PASADENA, CALIF. — Saiful/Bouquet Inc. (SBI) has leased 19,263 square feet at 155 N. Lake Ave., a Class A office building in Pasadena. The structural engineering company will be relocating from nearby Western Asset Plaza. SBI was represented by Josef Farrar and Matt Sasaki of UGL Services’ Downtown Los Angeles office. The owner, Equity Office Properties, was represented by Patrick Church of CB Richard Ellis.
ATLANTA — Carter, with offices in Atlanta, Tampa, Fla., and New York City, has plans to pursue $500 million in development and investments. Following the completion of the sale of the company's brokerage and property management groups, the firm is focusing on four key areas: development of mixed-use and for-rent multifamily properties in urban infill locations, equity development of student housing, acquisition of opportunistic and value-add investments in the office sector and growing its project management and strategic consulting business.
DELRAY BEACH, FLA. — RexxHall Realty has purchased the three-building Arbors Office Park, located at 1615, 1625 & 1690 S. Congress Ave. in Delray Beach. The buildings total 244,247 square feet and are 45 percent leased to tenants including Alfred Angelo, Sperry & Hutchinson, Twin-Star International and Escalate. Charles Foschini, Christoper Aphone and Christian Lee of CBRE's Miami office, along with Scott O'Donnell of the firm's Boca Raton, Fla., office and Dominic Montazemi of the firm's Palm Beach County, Fla., office, represented the seller in the transaction.
GOLDSBORO, N.C. — The 57,000-square-foot Five Points Plaza, located at 102-118 Five Points Rd. in Goldsboro, has been sold for $6 million. Food Lion anchors the center, which is 97 percent leased. Drew Fleming and Mark Joines of Cassidy Turley's Atlanta office represented the buyer, a North Carolina-based private equity group, in the transaction. Marlene Spritzer of CresaPartners' Cary, N.C., office represented the seller, a North Carolina-based developer.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Urban Investment Partners (UIP) has purchased a 21-unit apartment building, located at 1346 Park Rd. NW in Washington, D.C.'s Columbia Heights neighborhood, from Someck Development and Northridge Capital for $3.7 million. UIP has plans to invest $2.7 million in a full renovation of the property, including new plumbing, electrical, heating and cooling systems, as well as a new roof, windows and condo-level finishes. Additionally, seven units will be added on the cellar level. Andrew McAllister of Washington, D.C.-based MAC Realty Advisors represented the sellers in the transaction.
NORTH EAST, MD. — Restoration Hardware has signed a 1.2 million-square-foot industrial lease for a facility at Trade Center 95, located off Interstate 95 and Highway 40 in North East. The company will move into an existing 600,000-square-foot building in January 2012. Adjacent to the structure, Atlanta-based Weeks Robinson will build an additional 600,000-square-foot facility, which is slated for completion in the fall of 2012. Carl Mullis of CBRE's Atlanta office represented the tenant in the lease transaction and Weeks Robinson, the landlord was self-represented by Forrest Robinson.
CHICAGO, BROOKFIELD, WIS. — Real estate investment trust Inland Real Estate Corp. and Dutch pension fund manager PGGM purchased two Midwest retail properties for $43 million. Inland and PGGM, operating in a joint venture, paid $18.9 million for Elston Plaza, an 88,213-square-foot, grocery-anchored center in Chicago. The entity also acquired Brownstones Shopping Center, a 137,800-square-foot, grocery-anchored located in Brookfield, Wis., for $24.1 million. Elston Plaza is 95 percent occupied. Brownstones is about 93 percent leased. The venture plans to invest $270 million in retail centers in select Midwest markets. To date, the venture has purchased seven assets valued at $141.3 million.
CLEVELAND — Casino developer Rock Ohio Caesars has agreed to acquire the 205-room Ritz Carlton Hotel in Cleveland for $36.5 million. Rock Ohio is a joint venture between Caesars Entertainment Corp. and the Rock Gaming company. The entity has also acquired an attached 119,000-square-foot office building, which was sold in a mortgage default auction. The hotel and office building are adjacent to the entity's planned casino, Horseshoe Casino Cleveland, which is slated to open in March 2012. Both properties are owned by Forest City Enterprises Inc., a publicly traded real estate company. The hotel will remain a Ritz-Carlton under a long-term management contract. The transaction is expected to close Dec. 15.
LOVE PARK, ILL. — Meridian Design Build has completed construction of a 100,000-square-foot, build-to-suit industrial building in Love Park, near Rockford, Ill. The project will serve as a warehouse and distribution facility for Danfoss Drives, a privately held global company that manufactures and sells variable speed drives. Venture One Real Estate was the project developer. The project team also included Heitman Architects and Jacob & Hefner Associates.
NEW YORK CITY — Ariel Property Advisors has closed on two Manhattan multifamily properties for approximately $4 million. The properties include 280 Manhattan Ave., a 12,610-square-foot apartment building, which sold for $2.2 million. Victor Sozio, Michael Tortorici and Jesse Deutch represented the buyer and seller, both of which were private investors, in the transaction. The second property, an 8,500-square-foot, mixed-use building, is located at 1804 Third Ave. and sold for $1.85 million. Tortorici and Sozio represented the seller, a family, and the buyer, a private investor.