ALEXANDRIA, VA. — A joint venture between Novare Group, Mulberry Development Group and Mill Green Partners has broken ground on Cameron Park, a 302-unit apartment community located adjacent to the Van Dorn Metro Station in Alexandria, roughly eight miles south of Washington, D.C. The community will offer a mix of studio to three-bedroom units. Amenities at Cameron Park will include a pool with sundeck, grilling stations, outdoor cabanas, fitness center, separate yoga room, clubroom, game room, cyber café, business center and private offices. KTGY is the project architect, and Fortune-Johnson is the general contractor. Preferred Apartment Communities (PAC) and Citizens Bank are providing construction financing for the project. PAC provides mezzanine loans to development projects and also enters into purchase options to acquire the projects once stabilized. Construction on Cameron Park is scheduled to take 24 months, with the first move-ins expected in the first quarter of 2020.
Southeast
RICHMOND, VA. — Becknell Industrial has acquired a 60-acre parcel of land along Laburnum Avenue and Seven Hills Boulevard in Richmond with plans to construct a four-building industrial campus. The 805,190-square-foot development, located roughly two miles from Richmond International Airport, will be known as Airport Logistics Center. The first phase of the project will include a 246,760-square-foot concrete building with 32-foot clear heights, LED lighting with motion sensors, an ESFR sprinkler system, multiple drive-in doors, trailer parking with 135-foot court depths and a 60-foot loading bay. Becknell expects to wrap up construction on the first building in spring 2019. Cliff Porter of Porter Realty Co. will manage the industrial park and handle the property’s leasing assignment.
PLANT CITY, FLA. — HFF has brokered the $29 million sale of Lake Walden Square, a 244,529-square-foot shopping center in the Tampa Bay community of Plant City. Eric Williams, Daniel Finkle and Luis Castillo of HFF arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller, Retail Value Inc. JBL Asset Management acquired the property. Winn-Dixie anchors Lake Walden Square, which was 93.3 percent leased at the time of sale. Additional tenants include Ross Dress for Less, Marshalls, Michaels, PetSmart, Ulta Beauty, Five Below, Famous Footwear, Continuecare Medical, Amscot Financial, Cricket Wireless, Queen Nails and Firehouse Subs.
FLORENCE, KY. — The Kroger Co. plans to invest $17 million to expand its newly built distribution center on Mt. Zion Road in Florence, a city in northern Kentucky’s Boone County. The 674,000-square-foot facility, which opened in fall 2017 after Kroger’s $60 million investment, currently employs 80 associates. The expansion project will ramp up production at the facility and create 250 new jobs, the majority of which will be full-time positions. The project is supported by a Kentucky Business Investment incentive of up to $1 million over 10 years. The company’s annual eligibility for the performance-based tax credit is linked to investment, job creation and retention and average hourly wage targets. Kroger will start to expand its team for the distribution facility in September. The grocer currently employs more than 21,000 people in Kentucky.
NICHOLASVILLE, KY. — SRS’ Investment Properties Group has arranged the $8.9 million sale of Brannon Crossing Centre, a 63,707-square-foot retail center located at 230 E. Brannon Road in Nicholasville, roughly 12 miles south of Lexington. Kyle Stonis and Pierce Mayson of SRS arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller, Viking Partners. Jason Taylor of Equity Management Group Inc. represented the buyer, Brannon 230 LLC. Brannon Crossing Centre was 97 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Marshalls, HomeGoods, Subway, Great Clips, Sally Beauty Supply and Sun Tan City.
