Top Stories

Altana-Glendale-CA

GLENDALE, CALIF. — Waterford Property Co., in partnership with the California Statewide Communities Development Authority (CSCDA), has purchased Altana, an apartment community located at 633 N. Central Ave. in Glendale, for $300 million. The partnership plans to convert the 507-unit property to workforce housing. Upon taking ownership, Waterford and CSCDA will immediately lower rents for qualified new residents making 80 percent to 120 percent of the area median income (AMI) in Los Angeles County. Current tenants who qualify can participate in the program during lease renewals. The AMI for Los Angeles County is $52,574 annually, which translates to roughly $4,381 per month. To be considered affordable, a household would need to spend less than 30 percent of its monthly income on rent. For Los Angeles County and Glendale, this means that rents equal to or less than $1,314.30 per month are deemed affordable for households earning 100 percent of AMI. Rental rates at Altana currently range from $2,235 per month for a one-bedroom unit to $4,340 for a two-bedroom apartment and loft layout, according to the property website. In partnership with CSCDA, Waterford has now acquired four multifamily communities in California since the start of the year as part of …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Apple-Austin

CUPERTINO, CALIF. — Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) will open a $1 billion office campus in North Carolina’s Research Triangle, a move that is expected to add more than 3,000 new jobs to the local economy. The move is part of a larger, $430 billion expansion and capital investment program that the Cupertino-based tech giant projects will bring about 20,000 new jobs to the country over the next five years. According to the Raleigh News & Observer, North Carolina’s Economic Investment Committee, for its part, approved a job creation and tax incentives plan for Apple that was valued at $845 million over 40 years, the largest such grant in state history. The local newspaper also reports that the campus will span about 1 million square feet and will be located in Wake County on a site near the border of Cary and Morrisville, two smaller towns on the south side of the triangle. A construction timeline has not yet been released. As part of its commitment to the Tar Heel State, Apple plans to launch a $100 million fund to support local schools and invest $110 million in improving pieces of local infrastructure, such as bridges and telecommunications systems. The new …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Stop and Shop Portfolio

QUINCY, MASS. — JLL Capital Markets has arranged the $295 million sale of a portfolio of 11 single-tenant retail buildings net leased on a long-term basis to Stop & Shop in markets throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. JLL marketed the portfolio on behalf of the sellers, Winstanley Enterprises and Surrey Equities. The Inland Real Estate Group of Cos. Inc. was the buyer. Additionally, JLL arranged two acquisition loans totaling approximately $158 million on behalf of the new owner. The two 10-year, fixed-rate loans were originated by JLL through a life insurance company and a CMBS lender. The 11 buildings in the portfolio are all net leased to Stop & Shop, a division of Ahold Delhaize USA Inc., which is the third-largest supermarket operator in the U.S. Quincy, Mass.-based Stop & Shop is the No. 1 grocer by market share in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, according to JLL. The 748,141-square-foot portfolio includes three properties in the Boston area; one in the Cape Cod, Mass. area; four in the Providence, R.I. area; and three in the Hartford, Connecticut area. According to a JLL research report, titled “U.S. Grocery Tracker 2021,” grocery-anchored retail centers continue to be investors’ preferred retail property …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Signia-Atlanta

ATLANTA — A joint venture between Skanska and SG Contracting Inc. has been selected to build a $308.3 million Hilton (NYSE: HLT) hotel adjacent to the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) in downtown Atlanta.  The 1.2 million-square-foot hotel will be the first newly constructed project under Hilton’s upscale Signia banner, and will act as a headquarters hotel for the GWCC. The property will overlook the Mercedes-Benz Stadium and is located near the Omni Atlanta Hotel, CNN Center, State Farm Arena and the Georgia Aquarium. The 40-story hotel is set to feature 975 guest rooms alongside amenities including 75,000 square feet of world-class meeting and event space; a connected walkway to the GWCC; spa; fitness center; 6,670-square-foot pool deck; an outdoor event lawn; a market; two chef-driven restaurants; and three bars.  “The Signia by Hilton will further elevate Atlanta’s international presence and position as a major host of civic, cultural and commercial events,” says Scott Cannon, executive vice president and general manager for Skanska’s Georgia and South Carolina operations.  Skanska and SG Contracting will provide pre-construction and construction management services for the hotel, which Gensler designed to achieve LEED Gold certification. The development, which Cannon says will generate approximately 600 construction jobs, is …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

SHORT HILLS, N.J. — The Birch Group has acquired a four-building office portfolio in the Short Hills submarket of Northern New Jersey for $255 million. The 843,300-square-foot portfolio comprises four Class A buildings located at 51, 101, 103 and 150 JFK Parkway. The properties are currently 80 percent leased to 22 tenants, including Citibank, Investors Bank, KPMG, Bank of America, UBS, Dun & Bradstreet, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo. “During the pandemic, there has been a demographic shift to the suburbs, and the migration of this talent pool represents an extraordinary opportunity to meet the demand for high-quality office assets in prime New Jersey markets,” says Mark Meisner, CEO and founder of Birch. “Short Hills is among one of the most prestigious suburban locales and it has consistently achieved above-average rents in New Jersey, while maintaining the highest occupancy rates within the market.” David Bernhaut led a Cushman & Wakefield team that represented the seller, Mack-Cali Realty Corp. (NYSE: CLI). The buyer has also retained Cushman & Wakefield as the leasing agent for the properties. Birch says it views the acquisition as a repositioning opportunity and plans to employ a value-add strategy. Birch will complement $15.2 million of recently completed …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

