As Charlotte’s job growth has returned, so has traffic into Uptown during rush hour, a new apartment project on every corner, healthy single-family demand and a food fight. Currently there is an all-out war for grocery market share between behemoths Harris Teeter, Publix and Walmart Neighborhood Market, all adding stores at a record rate, while Whole Foods Market continues to expand within the market on a measured basis. Newcomers Sprouts Farmers Market and Lidl, a German-based supermarket grocer offering discount items, are set to make market entries between 2016 to 2018, with Food Lion planning to refurbish a number of their stores in the market. Pappas Properties has begun construction on a Harris Teeter at Berewick and Raley Miller in a joint venture with Levine Properties, and has filed a rezoning petition to add another Harris Teeter at the corner of Fairview and Providence. Harris Teeter has recently added a store in Cornelius, as has Publix. Publix has recently opened a new store in the booming South End submarket located along the transit line on South Boulevard and has won zoning approval for a store to be constructed at Cotswold. A grocer is also rumored to be scouting a redevelopment …
SAN MARCOS, TEXAS — Endeavor Real Estate Group has announced plans to invest $27.5 million to revamp Springtown Shopping Center, a retail center with low occupancy along I-35 in San Marcos between Austin and San Antonio. Endeavor purchased the center in November, at which point it was 10.5 percent occupied and split among four separate owners. The developer has signed leases with two anchor tenants. EVO Entertainment Group leased 34,000 square feet to build a dine-in luxury movie theater, bowling alley and event venue called The Spot. Gold’s Gym has leased 42,000 square feet.
LUBBOCK, TEXAS — Vesper Holdings has purchased the 864-bed University Courtyard student housing community near Texas Tech University in Lubbock. Vesper purchased University Courtyard from a group of tenant-in-common owners “at a steeply discounted price,” the company says. The property was acquired through an off-market transaction. Vesper is planning to execute a complete renovation of University Courtyard and intends to invest $4.5 million in capital expenditures. Property improvements will include a renovation of the units and amenities, as well as enhancements to the property’s exteriors and technology upgrades throughout the complex. Completed in 2005, University Courtyard is located in close proximity to Texas Tech University. University Courtyard contains 12 three-story residential buildings and a clubhouse spread across a 30-acre site. The property’s unit mix consists of two-, three-, and four-bedroom floor plans. All of the units have a one-bed-to-bath ratio. All apartments are fully furnished and feature black appliance packages and large, fully equipped kitchens. All units at University Courtyard have private, full-sized washers and dryers, along with high-speed Internet connection in every bedroom. University Courtyard amenities include a movie theatre, fitness center, business center, game room, basketball court, free tanning salon, lighted jogging track and two swimming pools.
LOS ANGELES — Ivanhoé Cambridge and its partner Callahan Capital Properties have acquired a full interest in the PacMutual office property in Downtown Los Angeles for $200 million. The property is located at 523 W. 6th St. The three buildings contain a total of 464,000 square feet. They are interconnected. PacMutual is situated near the 7th Street retail corridor, L.A. LIVE entertainment complex, Staples Center arena, Broadway Theater District, South Park neighborhood, and mixed-use developments like the Bloc and Wilshire Grand.
IRVINE, CALIF. — The Quintana office campus, a 421,935-square-foot office campus in Irvine, has received $100 million in financing. The floating-rate debt package will finance the acquisition, redevelopment and re-tenanting of the Class A property, which Hines purchased in August. The four-building Quintana campus is situated at the intersection of Main Street and Von Karman Avenue in the Irvine Business Complex. One of the buildings is fully leased to StrataCare, a wholly owned subsidiary of Xerox Corporation. The remaining three are vacant. Quintana represents the largest block of contiguous office space currently available for a large user in Orange County. It is also the only remaining big block in the airport area, according to New York Life Real Estate Investors, which originated the funds on behalf of institutional investors. HFF’s Kevin MacKenzie worked on behalf of Hines. The floating rate debt package has a total available term of five years.
HOUSTON — Cousins Properties Inc., a publicly traded office REIT based in Atlanta, has signed two new leases totaling 64,000 square feet at Greenway Plaza, a 10-building, 4.4 million-square-foot office complex in Houston. The first lease is a 10-year expansion and relocation that Cousins signed with an existing Greenway Plaza customer. This customer, a financial firm headquartered in Houston, is moving from 44,000 square feet in 3800 Buffalo Speedway to 48,000 square feet in Greenway Plaza Three, which was recently vacated by ExxonMobil. In the second transaction, a publishing firm new to Greenway Plaza signed a seven-and-a-half-year lease for 16,000 square feet at 3800 Buffalo Speedway.
LOS ANGELES — Loyola Marymount University (LMU) in Los Angeles has debuted its new $110 million Life Sciences building. Construction on the 100,000-square-foot project began in June 2013. The new Life Sciences building houses faculty and research staff from the biology, chemistry and biochemistry, health and human sciences, civil engineering, and environmental science departments under the Seaver College of Science and Engineering. It provides modernized laboratories and collaborative research space. The three-story facility contains 35 teaching labs, 40 faculty and staff offices, nine informal student study spaces, a green roof and outdoor laboratory, three conference rooms and a 273-seat auditorium with an adjoining 1,800-square-foot terrace. C.W. Driver constructed the new building, which CO Architects designed.
BAY CITY, TEXAS — Cypressbrook Co. has acquired Hunters Cove, a 326-unit apartment complex located in Bay City about 80 miles southwest of Houston. Cypressbrook will begin improvements to the complex including new faux wood flooring, new appliances, brushed nickel fixtures and hardware, resurfaced countertops, an upgraded pool area, landscaping improvements, replaced roofs, and new signage. Cypressbrook’s affiliate, Ascension Commercial Real Estate, will manage the property.
SAN DIEGO — NorthMarq Capital has arranged the $30 million refinance of Carmel Mountain Ranch Town Center, a 172,272-square-foot retail property located in San Diego. Michael Dobbins of NorthMarq secured the fully amortizing, 25-year term loan through a life insurance company. Tenants at the center include Trader Joe’s, Ralph’s, Chico’s, Rite Aid, Bank of America and McDonald’s.
PHOENIX — Triumph Properties Group is set to open a new Safeway location and start renovations on Moon Valley Shopping Center in Phoenix. Safeway recently signed a 20-year lease with Triumph Properties, and is investing several million dollars into the renovation and expansion of the entire store façade and interior of its new space. Ownership is also set to renovate the entire center, and to offer two new 5,000-square-foot pads for lease.