JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — EJF Capital and Chance Partners will construct San Marco Crossing, a 486-unit multifamily community in Jacksonville’s San Marco neighborhood. The $86 million property is situated within an Opportunity Zone. Construction is expected to begin in the third quarter of this year with delivery slated for late 2020 or early 2021. Ameris Bank, with participation from Stifel Bank, is providing $51 million in construction financing. San Marco Crossing will be situated about three miles south of downtown Jacksonville. Jacksonville-based Oak Constructing will serve as the general contractor for the project.
DURHAM, N.C. — North Carolina Central University has chosen Corvias to develop two new student housing facilities totaling 1,247 beds and a 100,230-square-foot student center. The two residence halls will be called Chidley South and George Street. Both are being funded through a public-private partnership between the university and Corvias, and are expected to open in 2020. Vines Architecture is designing the residence halls in conjunction with the public-private partnership. Metcon is the general contractor. The $47 million student center is expected to be complete in 2021. Plans include a 1,750-seat auditorium and a 1,000-seat banquet hall, along with concessions and computer stations. O’Brien Atkins Associates, Duda | Paine Architects and MHTN Architects designed the student center. The general contractors are Balfour Beatty Construction, Holt Brothers Construction and Structure Building Co. Funds for the student center were generated by a $300 annual student fee approved by the student body in 2014.
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — Big V Property Group has acquired Promenade at Northwoods, a 322,428-square-foot shopping center in North Charleston. Hobby Lobby, Gander Outdoors and Ollie’s Bargain Outlet anchor the center, which was 85 percent leased at the time of sale. Other tenants include Boot Barn, Party City, Crunch Fitness, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Landmark Financial and Once Upon a Child. Promenade at Northwoods is located off Interstate 26, across from Northwoods Mall and 15 miles north of downtown Charleston. The seller and sales price were not disclosed.
GREENSBORO, N.C. — McConnell Center Associates has sold a three-building industrial portfolio in Greensboro for $49.3 million. The buildings total 670,536 square feet and are located at 4751, 4755 and 4754 McConnell Center Drive within McConnell Center, a master-planned industrial park totaling more than 1 million square feet. The property is situated six miles east of downtown Greensboro and 20 miles from Piedmont Triad International Airport. New York Life Insurance Co. acquired the portfolio. Patrick Nally and Chris Norvell of HFF and Tom Townes and John Schultz of Triad Commercial represented the seller in the transaction.
WILDEWOOD, S.C. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $35 million sale of Wildewood Downs, a 248-unit seniors housing community in Wildewood. Wildewood Downs was developed between 2000 and 2014 and comprises 76 independent living homes, 60 independent living apartments, 40 assisted living units, eight memory care units and a 64-bed skilled nursing facility with an 80-bed licensed capacity. The property is located 13 miles north of downtown Columbia on 38 acres. David Kliewer, Paul Carr and Allen McMurtry of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, an affiliate of The Hollinger Group, in the transaction. Senior Living Communities (SLC) acquired the asset for $141,129 per unit using debt financing from a publicly traded REIT.
Birmingham’s retail market continued to see positive growth in 2018, and it’s safe to argue this is largely due to a significant amount of retail space being backfilled with entertainment, discount, medical and first-to-market tenants that otherwise may not have been able to enter the market. Dave & Buster’s backfilling a Forever 21 space at the Riverchase Galleria, Urban Air leasing a former hhgregg box in Trussville, Ollie’s acquiring the former Toys ‘R’ Us box in Hoover and Floor & Décor backfilling the former Kmart in Homewood are just a few recent examples of this in Birmingham. Two additional noteworthy deals that have been recently announced include REI opening its first Birmingham location in a portion of the former Toys ‘R’ Us box at The Summit and the Dick’s Sporting Goods/Golf Galaxy combo store moving into the soon-to-be former Academy Sports + Outdoors space at Lee Branch. The new combo store will be Golf Galaxy’s first location in Alabama. These two deals alone all but confirm this backfilling trend is going to continue for some time. More often than not, you will find these new tenants are paying higher rents, driving larger traffic volumes and generating more sales tax income …
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE: RLJ), a Maryland-based hospitality REIT, has sold Kingston Resorts, comprising the Hilton Myrtle Beach Resort and Embassy Suites by Hilton Myrtle Beach Oceanfront Resort, for $156 million. The properties span 385 rooms and 255 rooms, respectively. The sales price equates to $244,000 per room at a capitalization rate of 6.7 percent, inclusive of $44.5 million in capital expenditures. The buyer was privately held real estate firm EOS Investors LLC, which describes the 160-acre property as “the largest and most comprehensive oceanfront conference venue between Atlantic City, New Jersey, and West Palm Beach, Florida.” The buyer notes that the acquisition includes over 1,600 residential condominiums and townhomes in addition to the hotels. The two Hilton-operated hotels offer an array of amenities, including pools, tennis courts, fitness centers, spas, business centers, bike rental services and onsite restaurants and bars. Guest rooms feature private balconies, and suites with kitchen and living areas are available. The properties also feature over 100,000 square feet of event space. Hilton will continue to operate the assets following the sale. “This transaction is a continuation of our strategic efforts to sell non-core hotels and recycle capital into more accretive opportunities …
ORLANDO, FLA. — Urban Commons has completed the renovation and rebranding of the former Nickelodeon Suites Resort in Orlando into the Holiday Inn Resort Orlando Suites and Waterpark. The $27.5 million renovation took three years to complete. Urban Commons updated the 777 guest rooms, the lobby, café, lounge, meeting rooms and restrooms, which included renovations with new finishes, fixtures, furniture and other interiors, along with enhancing the waterpark with new pool surfacing, cabanas, outdoor furniture and a designated yoga area. Club Candy, a colorful sweet escape featuring treats and drinks; The Hideaway Lounge, a full-service bar offering appetizers and snacks; Hershey’s Ice Cream, a parlor serving hand-dipped ice cream and fresh-brewed coffee; and a Subway were added, bringing the total of food and beverage outlets within the hotel to eight. The Lagoon Waterpark is in the center of the resort and offers a splash zone, kids’ play area, a four-story water tower, a 400-gallon water dump tank, interactive water toys, climbing nets and water jets, two whirlpools, a basketball court and a nine-hole miniature golf course.
NEW BROCKTON, ALA. — Ben E. Keith Foods will develop a new 425,000-square-foot distribution center in New Brockton. The facility will be designed to accommodate future expansion up to 1 million square feet. The project will create 80 jobs for the next five years in addition to the more than 230 individuals the company already employs through its distribution center and manufacturing facility in neighboring Elba, Ala. Construction for the project is expected to begin by December 2019 with a completion date by December 2021.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based Greystone has provided a $125.2 million refinancing loan for a four-property multifamily portfolio in Kentucky and Pennsylvania. The Fannie Mae financing features a 12-year term, 30-year amortization and six years of interest-only payments. The loan also includes a new ownership structure, with Nick Kozul of Bayshore Properties taking a 50 percent stake in the portfolio from current owner, Angie Djurin of North Street Properties. The four properties are the 470-unit Ventana Hills Apartments in Corapolis, Pa.; the 252-unit Berkeley Manor Apartments in Cranberry Township, Pa.; the 409-unit WoodSpring Apartments in Florence, Ky.; and the 252-unit Colts Run Apartments in Lexington, Ky.