FALLS CHURCH, VA. AND HAGERSTOWN, MD. — Retail Properties of America Inc. (RPAI) has acquired a two-property portfolio of shopping centers in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. corridor for a combined purchase price of $72.7 million. The Oak Brook, Ill.-based shopping center REIT purchased the 138,000-square-foot Merrifield Town Center II in Falls Church for $45.7 million and the 113,000-square-foot Shoppes at Hagerstown in Hagerstown for $27 million. RPAI owns both Merrifield Town Center I and II and plans to redevelop Merrifield II into a mixed-use project that will complement Merrifield I. Shoppes at Hagerstown was 93 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Best Buy, Party City, Dollar Tree, Five Below and Starbucks Coffee.
DURHAM, N.C. — Federal Capital Partners (FCP) has purchased the Venable Center, a three-property, 85,886-square-foot mixed-use campus located at 303 S. Roxboro St. in downtown Durham, for $18 million. The property comprises three restored tobacco mill office buildings that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The buildings include office, retail and lab space. Venable Center was 99 percent leased at the time to tenants including Precision Biosciences, which recently signed a long-term lease to extend and expand its space.
POMPANO BEACH AND LAUDERHILL, FLA. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sales of two shopping centers in Broward County totaling $14.2 million. The properties include the 74,575-square-foot Palm Plaza in Pompano Beach and the 66,103-square-foot Oakbrook Plaza in Lauderhill. Palm Plaza comprises two retail buildings, an Enterprise outparcel, a four-pump gas station and an industrial/flex building. Oakbrook Plaza is leased to a mix of local retailers and Dunkin’ Donuts. A partnership based in Plantation, Fla., purchased Palm Plaza for $7.5 million and Oakbrook Plaza for $6.7 million. Douglas Mandel of Marcus & Millichap represented the sellers in both transactions, and Adam Duncan and Joseph Thomas of Marcus & Millichap represented the buyer in the Palm Plaza transaction.
Economic indicators that support the retail market in Atlanta, like unemployment and the addition of non-farm payroll jobs, show positive signs that the sector has recovered from the economic downturn. Unemployment dropped to 6.1 percent in July 2015, compared with 7.6 percent a year earlier, and companies are showing no signs of slowing down on the hiring process. Non-farm payroll jobs in July reached 2.58 million, an increase of 85,000 jobs, or 3.4 percent, from a year ago. Atlanta’s vacancy rate continues to fall, dropping from 8.1 percent earlier this year to 7.9 percent in the second quarter, according to CoStar. While space is hard to come by, the good news is that some developments are popping up. In fact, during the second quarter, 12 buildings were completed totaling 208,524 square feet. Mixed-use projects featuring multifamily units are still active, particularly when a grocery store anchor is involved. Fuqua Development is building a six-acre project on Piedmont Road near Cheshire Bridge Road that will feature 300 apartment units, as well as 34,000 square feet of retail space. Sprouts Farmers Market will anchor the retail space with a 26,000-square-foot store. Fuqua Development also broke ground on Kennesaw Marketplace in June. Academy …
RICHMOND, VA. — Dominion Realty Partners LLC plans to develop a $93 million, 21-story mixed-use tower in downtown Richmond. The project, known as the 3Twenty-One Building, will feature 137,000 square feet of commercial space, 187 luxury apartments starting on the 10th floor and a 503-space parking structure. The commercial component will be known as The Locks at 3Twenty-One and the residential portion will be called The Residences at 3Twenty-One. The tower will be located at the intersection of 10th and Byrd streets along James River. SunTrust Bank has pre-leased 53,000 square feet of office space in the riverfront project. Paul Silver and Brian Berkey of Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer represented SunTrust in the lease deal, and Jeff Cooke of Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer represented Dominion. The Residences will feature a clubroom, rooftop pool and plaza. The project team includes architect JDavis Architects and general contractor Choate Construction. JDavis is aiming for the project to achieve LEED Platinum certification. Dominion will manage the mixed-use development on-site. The Raleigh-based developer has been involved in more than $250 million in development along James River in Richmond. Along with 3Twenty-One, Dominion’s other projects include Riverside on the James, The Residences at the …
Walker & Dunlop Arranges $68.2M Construction Loan for Seniors Housing Community in Palm Beach County
LAKE WORTH, FLA. — Walker & Dunlop Inc. has arranged a $68.2 million loan for the construction of Atria Villages of Windsor, a luxury independent living, assisted living and memory care community to be built in the Palm Beach County town of Lake Worth. Big Rock Partners, the borrower, is developing the community on a 22.5-acre site. When completed, the property will comprise 186 independent living units, 78 assisted living units and 54 memory care units. Big Rock, an investment firm with offices in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Delray Beach, Fla., plans to open the community in 2017.
BIRMINGHAM, ALA. — Berkadia has brokered the sales of four apartment communities in metro Birmingham totaling $66.3 million. The properties include the 323-unit Cliffs at Rocky Ridge in Hoover and a portfolio of three communities known as the BHM 3Core Portfolio. The three properties in the portfolio include the 241-unit Abbey at Wisteria Crest in Hoover, the 198-unit Abbey at Lakeshore in Birmingham and the 120-unit Abbey at Vestavia Falls in Vestavia. David Oakley and David Etchison of Berkadia’s Alabama office brokered the transactions.
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — W. P. Carey Inc. and its managed REIT CPA:17 – Global have acquired a 70,000-square-foot, newly constructed student residence hall on the campus of Jacksonville University for approximately $18 million. Completed in 2015, the four-story, three-wing North Hall serves as the primary housing option for all first-year students. The 274-bed residence hall is the first new freshman dormitory at the university since 1968 and incorporates high-tech amenities including fiber optic communications, enhanced performance wiring and cell phone range extenders. The hall is 100 percent occupied and part of the first stage of a multi-phase development plan for the riverfront property adjacent to the university. The seller was Rimrock Devlin Development, a developer based in Lake City, Fla. The triple-net lease has nearly 20 years remaining and includes fixed rental escalations.
MOBILE, ALA. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the $11.2 million sale of a 41,117-square-foot Walmart Neighborhood Market located at 1300 N. University Blvd. in Mobile. The store is situated less than two miles from the University of South Alabama and features a 20-year lease term with Walmart. Glen Kunofsky of Marcus & Millichap’s Manhattan office and Mike James of the firm’s Encino, Calif., office represented the seller, a major national developer, in the transaction. Eddie Greenhalgh of Marcus & Millichap’s Birmingham office is the firm’s broker of record in Alabama.
BOCA RATON AND FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — Ivy Realty has closed on the purchase of four Class A office buildings in Boca Raton and Fort Lauderdale. The properties include a 21-story office tower and attached six-story office building (Tower 101) in Fort Lauderdale and two office buildings in Boca Raton totaling 132,000 square feet. Ivy Realty purchased Tower 101 from Miami-based Banyan Street Capital for $56.3 million, according to the South Florida Business Journal. Tower 101 was 94 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Uniform Advantage, Quest Workspaces, KEMET, Puma and Thornton Tomasetti. The two Boca Raton properties are located within Meridian Office Center at 6551 and 6601 Park of Commerce Blvd. The two two-story properties are fully leased to LexisNexis (6601) and Cross Country Healthcare (6551). Ivy Realty purchased the assets from Blackrock for $27 million, according to the South Florida Business Journal.