TEMPE, ARIZ. — TruAmerica Multifamily and institutional capital partner Investcorp have acquired the 379-unit Little Cottonwoods apartment complex in Tempe for $56.7 million. The community is located at 1820 E. Bell De Mar Drive. Little Cottonwoods was built in phases between 1985 and 1991. This transaction represents TruAmerica’s third and largest multifamily investment in the Phoenix area to date. It is the fourth venture the firm has completed with Investcorp in the past 15 months.
CARSON, CALIF. — Prologis has sold the 12-building Carson Industrial Center in the Los Angeles submarket of Carson to an institutional real estate manager for an undisclosed sum. The 450,000-square-foot center is situated on Del Amo Boulevard. Carson Industrial Center is fully leased to 19 tenants. Notable tenants include Sourcecorp BPS, Coast Wire & Plastic Technology and Illumination International. Jeffrey Cole, Jeffrey Chiate and Ed Hernandez of Cushman & Wakefield represented Prologis in this transaction.
LOS ANGELES — California Landmark Group (CLG) has acquired the 120-unit Lafayette Park Apartments in the downtown Los Angeles submarket of Koreatown for $23.7 million. The community is located at 349 S. Lafayette Park Place. Lafayette Park was built in 1971. CLG will implement a $4 million capital improvement program over the next several years. The plan will include extensive renovations to the building’s exterior, pool area and clubhouse. Interior unit improvements will include new appliance packages, stone countertops, cabinetry, flooring, lighting and fixtures. The acquisition was financed with a $17.5 million first mortgage loan from Mesa West Capital. Stewart Weston of Marcus & Millichap represented CLG in this transaction. The seller was a private investor.
CENTENNIAL, COLO. — An undisclosed buyer has purchased a 533-unit Extra Space Storage facility in Centennial for $11.3 million. The community is located at 7059 S. Kenton St., 16 miles southeast of downtown Denver. The facility was built in 2009. Adam Schlosser, Chico LeClaire and Brett Hatcher of Marcus & Millichap executed the transaction. Richard Bird is the firm’s broker of record in Colorado.
The battle between physical stores and online retail rages on, but the recent explosion in smartphone usage is blurring the battle lines. Using smartphones, consumers in a store now can simultaneously shop and compare pricing and product availability at competing stores or online. The practice is sometimes referred to as “showrooming.” Increasingly, retailers must simultaneously invest in a combination of brick-and-mortar stores, websites, digital marketing and merchandise delivery to sell goods. Only the real estate component of that infrastructure is subject to property tax. If property owners identify the portion of store sales attributable at least partially to online shopping, they can argue for taxable property values more accurately based on the remaining sales volume attributable to a store’s physical location and condition. Retailers that think mobile is a channel use the wrong metrics to measure the smartphone’s impact on retail. Smart retailers focus on the impact on overall business rather than trying to measure only app downloads or channel sales. Extrapolating a retail property’s value from base rent is relatively easy, but what happens when rent is based on sales? How do sales that take place in the store via smartphone, or online transactions that stem from a store …
BELLEVUE, WASH. — Vulcan Real Estate has acquired Bellevue Plaza, a 60,000-square-foot shopping center located in Bellevue, roughly 10 miles outside of Seattle, for $45.5 million. The center was approximately 75 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants including Hot Yoga Inc., Pogacha, Jimmy John’s and Toy’s Café. Situated along Main Street between 106th and 105th avenues in the heart of downtown Bellevue, the center is blocks away from Bellevue Downtown Park, Bellevue Square and Lincoln Square. Vulcan has no immediate redevelopment plans for the property, but aims to create a long-term vision for the site that will likely include new residential and retail uses. CBRE led the transaction with a team that included Jon Hallgrimson, Frank Bosl and Eli Hanacek.
PHOENIX — Gabriel Partners has signed a 19,200-square-foot lease at Renaissance Square in Phoenix. The financial and risk analytics provider will occupy the entire 22nd floor of Two Renaissance Square. It will move in this June. Savills Studley represented Gabriel Partners. Pat Devine of Cushman & Wakefield represented the landlord, Hines, in this transaction.
EUGENE, ORE. — Student Housing-Eugene LLC, an affiliate of Columbia Investments LLC, has awarded Greystar Student Living management of Arena District Apartments, a 244-bed student housing community located two blocks away from the University of Oregon campus in Eugene. The LEED Gold certified property was formerly known as University House Arena District. The community offers two- and four-bedroom units with contemporary furniture packages, flat-screen televisions, Apple TV, EnergyStar front-loading washers and dryers, and free cable and high-speed Internet access. Environmentally friendly features of the property include energy efficient lighting, low-VOC paint, solar-generated hot water and operable windows for natural ventilation. Community amenities include a clubhouse and an Internet café with Mac computers, seating areas, a multimedia lounge with gaming stations and billiards tables, a large outdoor courtyard with drought tolerant landscaping and grilling stations, bicycle storage, covered parking, recycling centers and reserved parking spaces for fuel-efficient vehicles. Greystar will add a new fitness center, spa and study lounges this year.
DENVER — Akerman LLP is relocating its offices to a 23,762-square-foot space at 1900 16th St. in Denver’s LoDo Historic District. The law firm is moving from a 14,658-square-foot space at 1400 Wewatta St. The new office accommodates 25 lawyers and patent professionals. Akerman will assume the lease on July 1. It will move in by the end of the year when its current lease expires. Franklin Street represented the firm.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Caddis, a national healthcare real estate firm headquartered in Dallas, has opened a 96-unit assisted living and memory care community known as Heartis Eagle Mountain at 3141 Dalhart Drive in Fort Worth. The 61,125-square-foot community includes 54 assisted living units (61 beds) and a dedicated 35-bed memory care unit. The residence features a secure courtyard and walking paths. Located on a 4.3-acre site, the community is about one mile from Eagle Mountain Lake with access to U.S. Highway 287 and I-35W. Heartis Eagle Mountain is owned by a Caddis affiliate and managed by Eugene, Ore.-based Good Neighbor Care. Good Neighbor Care has more than two decades of seniors housing management experience in Texas and several other states. Heartis Eagle Mountain offers amenities including game and activity rooms, a beauty/barber shop, dining room, common areas, daily social and recreational activities, licensed nursing services, landscaped grounds and a 24-hour emergency call system. Austin-based Katus LLC was the architect for the project.
