PETAL, MISS. — The Woodmont Co. has broken ground on a new retail strip center spanning nearly 5,000 square feet in Petal, a suburb of Hattiesburg, Miss. Located at 1098 Evelyn Gandy Parkway, the property will house a Starbucks and T-Mobile. The retail center represents Woodmont’s fourth development with Starbucks and first with T-Mobile. Jackson Longley of Woodmont worked to arrange financing through Embree Capital, and Jack Mock of Woodmont represented the developer in the lease negotiations with the national credit tenants. Tony Oswalt with Advanced Building Specialties Inc. will serve as the project’s general contractor. Woodmont plans to open the center in spring 2024.
GREENWOOD, S.C. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $10.8 million sale of Westwood Plaza, an 83,354-square-foot shopping center located at 512 Bypass 72 NW in Greenwood. Planet Fitness, Dollar Tree, Bath & Body Works and pOpshelf anchor the center, which is shadow-anchored by Walmart. Five of the center’s 12 tenants have occupied Westwood Plaza for more than 20 years. Margaret Jones and Lane Breedlove of Cushman & Wakefield represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. Prudent Growth Partners acquired the property.
STARKVILLE, MISS. — BWE has originated a $10.6 million HUD 221(d)(4) loan for the rehabilitation of Brookville Gardens Apartments, a 120-unit affordable housing community in Starkville. All units are reserved for residents earning up to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI) and are covered by Section 8 project-based vouchers. The borrower, Triangle Development Co., plans to use the funds to add dishwashers, garbage disposals, microwaves and vinyl plank flooring to each unit. Jon Killough of BWE’s Alabama office and John Roberts of BWE’s Dallas office originated the HUD-insured loan. Triangle Development’s recapitalization of Brookville Gardens also includes short-term, tax-exempt bonds and new 4 percent Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) secured through the Mississippi Home Corp.
SHREVEPORT, LA. — Los Angeles-based Industrial Realty Group (IRG) has signed offshore drilling giant Schlumberger Ltd. to a 1 million-square-foot industrial lease in Shreveport. The tenant will join Hyundai Glovis, Pratt Paper and Thyssenkrupp Supply Chain Services at the 3.5 million-square-foot Shreveport Business Park. Schlumberger will occupy a portion of two buildings and utilize the site for high-tech manufacturing. The company’s $18.5 million investment is expected to create 596 new direct jobs, and Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in an additional 749 new indirect jobs.
HOPKINSVILLE, KY. — Oakley Group has acquired Griffin Gate, an 80-unit apartment community located at 300 Griffin Gate Drive in Hopkinsville, a suburb of Clarksville, Tenn. The Birmingham, Ala.-based investment firm purchased the asset from a Georgia-based entity doing business as Griffin Gate HKY LLP for $10.8 million. Tyler Mayo of Cushman & Wakefield’s Sunbelt Multifamily Advisory Group brokered the transaction. Chad Hagwood and Brandon Pate of Lument’s Birmingham office originated a 10-year, fixed-rate Fannie Mae on behalf of Oakley Group. Situated on more than 16 acres, Griffin Gate is a two-story property that features a clubhouse, pool, dog park, walking trail and ample green space. Oakley Group plans to make capital improvements to the property and has retained NextGen Management as property manager.
MEMPHIS, TENN. — Northmarq has arranged a $10.7 million refinancing loan for two affordable housing properties in Memphis. The communities, Bantam-Airways and Bantam-Springbrook, are situated near each other and total 291 units. The properties were both built in 1973 and renovated in 2022. Mike Padilla and Dan Trebil of Northmarq’s Minneapolis office arranged the Freddie Mac loan, which features five years of interest-only payments followed by a 35-year amortization schedule.
LAGRANGE, GA. — Don McMinn of Marcus & Millichap’s Taylor McMinn Retail Group has brokered the $3.3 million sale of a newly constructed restaurant in LaGrange that is ground-leased to Chick-fil-A for 15 years. Located at 2110 Vernon St. on a 1.5-acre lot, the nearly 5,000-square-foot building is a relocation of a former Chick-fil-A and serves as an outparcel to a new Publix-anchored shopping center that Taylor McMinn Retail Group will be marketing. An unnamed, out-of-state private investor purchased the restaurant at list price within 30 days of listing with all-cash, according to McMinn, who represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. “Pricing for quality net-lease retail continues to receive strong demand and command attractive pricing in spite of the rising interest rate environment,” says McMinn.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Census Bureau reports that overall retail sales in June rose 0.2 percent from May and 1.5 percent from June 2022. Barron’s and other media outlets are reporting that economists had previously forecasted that June sales would grow 0.6 percent from May. The Wall Street Journal reports that the retail sector’s three consecutive months of positive sales activity can be attributed, in part, to inflation easing. The Consumer Price Index, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ leading indicator for inflation, rose at an annualized rate of 3 percent in June, the lowest figure since March 2021. The National Retail Federation (NRF), a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy organization for the retail industry, expects the momentum to carry into July as consumers shop for back-to-school items. “Back-to-class spending is one of the most important shopping occasions of the year, and NRF’s consumer research shows that back-to-school and college spending is expected to set new records,” says Matthew Shay, president and CEO of NRF. “Consumers are looking for the best value and deals, and retailers are well-stocked with essential items for families and students.” The NRF’s own calculation of retail sales excludes automobile dealers, gas stations and restaurants in order …
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — The NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars have opened the Miller Electric Center, a $120 million practice facility in downtown Jacksonville. The 125,000-square-foot facility comprises an indoor practice field, offices, locker rooms, a draft room, shaded viewing area, concessions, team retail store and medical facilities. The Miller Electric Center is a public-private partnership between the Jaguars and the City of Jacksonville. The city also owns TIAA Bank Field, the Jaguars’ home stadium that is in the planning stages for a roughly $1 billion overhaul. The city and Jaguars owner Shad Khan would share the expense if they can reach an agreement on the stadium and accompanying extension of the team’s lease, according to The Florida Times-Union. The Jaguars organization plans to begin its training camp at the new practice facility Wednesday, July 26. The team hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Miller Electric Center yesterday that featured Khan, along with newly inaugurated Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan, Jaguars president Mark Lamping and Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson, among others. Stadium of the Future In June, the Jaguars unveiled conceptual designs for its “Stadium of the Future,” a design project nearly three years in the making intended to spark a transformation of the city’s …
The U.S. economic picture is an opaque one for lenders and borrowers alike as inflationary pressures persist and the massive swings in interest rates are still working their way through the economy. At its May meeting, the Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) raised the federal funds rate for a 10th consecutive time to a target range of 5 to 5.25 percent. The fed funds rate is the interest rate that U.S. banks charge each other to lend funds overnight. This time a year ago, the short-term benchmark rate was at a range of 0.75 percent to 1 percent. Raising the feds fund rate is the primary way that the Federal Reserve combats inflation, which was at a 3 percent annual rate in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI is at its lowest level in more than two years, which is generally viewed as a positive sign for economic stability, though the June figure is 100 basis points more than the Fed’s target inflation goal of 2 percent. Jason Scott, managing director and head of conventional loan production at Regions Bank, estimates that it can take six to eight months for each interest …