Southeast

Retail properties in Miami-Dade County recorded negative net absorption in the first quarter as accumulating job losses stymied retail spending and forced merchants to vacate the market. Additional increases in vacancy are expected through the end of 2009 as more tenants close and others reduce planned store openings. Higher vacancy will induce a further decline in rents, which dropped for the second successive quarter in the first 3 months of this year, and a slowdown in new store openings will undermine support for marketwide rent growth in the months ahead. In addition, tenants seem to be gaining the upper hand in negotiations on lease extensions or renewals. As a result, concessions will rise over the remainder of the year as owners attempt to retain traffic-generating merchants. While the demand side is decidedly weaker than it has been recently, a decrease in construction will mitigate the extent of the projected rise in vacancy and set the stage for a steady recovery in property fundamentals. A look at the numbers indicates that employment in Dade County will decrease by 43,000 jobs (4.2 percent) in 2009, compared with a loss of 36,400 positions last year. Due to the decline in employment, retail spending …

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MIAMI – Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Pasquale Kuritzky Architecture will provide architectural services for a 12,000-square-foot renovation and expansion of CAC-Florida Westchester, a Miami medical office building owned by CAC-Florida Medical Centers. The two-story property, located at 8686 N.W. 24th St., will undergo a complete interior renovation, and new office spaces will be added on the ground floor. The interior will also feature main and secondary waiting areas, triage areas, an X-ray section, administrative offices and lounges. Construction will begin in August with completion set for spring 2010.

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HILLIARD, FLA. — The Nassau County School District has completed the renovation and expansion of its 32,700-square-foot Hilliard Middle-Senior High School, located at One Flashes Ave. in Hilliard. The school’s campus is centered around a two-story school house constructed in 1912. The $4.7 million project included renovating the original building, adding a locker room to the property and converting classrooms into an administration building. Jacksonville, Fla.-based SchenkelShultz Architecture designed the project.

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KISSIMMEE, FLA. — Village at Secret Lake LP has borrowed $47.21 million for the planned 432-unit Village at Secret Lake apartment complex in Kissimmee. The property will be comprised of 12 four-story buildings and features a resort-style pool. The 40-year loan comes with a 6.25 percent interest rate and a 40-year amortization. Carolyn Whatley of Love Funding’s Palm Beach, Fla., office secured the HUD loan.

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HAPEVILLE, GA. — Imagine Downtown, an affiliate of Atlanta Development Authority and Central Atlanta Progress, has loaned $6 million to Jacoby Development for its 6.5 million-square-foot Aerotropolis Atlanta mixed-use development. The project will be located at the former Ford Atlanta Assembly Plant in Hapeville, near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. IDI’s loan will go toward the development’s $96 million first phase, which consists of demolition of existing buildings, environmental remediation of the site and a 4,000-space parking lot. IDI provided the loan through its $30 million of tax credit authority, part of an $80 million New Market Tax Credits allocation from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

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NEW BERN, N.C. — Augusta, Ga.-based Hull Storey Gibson Cos. has completed a renovation of its 361,000-square-foot Twin River Mall, now known as The New Bern Mall. The property is located at the intersection of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and U.S. Highway 70 in New Bern. Exterior work included a new mall entrance with enhanced signage. Workers added new paint, carpet and tile to the interior as well as raising the ceiling and upgrading the bathrooms.

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OOLTEWAH, TENN. — GVH Duff Associates has sold a single-tenant property net-leased to BB&T to Arden Square for $1.46 million. BB&T’s 20-year lease of the Ooltewah property includes 12.5 percent rent increases every 5 years. Mark Taylor and Dean Zang of Marcus & Millichap’s Philadelphia office represented the seller. Stanton Falk of the firm’s Cincinnati office represented Arden Square.

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