting dynamics of the 21st century and has changed the way we and other management firms do business,” says Mark Zettl, chief operating officer of Chicago-based Waterton, an owner and operator of multifamily and hospitality assets across the United States. “While customer service and satisfaction have always been priorities, today’s managers are constantly being held to a higher standard — one that measures response times in minutes and hours rather than days,” says Zettl. “We’ve embraced the change because the …
The real estate market in downtown Birmingham has followed the “chicken and egg” trend. Over the last few years, over a dozen multifamily projects have been announced, but the major hurdle is proving the demand as people moving downtown have wanted a downtown grocer. While some multifamily developers decided to proceed with construction, others waited on the sidelines hoping a grocer would announce a new downtown location. On the other hand, major grocers put off locating in downtown Birmingham due to the lack of people living in the general area. Problem solved when construction started last year on a new 30,000-square-foot Publix with a full-service pharmacy in downtown Birmingham. Developers Scott Bryant and Dick Schmalz announced that the Publix will anchor a new multi-story, mixed-used development. Publix considered a store in downtown Birmingham in 2007 and again in 2009 before finally deciding to bring a store downtown now. The development of the Parkside District with Railroad Park and Regions Field, along with existing and planned apartment projects in the area, contributed to the timing. With the addition of Publix, several other multifamily projects are well underway or completed, such as the 228-unit LIV Parkside, 332 total units next to Regions …