OAKLAND, CALIF. — Vertical Ventures has acquired the 525,864-square-foot office portion of Eastmont Town Center in Oakland for a reported $54.5 million. The Class B space is located at 7200 Bancroft Ave. Eastmont Town Center is currently 80 percent occupied by 31 tenants, including agencies from Alameda County and the City of Oakland. Less than 20 percent of the leased space is scheduled to expire within the next five years. There are also multiple long-term leases that will run through 2028. The center originally operated as a mall until it was converted into a government services center in the ‘90s. A second building containing retail space is still on the market. Argosy Real Estate Partners III L.P. and its parallel funds partnered with Vertical Ventures on the transaction. Cushman & Wakefield represented both the buyer and the seller on this transaction. The firm will also provide on-site property management services, while CBRE will handle leasing.
AURORA, COLO. — Majestic Realty Co. has announced plans to build an additional 452,400-square-foot speculative industrial warehouse and distribution facility at its Majestic Commercenter in Aurora. The center is located at the intersection of I-70 and Tower Road. The Class A industrial property is scheduled for completion in November. Majestic notes favorable market conditions, historically low industrial vacancy rates and recent lease agreements motivated the company to move forward on a sister property to its most recent 500,000-square-foot Building #28. Majestic recently signed long-term lease agreements with Fresca Foods for 158,000 square feet and Niagara Bottling for 132,000 square feet at Building #28. The new building will be constructed and designed by Commerce Construction Co.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — Hilton Worldwide has acquired the 150-room Boulders Resort & Spa near Scottsdale for an undisclosed sum. The 1,300-acre resort is located at 34631 N. Tom Darlington Drive in the Sonoran Desert foothill town of Carefree, just north of Scottsdale. The property will soon undergo a significant remodel and upgrade. Hilton announced the hotel will now operate under the “Curio – A Collection by Hilton” portfolio. Curio is a global brand of upper-upscale and luxury hotels that focus on delivering travel experiences tailored to the local attractions and culture. Boulders Resort & Spa offers one-, two- and three-bedroom guest casitas, or small houses, in addition to a five-bedroom, 5,000-square-foot villa retreat. The resort also features two 18-hole, Jay Morrish-designed championship golf courses, a terraced tennis garden, four swimming pools, six restaurants, a 33,000-square-foot spa, a fitness center and a variety of outdoor adventure activities. The renovation will upgrade the casitas. The lobby bar, front desk and Palo Verde restaurant will also be remodeled. The redesign will be carried out by DiLEONARDO. The seller, an affiliate of Blackstone Group, was represented by Hodges Ward Elliott in this transaction. There are six hotels currently under the Curio brand, including the …
LAKEWOOD, COLO. — Easterly Government Properties Inc. has purchased a 115,650-square-foot office building in Lakewood for $20.2 million. The building is located at 12155 West Alameda Parkway in Lakewood’s Union Square office area. The structure is occupied by the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA). It is leased to the General Services Administration, on behalf of the Department of Energy, until 2029. The property was built in 1999. Easterly was represented by Richard Bird of Marcus & Millichap. The seller, a private investor, was represented by Tammy Saia of the same firm.
The New Jersey industrial market is experiencing a renaissance of sorts with robust leasing activity in both Northern and Central regions of the state, increasing asking rents and more than 4.5 million square feet of industrial space delivered in 2014. All of these factors point to an even stronger 2015 as developers take advantage of improving market conditions. As we continue to see users and investors competing for the same properties, which in turn creates bidding contests resulting in higher sale prices, we pause and ask, “Can users compete with investors in this environment? And furthermore, should they?” To answer these questions, we need to look back at how we arrived at the current conditions. Towards the fourth quarter of 2013, asking rents and vacancy rates seemed to reach equilibrium. For each quarter after, asking rents steadily increased and vacancy dropped as demand rose. In the fourth quarter of 2014, vacancy in Central New Jersey fell to 7.2 percent, and asking rents rose from $5.35 to $5.42 per square foot with increasing demand along the New Jersey Turnpike corridor. Throughout the year, positive absorption totaled more than 2 million square feet in this region, making it the sixth year in …
ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority (RSA) has contracted Kwame Building Group Inc. (KWAME) to provide project management support to John Loyd, RSA’s developer’s representative, for the proposed NFL stadium on the St. Louis riverfront. The RSA contracted John Loyd as its developer’s representative to consult on stadium design and construction. The Hunt Construction Group/Clayco (HCKL) construction management team will report to Loyd. Hunt Construction, in association with Kwame Building Group, served as the design-build contractor on the $270 million Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis, with Loyd as the owner’s representative. Construction of the new stadium would create more than 5,000 construction jobs over a four-year period, in addition to retaining a major regional employer and more than 2,400 game-day jobs.
SANTA MONICA, CALIF. – JOSS Realty Partners has purchased a 23,531-square-foot boutique office property in downtown Santa Monica for $23.7 million. The Class A property is located at 1315 Lincoln Blvd. in an area known as Silicon Beach. The space is fully occupied by five tenants, including City National Bank, Chandler Chicco Agency, Centro Media, O’Gara Coach Company and Dethrone Basecamp. JOSS paid $1,004 per square foot for the building – one of the highest prices paid for a Los Angeles-area property.
REDONDO BEACH, CALIF. – DHL has signed a six-year lease extension for 234,858 square feet of industrial space in Redondo Beach. The facility is located at 4000 Redondo Beach Ave. The logistics company uses the space as an air freight hub. The lease is valued at $11.9 million. DHL was represented by Todd Taugner, Frank Schulz and David Prior of the Klabin Company in this transaction.
CEDAR HILL, TEXAS — Trademark Property Co., the operating partner for Uptown Village at Cedar Hill, has announced the 610,000-square-foot shopping center will be rebranded as Hillside Village. The new name and corresponding new brand were selected to reflect the garden-like look and feel planned as part of a multi-million dollar property renovation to attract a broader trade area, and to pay homage to the community in which it lies. Planned improvements to Hillside Village include enhanced entrances, public spaces and vehicular access, upgraded landscaping, façade improvements, a new children’s play area, new amenities for adults and children, and new signage throughout the property. Hillside Village currently includes 350,000 square feet of specialty stores and restaurants. Anchor retailers are Barnes & Noble, Dillard’s and Dick’s Sporting Goods along with 31,000 square feet of office space. The center features more than 65 tenants including Charming Charlie, Chico’s, H&M (opening this fall) Hollister, James Avery, Old Navy, Papaya, The Children’s Place and Victoria’s Secret.
TEMPE, ARIZ. – Freedom Financial Network has leased 45,000 square feet of office space at Tempe 10/60 Corporate Center. The recently redeveloped office project is located at 4415 – 4625 S. Wendler Drive. The property was originally built in 1985. The building is now 50 percent leased. The remaining 45,000-square-foot building is still vacant. This is the financial solutions services company’s second office. Its first is in San Mateo, Calif. Tempe 10/60 Corporate Center was redeveloped by Greenlaw Partners and the Broe Group. Freedom Financial was represented by JLL’s Pat Williams, Steve Corney, Vicki Robinson, Andrew Medley and Chris Corney.