ALPHARETTA, GA. — A joint venture between Hines and Cousins Properties will develop 10000 Avalon, a 251,000-square-foot, Class A office building in Alpharetta, a northern suburb of Atlanta. The new building will be the second and final office building within Avalon, a 2.4 million-square-foot mixed-use development. The total development cost for the building is expected to be $97 million. Cousins has a 90 percent ownership interest in the joint venture and Hines has a 10 percent ownership interest. AXIS Reinsurance Co. will anchor the new building, occupying 76,000 square feet. Sam Holmes of CBRE arranged the 15-year lease on behalf of the insurance company, which is a subsidiary of AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. Hines and Cousins will start construction on 10000 Avalon this month, with initial occupancy scheduled for early 2020. The building is located adjacent to 8000 Avalon, which Hines and Cousins delivered in June 2017. The building is currently 98 percent leased to tenants such as SAP, Microsoft and coworking operator Spaces.
ATLANTA — Hotel and brand management company Dream Hotel Group, in partnership with Atlanta-based Cartel Properties, has unveiled plans to develop Dream Atlanta, Buckhead. The 200-room hotel will be located near the intersection of Peachtree, Roswell and East Paces Ferry roads in Buckhead Village. In addition to guest suites, Dream Atlanta, Buckhead will feature 90 private residences, a spa and wellness concept and five dining and nightlife venues, including a 17,000-square-foot rooftop pool, bar and lounge. The dual-tower development will also include 80,000 square feet of additional office and retail space. New York-based Dream Hotel Group currently operates 18 hotels, with more than 20 others in various stages of development. Atlanta-based architecture firm Cooper Cary is designing Dream Atlanta, Buckhead, which is scheduled to open in 2021.
GREENSBORO, N.C. — The Fresh Market Inc. announced this week that it will close 15 stores nationwide, including seven in the Southeast. The impacted stores were selected after an analysis of overall growth and long-term financial performance, according to the Greensboro-based grocer. “Over the last eight months, our company has been executing a turnaround plan and we’ve seen great progress,” said Larry Appel, CEO of The Fresh Market, in a statement. “However, for a variety of reasons unique to each retail location, that progress is not evenly distributed and, as a result, we have decided to close these long-term, underperforming stores.” In the Southeast, The Fresh Market will close locations in Atlanta and Snellville, Ga.; Louisville, Ky.; Charlotte, N.C.; Hendersonville, Tenn.; and Winchester and Charlottesville, Va. Other affected locations are located throughout Illinois, Indiana, New Hampshire and Wisconsin. The stores will close over the next two to four weeks.
FORT MYERS, FLA. — Coastal Ridge Real Estate and H. Katz Capital have acquired Coastal Village Apartments, an 800-bed student housing community in Fort Myers, for $44 million. The community is located at 19401 Skidmore Way, less than three miles from Florida Gulf Coast University. Constructed in 2004, Coastal Village Apartments features four-bedroom, fully furnished units with bed-to-bath parity. Community amenities include a lakeside pool, barbecue and picnic areas, clubhouse, fitness center, sand volleyball court and a computer lab. Kevin Larimer, Greg Gonzalez, Jason Stanton and Cole Whitaker of Berkadia arranged the transaction on behalf of the undisclosed seller.
SYKESVILLE, MD. — Warfield Cos. has acquired a 91-acre site in Sykesville, roughly 25 miles northwest of Baltimore, with plans deliver a new mixed-use project. Upon completion, the former site of the Springfield Hospital Center will include 600,000 square feet of office, light industrial and retail space, as well as roughly 180 residential units, a full-service hotel and a 27-acre town park. The site, which will be rebranded “Warfield at Historic Sykesville,” includes 12 buildings that were constructed in the early 20th century. The buildings carry historical designations from the National Park Service and Maryland Historical Trust. Three of the buildings are restored and leased to Nexion Health, Zeteo Tech and The Carroll County Dance Center. The remaining nine buildings will be rehabilitated and repurposed for future users, owners and tenants. Construction and restoration activities are scheduled to begin in a few weeks on the first speculative office building. Groundbreaking for the first phase of new construction, a 145-unit townhome project, is expected to begin this month, with completion slated for early 2019. Elm Street Development is developing the townhome portion of the project. Dennis Boyle of Lee & Associates is handling the leasing assignment for the project’s commercial, retail …