The Raleigh-Durham office market has not only recovered from the Great Recession, it is solidly in expansion mode, and tenants are facing market conditions not witnessed in 15 years. The current cycle has been marked by a prolonged period of limited development activity. While job growth in the local market has been rebounding for more than five years, the construction pipeline has only recently filled in a meaningful way, and a large portion of the development activity in 2014 and early 2015 was driven by build-to-suits. With Class A vacancy now at a 15-year low, speculative development is heating up again. While projects totaling 1.4 million square feet were underway in the first quarter, most of this product will not be delivered until 2017 or later, and approximately half of the space has already been spoken for. In the near term, the market heavily favors landlords. The Triangle office market began 2016 with strong activity as tenants absorbed 453,997 square feet, driving vacancy down by 40 basis points to 12.1 percent. This figure is down by 180 basis points on a year-over-year basis and has fallen from a cyclical high of 18.7 percent. Class A vacancy ended the first quarter …
ARLINGTON, VA. — Forest City Realty Trust Inc. and Arlington County have formed a public-private partnership to transform Ballston Common Mall into a mixed-use retail destination known as Ballston Quarter. The Arlington County board unanimously approved the development agreement at a recent meeting. Located four miles outside of Washington, D.C., Ballston Quarter will feature open-air retail and restaurant space, 406-unit residential tower, pedestrian bridge spanning Wilson Boulevard, public plaza, parking garage upgrades and enhanced streetscapes. The public-private partnership plans to open Ballston Quarter and the pedestrian bridge in September 2018, with pre-leasing for the residential tower to begin in late 2018. In November 2015, Arlington County approved a letter of intent with Forest City to fund up to $55.5 million in public infrastructure costs related to the project.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Inland Real Estate Acquisitions Inc. has facilitated the purchase of Vanguard Northlake, a newly built, 204-unit apartment community located at 11010 Northlake Landing in Charlotte. Matthew Tice of Inland Real Estate Acquisitions facilitated the transaction on behalf of an Inland affiliate. According to the Charlotte Business Journal, an affiliate of Covington Realty Partners sold the asset to Inland for $31.7 million. Vanguard Northlake’s unit interiors include granite countertops, 9-foot ceilings, walk-in closets, TVs built into the master bathroom mirrors, washer and dryer units and private balconies or patios. Community amenities include an outdoor saltwater pool, fitness center, outdoor grilling kitchen, fireside lounge, sundeck with cabanas, dog park, bicycle storage and a business center. The property was 95 percent occupied at the time of sale.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Crosland Southeast and Childress Klein have purchased an 8.5-acre site on Providence Road in south Charlotte from Crescent Communities. The joint venture plans to develop several single-tenant and multi-tenant retail buildings on the site. The site is adjacent to the planned Crescent Providence Farm apartment development and in close proximity to Waverly, a master-planned project that Crosland Southeast and Childress Klein are co-developing. Crosland Southeast and Childress Klein are partnering with the Matthews family on the project.
LITTLE ROCK, ARK. — Orion Capital Partners has begun construction on Cornerstone Clinic for Women, a 43,000-square-foot medical office building situated on the Baptist Health campus in west Little Rock. General contractor Bailey Construction and Consulting plans to deliver the asset in late summer 2017. Cornerstone Clinic will occupy the first floor of the building, and the second floor is still available for lease. Dr. Orman Simmons and Dr. Douglas Smith, founding partners of the clinic, were on-hand at the groundbreaking ceremony for the clinic, which represents the first new construction on the Baptist Health campus since 1999.
NEW ORLEANS — Kennedy Funding Financial has closed a $1.5 million acquisition loan for a 40,000-square-foot lot in the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans. Fronting Charles Street and bounded by Mazant and Royal streets, the site houses a former seafood processing plant. The borrower, Pelican Royal LLC, plans to develop a 43-room, 32,000-square-foot hotel and hostel known as Stateside on the site. Slated to open in early 2018, Stateside will feature a laundromat, courtyard, pool, restaurant and bar and a coffee and juice shop.
RALEIGH, N.C. — CBRE has brokered the sale of Charter Square, a 243,106-square-foot, Class A office tower located at 555 Fayetteville St. in downtown Raleigh. Highwoods Properties Inc. purchased the building from the seller, a joint venture between Dominion Realty Partners and a global real estate investment manager. The sales price was undisclosed, but the Triangle Business Journal reports that Highwoods plans to invest $83.5 million in the acquisition, including $5.1 million in capital improvements. The office building opened in June 2015 and was certified LEED Platinum earlier this year. The office building was 70 percent leased at the time of sale to 14 tenants, including three ground-floor restaurants: b.good, Living Kitchen and The Haymaker.
WOODBRIDGE, VA. — The Greenwich Group International has arranged $73.8 million in construction financing for the development of Rivergate Phase I, a 402-unit, Class A residential apartment building to be developed along the Occoquan River in Woodbridge, a Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C. Peter Witham and Duke Fairchild led the Greenwich team representing the developer, The IDI Group Cos., in securing a $60.3 million senior construction loan and $13.5 million in subordinate mezzanine construction financing. John Moriarty & Associates, the general contractor, commenced construction on Aug. 1 and the property is scheduled to deliver and begin leasing in February 2018.
MIAMI BEACH, FLA. — The Finvarb Group plans to develop the Kimpton Hotel Palomar South Beach, a 96-room boutique hotel that will be located in Miami Beach’s South Beach district. Slated to open in 2018, Kimpton Hotel Palomar South Beach will feature a rooftop pool, fitness center and a restaurant overlooking the adjacent Collins Canal. Miami-based Kobi Karp designed the five-story hotel, which will be the eighth Kimpton hotel in Florida.
ADAIRSVILLE, GA. — Choate Construction has been selected to build a new inn and conference center at Barnsley Resort, a 3,300-acre resort at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Adairsville. Slated to open in the fall of 2017, the new additions will total 73,446 square feet. The three-story inn, known as The Inn at Barnsley Resort, will span 54 guestrooms and feature one boutique retailer. The conference center, known as the Georgian Hall Conference Center, will feature 10,500 square feet of indoor space, including the Savannah Ballroom, Augusta Room, Oglethorpe Room, Dalton Room and an estate lawn. The design team for the new additions includes architect Cooper Carry and interior designer Kent Interior Design.