KNOXVILLE, TENN. — Mallory & Evans Development and its property management company Caliber Living will open Flagship Kerns, a two-building, 310-unit co-living project in Knoxville. Leases will start at three months and prospective tenants can lease by the unit or the bedroom. Co-living properties are designed as affordable housing options for renters seeking flexible leasing arrangements and shared common areas with other residents. Flagship Kerns’ units will include granite countertops, walk-in closets, stainless steel appliances, in-unit washers and dryers, smart home units with smart locks, smart TVs and Ecobee thermostats. Communal amenities will include a pool, 24-hour fitness center, work/study pods and a conference area. Atlanta-based Mallory & Evans expects to open the community in January. Flagship Kerns will mark Phase I of three to open at the historic Kern’s Bakery. The other phases will comprise a 75,000 square-foot redevelopment of Kern’s Bakery to include a food hall, retail and office spaces, event venues and a brand-name hotel. Kern’s Bakery was originally built in 1929 and has been added to the National Register of Historic Places.
WAKE FOREST AND CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Wegmans will open two new grocery stores in 2021 in Wake Forest and Chapel Hill. The New York-based grocer plans to add 500 full-time jobs and nearly 900 total jobs at the two stores. The store in Wake Forest will span 104,000 square feet and will house 200 full-time employees. The property, located at 11051 Ligon Mill Road, is expected to open in May. The asset in Chapel Hill is expected to open in late February and will house 300 full-time jobs. The store will span 99,000 square feet and is situated at 1810 Fordham Blvd. Also, in North Carolina, a Wegmans in Cary recently sold for $34.9 million.
CARY, N.C. — Hines and Columbia Development have broken ground on Fenton, a 69-acre mixed-use project in Cary that is expected to be complete in spring 2022. In addition to the groundbreaking, the developers also announced that Arhaus has preleased 17,974 square feet at Fenton. The retail portion is now 73 percent preleased and includes other retailers such as Wegmans, CMX CineBistro, Sephora, Free People and Bailey’s Fine Jewelry. Fenton is located at the intersection of Interstate 40 and Cary Towne Boulevard, three miles from downtown Cary and eight miles southwest of downtown Raleigh. At full buildout, the property will include approximately 345,000 square feet of retail and entertainment space, 170,000 square feet of office space, The Canopy at Fenton and a 175-room boutique hotel.
BOWLING GREEN, KY. — Georgia-Pacific, a manufacturer of paper and wood products, has opened a $100 million Dixie manufacturing facility in Bowling Green. Georgia-Pacific began the expansion in 2019. The project included adding an 80,000-square-foot operations building, a new industrial printer and additional plate-forming presses. More than 70 full-time jobs were added due to the expansion, bringing the number of employees at the plant to more than 200. The plant was originally built in 1991. The facility accounts for approximately 25 percent of all paper plates and bowls that Georgia-Pacific produces. The Atlanta-based company also operates a plant in Lexington, Ky.
ATLANTA — The Home Depot (NYSE: HD) has reported that its third-quarter sales reached $33.5 billion, a 23.2 percent increase over third-quarter sales for 2019. Net earnings for the third quarter were $3.4 billion, or $3.18 per diluted share, compared with net earnings of $2.8 billion, or $2.53 per diluted share, in the same fiscal period of 2019. The Atlanta-based retailer’s third quarter ended on Oct. 31. Chairman and CEO Craig Menear cited demand for home improvement projects in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic as a steady driver for increased sales. Menear says sales have reached $15 billion through the first nine months of the company’s fiscal year. As of the end of its third quarter, Home Depot operated 1,986 stores in the United States and territories. In addition to reporting third-quarter earnings, The Home Depot also announced it will invest $1 billion in permanent compensation for hourly associates. Throughout the pandemic, the company has taken actions to support its employees, including temporary weekly bonuses and offering extended paid time off. The Home Depot’s stock price closed Monday at $279.96 per share, up from $238.85 a year ago.
ATLANTA — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged an $89.7 million refinancing loan for Resurgens Plaza, a 26-story, 402,929-square-foot office tower in Atlanta’s Buckhead District. The property is 88 percent leased to 21 tenants. The borrower and landlord, a joint venture between Zeller Realty Group and Partners Group, acquired the asset in late 2017. The owners implemented an $8.2 million capital improvement program to enhance the elevators and conference spaces, add a rooftop deck and renovate the lobby. Other amenities include bike storage, a 6,000-square-foot fitness center, game lounge and a bistro. Aareal Capital Corp. provided the loan. Specific loan terms were not disclosed.
BENTONVILLE, ARK. — Walmart (NYSE: WMT) has reported that its third-quarter e-commerce sales grew 79 percent from the same period a year ago. Comparable sales, defined as those from stores that operated during the entire 12-month fiscal year, went up 6.4 percent. The Bentonville-based retailer’s revenue during its fiscal third quarter reached $134.7 billion, a 5.2 percent increase over the same time period a year ago. Walmart’s third quarter ended on Oct. 31. The company’s stock price closed Monday at $152.69 per share, up from $120.25 per share one year ago.
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Affordable Housing Sector is a Seller’s Market as New Buyers Enter the Fray, Says Exclusive Webinar Panel
Like many industries, the U.S. affordable housing sector has undergone a sea change stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Processes and protocols have changed for affordable housing professionals, some perhaps permanently. Closings are conducted virtually and some of the front-end work such as appraisals and subsidy applications look completely different than a year ago. The “new normal” that industry professionals are navigating has had a few stops and starts since March, but the sector is now in a place of relative comfort, and that’s led to investment sales picking up, according to Kevin Morris, senior director of Colliers International’s Affordable Housing Services team. “By trial and error, we’ve had to figure out systems and programs to do business,” said Morris, who is based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. “We’ve gone through these couple of stages, and now we’re at a point where we can implement and have implemented systems and programs that will take us through this particular pandemic. We’re transacting now, and so in that regard it is kind of back to normal.” Morris was one of six panelists that comprised the broker and lender panel at Affordable Housing Southeast, a webinar hosted by Southeast Real Estate Business magazine. Kyle Shoemaker, …
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Berkadia has provided a $250 million Freddie Mac loan for the refinancing of Meridian at Mt. Vernon Triangle, a 783-unit apartment complex in Washington, D.C. The loan features 10 years of interest-only payments. The property offers studio, one- and two-bedroom floor plans, which feature full-size washers and dryers. Communal amenities include underground parking, a fitness center, rooftop pool with sundeck, outdoor lounge and a grilling area. The 14-story community is located at 425 L St. NW, one mile east of downtown D.C. J. Tyler Blue and Paul Wallace of Berkadia originated the loan on behalf of the undisclosed borrower.
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Michelin North America will invest $100 million in equipment and manufacturing over the next seven years in Greenville. Michelin North America has been headquartered in Greenville since 1985. The France-based tire company employs 9,700 workers in South Carolina, with more than 4,300 of those jobs in Greenville County. As part of the investment agreement with the County, Michelin will continue to pay a set fee rather than taxes for an additional five years. Since opening its first manufacturing facilities in Greenville in 1975, Michelin has invested more than $1 billion in Greenville County, according to County officials.