NEWNAN, GA. — CA Ventures has entered into a joint venture partnership with AIG to deliver a 215,000-square-foot, Class A light industrial facility in Newnan. The project, known as Coweta Business Center, will feature 32-foot clear heights, 200 auto parking spaces and up to 55 dock doors. The site is located adjacent to Interstate 85, less than one mile from the full diamond interchange at Exit 51. The joint venture partnership is planning to start construction later this year and finish construction in December. Wes Budd and Chris Irby of NAI Brannen Goddard represented CA in the acquisition of the land and will also be leasing the project. Mark Sixour, Dennis Mitchell, Matt Wirth and Britton Burdette of JLL Capital Markets arranged the joint venture partnership. CA Ventures, a Chicago-based firm, is a global real estate development and investment management company. AIG is a global finance and insurance firm based in New York City.
Georgia
Sansone Group Acquires 101.5 Acres of Land Near Savannah for New Industrial Development
by John Nelson
PORT WENTWORTH, GA. — Sansone Group, in partnership with a private equity real estate fund advised by Crow Holdings Capital, has acquired 101.5 acres near Savannah. Sansone Group plans to develop up to 1.4 million square feet of Class A industrial space at the site, which will be the first development in Georgia for the St. Louis-based developer. The site’s address is 4737 Hendley Road in Port Wentworth, less than six miles from the Port of Savannah. The development will be situated at the intersection of Highway 21 and Interstate 95,. The plan includes three buildings that Sansone Group will be developed in two phases. Phase I comprises a 437,500-square-foot building that will break ground in March. Sansone expects to deliver the building in December. Phase II will comprise 805,000 square feet across two buildings Sansone anticipates breaking ground on the second phase in October with delivery slated for July 2022. JLL’s Chris Tomasulo is leasing the project for the ownership group. Kern & Co. designed the site layouts. No general contractor has been selected yet.
Greystone Brown Brokers $31.7M Sale of Affordable Housing Property in Marietta, Georgia
by John Nelson
MARIETTA, GA. — Greystone Brown Real Estate Advisors has brokered the $31.7 million sale of a 257-unit affordable housing property in Marietta. New York City-based Olive Tree Holdings sold the community, known as The Life at Windy Hill. Taylor Brown, Chandler Brown, Cory Caroline Sams, Barden Brown, and Bo Brown of Greystone Brown represented the buyer, San Francisco-based Fillmore Capital Partners, in the transaction. The Life at Windy Hill comprises one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments averaging 1,379 square feet. It is located on 2751 SE Hammonton Road. The complex is a low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) property and 40 percent of the units are income-restricted. Monthly rents range $661 to a little over $1,000, according to Apartments.com. Community amenities include a clubhouse, fitness center, business center and laundry facility, as well as a swimming pool and soccer field. The property is located in Cobb County, 19 miles north of downtown Atlanta.
GAINESVILLE, GA. — Passco Cos. has purchased The Mill at New Holland, a 284-unit multifamily community in Gainesville, for $65 million. The property offers studio to three-bedroom floor plans that feature granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, tile backsplashes and nine-foot ceilings. Communal amenities include a 24-hour fitness center, pool, outdoor grilling area, club room and a dog park. The asset is situated at 1000 New Holland Way NE, 56 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta. The seller, Mesa Capital Partners, delivered the community in 2020. According to Apartments.com, rental rates at The Mill at New Holland range from $1,099 for a studio apartment to $1,812 for a three-bedroom unit.
CA Student Living Acquires Two Student Housing Communities in Georgia, Florida Totaling 972 Beds
by Alex Tostado
ATHENS, GA. AND BOCA RATON, FLA. — CA Student Living has acquired two student housing communities in Georgia and Florida for an undisclosed price. The acquisitions include Ikon at Athens, a 374-bed property located near the University of Georgia campus in Athens, and University Park, a 598-bed community located near Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. Ikon at Athens offers two-, three- and four-bedroom units with bed-to-bath parity. Communal amenities include a pool, outdoor spa, 24-hour fitness center, business center and a coffee cafe. University Park offers two-, three- and four-bedroom, fully furnished units with bed-to-bath parity alongside shared amenities such as a pool, fitness center, a clubhouse and study rooms. CA’s in-house property management platform will manage both properties. Ryan Lang of Newmark represented the buyer in the transaction. Chicago-based law firm Polsinelli provided legal assistance to the Chicago-based buyer. The seller(s) was not disclosed.
