Hurricane Irma made landfall in Florida on Sunday afternoon, tearing through The Keys and heading up the western portion of the state through the Tampa area. For a time, it appeared the hurricane was heading straight for Miami before it ultimately changed course. “A few days ago when we are all staring down the barrel of a Category 4 storm that was heading straight for us, it was concerning,” says Ken Krasnow, executive managing director of Colliers International’s South Florida division. “We ended up having some Category 2 force winds, but we feel fortunate that the storm changed course.” Despite being out of Irma’s direct path, parts of Miami were flooded and most of the region experienced power outages, with many residences remaining without power as of this writing. Irma was the worst storm to hit South Florida since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, but the destruction caused by the storm 25 years ago was much worse, specifically for the industrial sector. “Hurricane Andrew was the worst this market experienced,” says Walter Byrd, senior managing director of Transwestern’s industrial team. “It blew through entire floors on projects in the southern part of Miami-Dade County.” Byrd says that the difference this go-around …
ATLANTA — North American Properties (NAP) has unveiled plans to develop a 28,000-square-foot food hall at Colony Square, a mixed-use destination at the corner of 14th and Peachtree streets in Atlanta’s Midtown district. Dubbed Main & Main, the food hall will include indoor and outdoor dining space and a staging area designed for a variety of event programming. The area will host Colony Square’s more than 200 signature and seasonal events annually. Restaurant designer and architect David Thompson is leading the project’s design, and restaurateur Steve Palmer will be the food hall’s chef curator. Main & Main will feature approximately 12 to 15 culinary concepts, as well as complementary vendors such as flower, chocolate and pastry pop-ups and an incubator space to host nonprofits. In addition, the project will include The Grove, a green space outfitted with soft seating, Spanish steps and a beer garden, that will serve as the gateway to Main & Main. NAP will break ground on Main & Main this fall, with the first phase of development slated to open in 2018.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — CBRE has brokered the $28.1 million sale of Tower at 1301 Gervais, a 298,926-square-foot office building in Columbia. Greenville, S.C.-based RealOp Investments acquired the property from Florida-based Morning Calm Management. Patrick Gildea, Aaron Dupree, Martin Moore and Matt Smith of CBRE represented the seller in the transaction. The 20-story Tower at 1301 Gervais recently underwent a $2 million renovation, including upgrades to the fitness center, common areas, restrooms and tenant spaces offering open floor plans. At the time of sale, the building was 80 percent leased to tenants including the University of South Carolina, South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, Cumulus Media, TM Floyd & Co., IT-oLogy and Merrill Lynch.
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA. — The Franklin Johnston Group has unveiled plans to develop Coastal 61 at Oxford Village, a 248-unit multifamily community in Virginia Beach that will be located next to Virginia Wesleyan University and the Norfolk Premium Outlets. Coastal 61 will feature one-, two- and three-bedroom units ranging in size from 833 to 1,395 square feet. Individual units will include stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, walk-in closets and in-unit washers and dryers. Community amenities will include a rooftop sky park, two-story clubhouse, fitness center, outdoor recreation center and a resort-style swimming pool.
CLEMSON, S.C. — A partnership between Campus Apartments and Collegiate Development Group has opened 114 Earle, a 706-bed student housing development located near the Clemson University campus in South Carolina. The property offers fully furnished studio, two-, three-, four- and five-bedroom units. Community amenities include a two-story clubhouse with an internal playground-style stairway slide; fitness center; resort-style swimming pool with a jumbo TV; and a variety of study spaces.
LOUISVILLE, KY. — Strawberry Fields REIT LLC has acquired Parkway Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, a 252-bed skilled nursing facility in Louisville, for $21.8 million. The acquisition was financed with a $15 million loan from Bank Leumi. Strawberry Fields will lease the property to The Landmark Group, with a first-year rent of $2.4 million. The property was 88.5 percent occupied at the time of sale. The seller was not disclosed. Strawberry Fields owns 59 facilities in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Texas, Michigan, Tennessee, Kentucky and Oklahoma.
MONTGOMERY, ALA. — Love Funding, a subsidiary of Effingham, Ill.-based Midland States Bank Inc., has provided an $11.8 million loan for the conversion of an historic office building in downtown Montgomery into Historic Bell Lofts. The apartment community will offer 88 one- and two-bedroom units, as well as 4,478 square feet of commercial space. Constructed in 1907, the 12-story tower, formerly known as the Bell Building, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Holly Bray of Love Funding secured the funding through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 221(d)(4) loan insurance program, which is HUD’s flagship product for financing the construction and/or redevelopment of market-rate and affordable housing communities. The transaction was supported by federal historic tax credit equity from National Trust Community Investment Corp. and state historic tax credits purchased by First Partners Bank. Red Leaf Development LLC and MAL LP, in conjunction with WDG Construction and Development Services, are developing the property. Rosemann & Associates is designing the community.
TALLAHASSEE, FLA. — Arrimus Capital has purchased Forum at Tallahassee, a 264-unit student housing property located at 2525 W. Tennessee St. in Tallahassee, roughly one mile from Florida State University. Newport Beach, Calif.-based Arrimus Capital acquired the asset from Parkland Development for an undisclosed price. The transaction is Arrimus Capital’s second purchase from the Boca Raton, Fla.-based company. Constructed in 2014, Forum at Tallahassee offers fully furnished units with granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, wood plank flooring and in-unit washers and dryers. Community amenities include a clubhouse, two-story fitness center, business center, study lounges, swimming pool and an outdoor grilling station. The property qualifies as a certified green property through Fannie Mae’s Green Globes program. At the time of sale, the property was 99 percent occupied.
DULUTH, GA. — Forge Capital Partners has sold Duluth Station, a 94,966-square-foot shopping center located in the Atlanta suburb of Duluth, for $9.8 million. Publix anchors the center, which is 81 percent leased to tenants including Kumon Math & Reading, Great Clips, H&R Block, St. Vincent de Paul, Panda Garden and Grand Tire. Jim Hamilton, Richard Reid, Mike Allison and Brad Buchanan of HFF marketed the property on behalf of Forge Capital. Slate Retail REIT purchased the asset.
CANTON, GA. — Preferred Apartment Communities Inc. has acquired Woodmont Village, an 85,639-square-foot shopping center located 40 miles north of Atlanta in Canton. The Kroger-anchored asset was acquired through the company’s wholly owned subsidiary New Market Properties LLC, which used a non-recourse first mortgage acquisition loan from Protective Life Insurance Co. The seller and terms of the transaction were not disclosed.