BOSTON — HFF has arranged a $27 million loan for the refinancing of 1249 and 1255 Boylston St., a two-building office and retail portfolio in Boston's Fenway neighborhood. Originally built in the 1920s, both properties were renovated in 1990 and are fully leased. The buildings total 70,330 square feet. Greg LaBine, Porter Terry and Robyn King led the HFF team that represented the borrower, Samuels & Associates, in the transaction. Boston Private Bank & Trust Co. provided the financing.
NORWOOD, MASS. — CarMax has acquired a $20 million development site at 212 Carnegie Row in Norwood to construct a new superstore. CarMax, a used-car dealership with more than 100 locations nationwide, plans to raze an existing 125,000-square-foot facility and build a new CarMax Auto Superstore on the site's 10 acres. Another 15 acres of wetlands will be preserved as open space. Elliot Ravech of Elliot & Co. represented the seller, CMI Property/Irene Realty Trust, in the transaction. Rob Grady of the Dartmouth Co. represented the buyer.
WATERVILLE, MAINE — ARC/Architectural Resources Cambridge has completed the design of the new $11 million biomass plant at Colby College in Waterville. The new 13,000-square-foot facility is expected to reduce the college's dependence on oil by 90 percent. The plant will burn forest waste and debris — treetops and bark that cannot be used by other pulp operations — instead of oil. Colby received a $750,000 grant from Efficiency Maine to assist with the project. The new power plant will provide thermal and partial electrical service to 30 campus buildings. The cost savings of switching to biomass is expected to pay for the building in six to 10 years.
PARSIPPANY, N.J. — EBI, a subsidiary of medical device manufacturer Biomet Spine & Bone Healing Technologies, has signed a 102,000-square-foot lease at 399 Jefferson Road in Parsippany. The space will serve as the headquarters for Biomet. Prism Capital Partners, which owns the property, will fit out the existing space and build a 28,000-square-foot addition for the company. The headquarters will include laboratories, offices, medical conference rooms and a lunch area. Andrew Schiffer and Robert Rudin of Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant in the transaction.
SHORT HILLS, N.J. — The 1.3-million-square-foot Mall at Short Hills has secured five new high-end retailers for the center. These will be the first stores in New Jersey for four of the tenants. Stuart Weitzman has opened a 1,445-square-foot store, joining its other New Jersey location at The Shops at Riverside in Hackensack. Emporio Armani and Giorgio Armani have already opened their 3,198-square-foot and 5,000-square-foot locations, respectively. Thomas Pink and Tourbillon will open this fall. Thomas Pink will operate a 1,998-square-foot store, while Tourbillon has secured 755 square feet. Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based Taubman Centers Inc. owns the center, which opened in November 1980 and includes 170 stores.
GRAPEVINE — Trammell Crow Co. has selected Cadence McShane Construction Co. to build three new warehouse/distribution centers near DFW International Airport in Grapevine totaling 986,500 square feet. The three facilities are being built at Trammell Crow's DFW Trade Center, located at the intersection of Esters Road and Corporate Drive. The new facilities include the 500,000-square-foot Building 6, the 297,500-square-foot Building 7 and the 202,500-square-foot Building 9. GSR Andrade Architects Inc. will provide architectural services for the assignment.
HOUSTON — EDGE Realty Partners and EDGE Capital Markets has arranged the acquisition of a four-property, 71,321-square-foot retail portfolio in west Houston totaling $15.8 million. Joshua Jacobs of EDGE Realty Partners represented the buyer, West Houston Retail, in the transaction. The seller and developer, Satya Inc., was self-represented by Gopal Bathija. The retail portfolio includes Briarforest Plaza at 133346 Briar Forest Drive, Coles Crossing at 24110 NW Freeway, Sandbridge Plaza at 1275 N. Eldridge Parkway and River Gate Center at 1125 Crab River Road.
DALLAS — The Dallas office of ARA led a brokerage team in the sale of a multi-state apartment portfolio totaling 1,397 units. The properties include The Vineyards in Katy (369 units), Estancia at Vista Ridge in Lake Lewisville (300 units), Stoneridge Farms in Nashville, Tenn. (364 units) and Sandstone Creek in Overland Park, Kan. (364 units). Brian O'Boyle of ARA's Dallas office led the ARA team that consisted of Scott Tyrone in the firm's Nashville office, David Oelfke in Houston and Mac Crowther in Kansas City, Kan. The team represented the seller, Columbus, Ga.-based Flournoy Development Co., in the transaction. Kansas City, Mo.-based JTL Real Estate Partners is the buyer.
HOUSTON — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of the 96-unit Oakwood Manor, an apartment complex located at 611 W. Cavalcade in Houston. Juan Cuevas of Marcus & Millichap's Houston office represented the seller and the buyer, a private investor, in the transaction.
HOUSTON — Mikob Properties has retained Moody Rambin as the leasing agent for the 78,027-square-foot Eleven Five Eleven building, located at 11511 Katy Freeway in Houston's Energy Corridor submarket. Kurt Kistler of Moody Rambin will handle the leasing assignment.
