WASHINGTON, D.C. — Wells Fargo has provided $385 million in financing for a 1,255-unit, three-property multifamily portfolio in metro Washington, D.C. The borrower, JBG Smith, received the three separate Freddie Mac loans. The properties in the portfolio are The Bartlett and 220 20th Street in Northern Virginia’s National Landing submarket and 1221 Van St. in D.C. JBG Smith developed 1221 Van Street in 2018 and acquired the other two properties in 2017. The Bethesda, Md.-based company manages all three communities. The loans each feature 10-year terms with floating interest rates underwritten at LIBOR plus 251 basis points. Each loan also features five-year interest-only payment period and are not cross-collateralized or cross-defaulted with each other.
Virginia
WOODBRIDGE, VA. — FCP has sold Potomac Vista Apartments, a 408-unit multifamily community in Woodbridge. Jair Lynch Realty Partners and Nuveen acquired the property for $81.5 million. The community offers one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans. Communal amenities include a fitness center, pool, playground, business center and a clubhouse. The three-story property was originally built in 1987. FCP acquired Potomac Vista in August 2016. The community is located at 14101 Kristin Court, 25 miles southwest of downtown Washington, D.C. Brian Crivella, Walter Coker and Robert Jenkins of JLL represented the seller in the transaction.
ARLINGTON, VA. — CBRE has arranged a $161.5 million Freddie Mac loan for the refinancing of Crystal House, an 825-unit apartment community in Arlington, just south of Washington, D.C. Crystal House is located in the Crystal City neighborhood near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and the site of Amazon’s future second headquarters. The property was originally built in 1965 and renovated in 2017. Crystal House offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units that are furnished with stainless steel appliances, hardwood-style flooring, granite breakfast bars and walk-in closets. Select units also feature private balconies. Communal amenities include two rooftop decks with lounge seating, TVs and fireplaces, a clubhouse with billiards and a cyber lounge, pool with cabanas and a sundeck, fitness center, convenience store and outdoor picnic areas. The property also offers valet dry cleaning and 24-hour concierge services. Michael Sherman, Irene Lu, Michael Riccio, Susan Larkin and Anna Pfau of CBRE originated the loan. The borrower was a partnership between Roseland Residential Trust, which is a subsidiary of New Jersey-based REIT Mack-Cali Corp., and an investment fund advised by UBS Realty Investors LLC. “This is among the largest multifamily refinancings to occur completely during the COVID crisis, as lenders have …
CHRISTIANSBURG, VA. — A group of developers will build a new prototype of the specialty grocer in Christiansburg. Walt Rector, founding principal of Flagstaff, Ariz.-based Bromont Investments, and investment partner Chris Carlsen, are leading the development of the Earth Fare, which will be located within Christiansburg Marketplace. The new store will feature a smaller footprint than previous Earth Fare stores. Fletcher, N.C.-based Earth Fare closed all of its 46 stores and filed for bankruptcy in February. Randy Talley, cofounder of the original Earth Fare, and Dennis Hulsing, an Asheville, N.C.-based investor, teamed up to acquire shuttered Earth Fare locations in mid-April, as well as the grocer’s trade name. The Christiansburg location is slated to open in spring 2021. The investors have also recently reopened closed Earth Fare stores in Roanoke, Va.; and Asheville and Boone, N.C. Other tenants at Marketplace at Christianburg include AspenDental, Chipotle, Elegant Nails, Harbor Freight, Mission BBQ, Orangetheory Fitness, Sandros, Skyline Bank, Starbucks and Verizon.
RICHMOND, VA. — Richmond-based Direct Mail Solutions has acquired a 229,829-square-foot industrial building in Richmond for $9.4 million. The property features ESFR sprinklers and 38-foot clear heights. The property spans 23.8 acres and is located at 4650 Oakleys Lane, seven miles east of downtown Richmond. Cliff Porter and Robert Porter III of Porter Realty Co. Inc. represented the seller, 4650 Oakleys Lane LLC, in the transaction.
