JOLIET, ILL. — Amazon.com Inc. has unveiled plans to open a nearly 500,000-square-foot fulfillment center in Joliet, Ill., located about 45 miles southwest of Chicago. Baltimore, Md.-based GLP Development Co. is the project developer. The fulfillment center, which is expected to create 1,000 full-time jobs when it opens, will be the company’s first in the state. Amazon employees at the fulfillment center will process smaller items such as books, electronics and consumer goods. “We are thrilled that Amazon has chosen Joliet as the location for its new Illinois fulfillment center,” says Joliet Mayor Bob O’Dekirk. “The company is not only the leader in the e-commerce sector, but it also will create quality jobs for a diverse community throughout Joliet and Will County.” According to the Chicago Tribune, Amazon is already advertising for $13-an-hour and $14.95-an-hour jobs at the facility. The newspaper adds that Amazon has invested heavily in warehouses nationwide during the last three years as it faces increasing competition on speed from Walmart.com, eBay, Google and other online retailers.
INDIANAPOLIS — HREC Investment Advisors has arranged the sale of the 82-suite TownePlace Suites Indianapolis Keystone and the 94-suite TownePlace Suites Indianapolis Park 100, both Marriott-branded properties. The purchase price of the hotels was not disclosed. The TownePlace Suites Indianapolis Keystone is located on the north side of Indianapolis in the city’s most prestigious area, Keystone at the Crossing. The hotel is situated minutes from downtown Indianapolis and the Indianapolis International Airport. The TownePlace Suites Indianapolis Park 100 hotel is situated on the northwest side of Indianapolis. Local demand generators include downtown Indianapolis, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Traders Point shopping and Eagle Creek Park. Ted Anka, vice president in HREC Investment Advisors’ Chicago and Miami offices, worked with both the buyer, Arbor Lodging Partners, and seller, First Hospitality Group (FHG), to complete the transaction. Chicago-based Arbor Lodging Partners is a national debt and equity investor in the hospitality industry. FHG, based in Rosemont, Ill., specializes in hotel management, acquisitions and development throughout the Midwest.
GLENVIEW, ILL. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of 1941-2019 Johns Drive, a 68,075-square-foot industrial building located in Glenview, a northern Chicago suburb. The purchase price was $3.87 million. Built in 1980, 1941-2019 Johns Drive is a combined two-building portfolio. The one-story multi-tenant asset includes 68,075 square feet of rentable space and is currently operating at 81 percent occupancy. Stephen Lieberman and Paul Tesdal, investment specialists in Marcus & Millichap’s downtown Chicago office, marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a local private investor. Lieberman and Tesdal also secured and represented the buyer, a local investor, in the transaction.
MILWAUKEE, WIS. — The Dickman Company Inc./CORFAC International has arranged the sale of a 34,370-square-foot industrial building located at 2737 S. 31st St. in Milwaukee. The purchase price was not disclosed. K3 Cos. LLC purchased the building from the Tri-Capital Investment Group. Anthony Huenerbein of The Dickman Company brokered the transaction.
CARMEL, IND. — The Boulder Group has brokered the sale of a 55,757-square-foot, single-tenant property formerly occupied by Macaroni Grill in Carmel, a northern suburb of Indianapolis, for $1.4 million. The Macaroni Grill closed within the last year as part of a larger company-wide closure of numerous locations. There are approximately two years remaining on the Macaroni Grill lease, which expires in April 2017. The property is located at the corner of the Keystone Parkway and E. 116th St. interchange, which experiences traffic counts in excess of 62,000 vehicles per day. Keystone Parkway is the primary north-south thoroughfare in the area connecting Carmel to Indianapolis. There is more than 360,000 square feet of retail space located across the street from the property that features Marsh Supermarket, Petco, World Market, PNC Bank, O’Reilly Auto Parts, and many others. There are approximately 60,000 people living within a three-mile radius of the property earning average annual household incomes in excess of $101,000. Randy Blankstein and Jimmy Goodman of Northbrook, Ill.-based The Boulder Group represented the seller, a Midwest-based commercial real estate development and investment firm, in the transaction. The purchaser was a high-net-worth individual from the West Coast.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Portman Holdings has secured financing for its $122 million office building located at 615 S. College Ave. in Uptown Charlotte. The financing included equity from China Orient Summit Capital and debt from PCCP LLC. The 371,000-square-foot office building will be constructed atop an existing parking garage, and upon completion in February 2017, the office tower will have an outdoor green space and direct access to the Lynx Blue Line. John Portman & Associates is providing architectural services, and Travis Garland of Portman Holdings is managing the leasing process, in conjunction with Trinity Partners. Portman Holdings will officially break ground on the office tower on Friday, Aug. 14.
CHARLESTON, S.C. — The Rockefeller Group and WestRock Land and Development (formerly MWV Community Development and Land Management) have broken ground on a 477,000-square-foot distribution center in Charleston. The companies are developing the center on behalf of Gerber Childrenswear LLC, a children’s apparel company whose licensed brand portfolio includes Gerber, Jockey, New Balance and NFL. The company’s proprietary brands include Onesies Brand and Always Baby. The new distribution center will double Gerber’s footprint in the Charleston metropolitan area. The new facility will be located in the 400-acre Rockefeller Group – MeadWestvaco Foreign Trade Zone/Charleston industrial campus in Berkeley County. Peter Fennelly and Simons Johnson of Colliers International’s Charleston office represented Gerber Childrenswear in the transaction. Evans General Contractors is the general contractor for the project. The new distribution center is slated for a January 2016 completion.
AUBURN, ALA. — CA Student Living will begin development soon on a six-story mixed-use development named The Jackson near Auburn University. The development will include approximately 7,500 square feet of first-floor retail with student housing on the five upper floors. The Jackson will feature 126 units, or 456 beds, with two-, three-, four- and five-bedroom floor plans. Amenities at The Jackson will include a pool, bike parking and a parking deck that includes two subterranean levels and two levels of above-ground parking. The property is currently owned by Badger Downtown LLC and occupied by Center Court Apartments, which will be demolished to make way for The Jackson.
FORT MYERS, FLA. — Cushman & Wakefield has brokered the $10.2 million sale of Forum Corporate Park II, a 60,777-square-foot, Class A office building located at 9160 Forum Corporate Parkway in Fort Myers. The office building is positioned within The Forum at Fort Myers, a 706-acre master-planned development. Rick Brugge, Mike Davis and Michael Lerner of Cushman & Wakefield, along with Robert Brooks of Songy Highroads, represented the seller in the transaction. The buyer was Holden Properties. The three-story suburban office building is currently 82.3 percent leased to tenants such as Verizon, Prudential Insurance and Regus.
ROCK HILL, S.C. AND HIGH POINT, N.C. — The Shopping Center Group has arranged the sale of two grocery-anchored neighborhood centers in the Carolinas — Belleview Square in Rock Hill and Fairfield Square in High Point. The 77,800-square-foot Belleview Square sold for $5.8 million. The shopping center is anchored by Super BI-LO and was 90 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Cricket Wireless, Papa John’s, HomeSmart Lease-To-Own and Albright’s Liquor Store. The 71,000-square-foot Fairfield Square sold for $4.1 million. The shopping center is anchored by Food Lion and was 100 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Radio Shack, Family Dollar and Donut World. An affiliate of New York-based Juster Development sold both assets to an affiliate of Richmond, Va.-based Hackney Real Estate Partners. Anthony Blanco, Lenard Williams, Darrell Palasciano and Mallory Ham of The Shopping Center Group marketed both properties.