Brennan Investment Group to Develop 300,000 SF Industrial Portfolio in Metro Atlanta
by Alex Tostado
JONESBORO, GA. — Brennan Investment Group has acquired 25 acres in Jonesboro to develop Jonesboro Logistics Center, a three-building, 300,000-square-foot industrial campus in Jonesboro. Buildings One and Two will span 50,500 square feet, while Building Three will total 200,000 square feet. Each building is designed to accommodate two tenants. Buildings One and Two will be able to expand to house four tenants. Construction is scheduled to begin this quarter with completion targeted for the end of this year. Nick Peacher of Stream Realty Partners represented Chicago-based Brennan in the land transaction.
New York Life Taps Trademark Property to Manage Redevelopment of North Point Mall in Metro Atlanta
by Alex Tostado
ALPHARETTA, GA. — Trademark Property Co. will oversee the redevelopment of North Point Mall in Alpharetta. According to several media outlets, the previous owner, Brookfield Properties, relinquished ownership back to New York Life Insurance Co. earlier this month. Trademark will also manage and lead the leasing effort for the property. North Point Mall spans 1.3 million square feet and is located near the intersection of Ga. Highway 400 and Encore Parkway, 25 miles north of downtown Atlanta. The enclosed mall features 129 stores and restaurants, including Dillard’s, JC Penney, Von Maur, H&M, Macy’s, Sephora, AMC Theatres and The Cheesecake Factory. A timeline for redevelopment plans was not disclosed. Fort Worth, Texas-based Trademark has also redeveloped centers such as Bridgewater Commons in New Jersey; La Palmera in Corpus Christi, Texas: Victory Park in Dallas; Rice Village in Houston; WestBend in Fort Worth; Zona Rosa in Kansas City, Mo.; Annapolis Town Center in Annapolis, Md.; and Saddle Creek in Germantown, Tenn.
Slate Grocery REIT to Acquire Five Grocery-Anchored Properties in Three States for $54.3M
by Alex Tostado
TORONTO — Slate Grocery REIT has entered into an agreement to acquire five grocery-anchored shopping centers in North Carolina, Florida and Georgia for $54.3 million. The five assets comprise 396,471 square feet and were 95 percent leased at the time of sale. The three North Carolina properties are Bells Fork, a 71,666-square-foot center in Greenville anchored by Harris Teeter; Tanglewood Commons, a 78,520-square-foot property in Winston-Salem anchored by Harris Teeter; and Westin Center, a 66,890-square-foot, Food Lion-anchored asset in Fayetteville. The Florida property is Mission Hills, an 85,078-square-foot property in Naples anchored by Winn-Dixie. The fifth property is Parkway Station, a 94,317-square-foot, Kroger-anchored retail center in Atlanta. The sale is expected to close in the first quarter of this year. The seller(s) was not disclosed.
NAI: Atlanta’s Office Market is Going to be ‘Just Fine’ as New Developments Come on Line
by Alex Tostado
By Claire Blevins and Collin Devaney, NAI Brannen Goddard We’ve all seen the depressing commercial real estate news stories about the state of the office market, with words like “bleak,” “hazy” or “obsolete” in the headlines. Questions surround every major market, including Atlanta — a metro market known for its dependable economy and robust demand. Admittedly, Atlanta has had its struggles during the pandemic, like slow leasing activity and rising rental rates, but not everything is doom and gloom. New City Properties, in the middle of breaking ground on Mailchimp’s new headquarters, announced it was upping the budget to prepare for future pandemics, including setting money aside for technology that is not even available yet. Other developers are choosing to prioritize private green space over expensive machinery. Midtown’s new Norfolk Southern headquarters, opening by the third quarter of 2021, takes advantage of its 3.4-acre lot by developing a campus-style hub filled with parks and a rooftop garden. Employees who utilize these outdoor spaces decrease the risk of airborne transmissions, as well as promote healthy habits. Not every office building has the room for large outdoor forums, so other owners are doing away with cubicles and building out private offices. Or …
Commercial real estate sentiment has returned to pre-pandemic levels, according to NAIOP’s fall 2021 survey. Those views are good news for the commercial real estate industry generally, and the metro Atlanta office market is helping to provide some impressive specifics behind the rising optimism. At 2 million square feet of office space, Atlanta led the country in positive absorption in third-quarter 2021, approximately 700,000 square feet ahead of No. 3 market New York City, according to Colliers International research. Atlanta’s relatively low costs, attractive weather, growing demographics and educated labor force are big advantages for the city’s economy and office market. Metro Atlanta ranked No. 8 for year-over-year job growth in August among the largest U.S. metro areas with an increase of 124,300 new jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Atlanta recorded an unemployment rate of 3.1 percent that month for the market, 210 basis points lower the national figure. Atlanta also ranks No. 8 nationally for tech talent, according to CBRE, with total tech occupations having increased 15.2 percent from 2015 to 2020. Savills cited Atlanta’s highest growth rate for technology-related graduates in the country, a big draw for innovative companies looking to relocate to or …