ARLINGTON, VA. — Construction employment increased in 329 metros across the country between April and May, according to a survey conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). The Arlington-based organization tracks 358 metros across the country. The Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash., area led the way, adding 28,600 jobs, or a 44 percent uptick, as COVID-19 restrictions eased nationwide. New York City added 25,000 jobs (31 percent) and Pittsburgh added 22,000 (60 percent). The AGC notes that many of the construction workers added will work on highways and bridges.
Divaris Arranges Sale of 310,745 SF Office Building Housing Norfolk Southern’s Headquarters
by Alex Tostado
NORFOLK, VA. — Divaris Real Estate has arranged the sale of the Arnold B. McKinnon Norfolk Southern headquarters, a 310,745-square-foot office building in downtown Norfolk. The building has been home to Norfolk Southern Railroad’s headquarters since 1988. The company will finish out its lease, which has 18 months remaining, then move to Midtown Atlanta. A joint venture between TowneBank and Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughter (CHKD) acquired the 22-story tower for an undisclosed price from Norfolk Southern. As part of the acquisition, the buyers also purchased the Commercial Place Garage, a 744-space parking garage connected to the tower via skybridge. The parking garage features retailers on the ground level. TowneBank and CHKD will each occupy 10 stories, with CHKD bringing over 475 employees and TowneBank relocating 400. TowneBank has hired WM Jordan as the general contractor to renovate the bank’s future home, on floors that Norfolk Southern is not currently occupying. Creative Development Partners will manage the renovations. Gerald Divaris, Michael Divaris and Jason Oliver of Divaris Real Estate represented the buyers in the transaction. Gayle Bartlett of Divaris Property Management Corp. will continue to manage the building, as well as the parking garage and retail on the first …
NORFOLK, VA. — Berkadia has negotiated the $17 million sale of Brittney Place, a 148-unit apartment complex in Norfolk. The property offers two-bedroom floor plans. Brittney Place, which was originally built in 1985, is situated at 6143 Edward St., six miles north of downtown Norfolk. Alan Meetze and David Hudgins of Berkadia represented the seller, Virginia-based Affordable Housing Corp. The buyer was Virginia-based 6143 Edward Street LLC.
Aligned Energy Breaks Ground on 513,000 SF Data Center Extension in Northern Virginia
by Alex Tostado
ASHBURN, VA. — Aligned Energy has broken ground on a 513,000-square-foot extension of its hyperscale data center in Ashburn. Phase I, which was completed in 2019, comprises 370,000 square feet and has a 60-megawatt capacity. Upon completion of Phase II, the data center’s capacity will double to have 120-megawatt capacity. Upon full buildout, the data center will have 180-megawatt capacity and span 1 million square feet. Aligned Energy expects to deliver Phase II by the end of 2020. The facility is located at 21890 Uunet Drive, 30 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C. The colocation property offers access to more than 50 carriers in the region. Plano, Texas-based Aligned Energy has data centers in Ashburn, Phoenix, Dallas and Salt Lake City that offer innovative, sustainable and adaptable colocation and build-to-scale solutions for cloud, enterprise, and managed service providers.
Phillips Realty Capital Arranges $29M Acquisition Loan for Office Building in Northern Virginia
by Alex Tostado
RESTON, VA. — Phillips Realty Capital has arranged a $29 million acquisition loan for Reston Metro Center One, a 124,076-square-foot office building in Reston. The property is located at 12120 Sunrise Valley Drive, which is within walking distance of the planned Reston Town Center Silver Line Metrorail Station and 22 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C. The asset was built in 2000 and its amenities include a lounge area and a fitness center. The building was vacant at the time of sale. Malcolm Shaw, Steve Shaw, Harmon Handorf and Bill Wrench of Phillips Realty arranged the loan on behalf of the borrower, HighBrook Investors. Rubenstein Mortgage Capital, the debt investment platform of Rubenstein Partners LP, provided the floating-rate loan. The seller was not disclosed.