ATLANTA AND RALEIGH, N.C. — Preferred Apartment Communities (NYSE: APTS) has agreed to sell a portfolio of office assets in Atlanta and North Carolina to Highwoods Properties Inc. (NYSE: HIW). The deal, which is expected to close during the third quarter, is valued at $717 million and includes $28 million of planned improvements and $5 million in transaction costs. The sale comprises the bulk of Preferred Apartment Communities’ (PAC) office assets. Joel Murphy, president and CEO of the Atlanta-based REIT, says that the sale of the office portfolio is part of a larger plan to simplify its real estate footprint. The company also sold a portfolio of student housing properties last year as part of that plan. “Upon closing, PAC’s real estate portfolio will be further streamlined with an increased primary weighting on our core, Class A, suburban Sun Belt multifamily business and our complementary 100 percent grocery-anchored Sun Belt retail investments,” says Murphy, referring to PAC’s wholly owned retail investment subsidiary New Market Properties LLC. The portfolio sale to Highwoods includes seven properties in Atlanta, Charlotte and Raleigh. The assets include: • 150 Fayetteville, a 560,000-square-foot tower in downtown Raleigh • Capitol Towers, a two-building complex in Charlotte’s SouthPark …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Fenway-Center-Boston

BOSTON — IQHQ Inc., a developer of life sciences real estate with offices in Boston and San Diego, has begun construction on Fenway Center, a $1 billion project in Boston. IQHQ is co-developing the project with locally based firm Meredith Management. The initial phase of construction centers on the development of a 90,000-square-foot air rights deck that overlooks the Massachusetts Turnpike between Beacon Street and Brookline Avenue. The construction of the air rights deck will be the largest air rights structure built in Boston since Copley Place in 1980 and will take approximately 24 months to complete. Upon completion, Fenway Center will consist of more than 960,000 square feet of life sciences space with 10,000 square feet of retail space across two towers. Construction of the life sciences buildings is expected to be complete in early 2025. The campus will also feature 1.6 acres of landscaped green space and a parking garage that will be accessible from both buildings. The green space will include a large plaza and a public pedestrian walkway. The site is adjacent to BOWER, a new 312-unit luxury apartment complex that contains 38,000 square feet of amenity-oriented retail, the Lansdowne MBTA Commuter Rail Station, Fenway Park …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Soleste

MIAMI — The Estate Cos. (EIG), a private developer of multifamily properties, has sold Soleste Twenty2 in west Miami for $97 million. The locally based developer completed the eight-story luxury apartment community in February 2020. An entity doing business as Westdale Twenty2 LLC purchased the 338-unit community. The buyer is an affiliate of Westdale Real Estate Investment Management, according to South Florida Business Journal. “This transaction stabilized during the difficult times of COVID-19, which further affirms the solid fundamentals of our business plan and our ability to perform for our investors,” says Robert Suris, managing principal at The Estate Cos. “We are glad Westdale will own and capture the value of this amazing asset moving forward.” Located at 2201 Ludlam Road, Soleste Twenty2 is situated 9.1 miles south of Miami International Airport and 17 miles west of South Beach. The property was approximately 95 percent occupied at the time of sale. Soleste Twenty2 features studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units with stainless steel appliance packages, porcelain floors and designer-tiled bathrooms. Rents range from the $1,500s for studio apartments to the $2,600s for three-bedroom units. Community amenities include a pool deck with spa and private cabanas, relaxation lounge with saunas, athletic …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

JERICHO, N.Y. AND HOUSTON — Kimco Realty Corp. (NYSE: KIM) has announced plans to acquire fellow retail REIT Weingarten Realty Investors (NYSE: WRI) for roughly $3.9 billion. The combined company is expected to have a pro forma equity market capitalization of $12 billion and a pro forma total enterprise value of $20.5 billion. The merger will create a national operating portfolio of 559 open-air, grocery-anchored shopping centers — one of the darlings of commercial real estate during the COVID-19 pandemic — and mixed-use assets comprising 100 million square feet of gross leasable area. In its reasoning for the acquisition, Kimco cited enhanced asset diversification and quality; expanded geographic reach in high-growth, first-ring suburbs of core markets; greater tenant diversity; a more compelling value creation pipeline; operational savings and corporate synergies; earnings accretion and NOI growth opportunities; and an increase in the company’s financial strength and flexibility.  “We believe this transaction is a win-win for shareholders of both companies, who will benefit from the upside potential associated with owning the preeminent open-air, grocery-anchored shopping center and mixed-use real estate REIT in the U.S.,” says Conor Flynn, Kimco’s CEO. “This combination reflects our conviction in the grocery-anchored shopping center category, which has …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

HUNTSVILLE, ALA. — WSS Development LLC has broken ground on 2020 at Providence, a $100 million luxury apartment project in Huntsville. The development is situated within the larger 305-acre Village of Providence master-planned community. Located at the intersection of Providence Main Street and Town Center Drive, 2020 at Providence will feature 360 luxury apartment units and 20,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space. More than 70 percent of the retail space has been leased to Starbucks, The Cajun Steamer, Oh Crepe and an unnamed breakfast and lunch concept. Amenities will include a rooftop pool, rooftop fitness center, covered parking deck, high-speed elevators and an electronic package delivery system. The project team includes Humphreys & Associates Contractors LLC, Riverstreet Architects, Goodwyn Mills Cawood and Geo Solutions. BancorpSouth provided financing and Spaces Management will serve as property manager. Completion is slated for the end of 2022. The surrounding Village of Providence, which Duany, Plater-Zyberk & Co. designed and WSS developed, is home to hundreds of single-family homes, townhomes and a town center that includes more than 800,000 square feet of office, restaurants, retail and hotels. “The broader Huntsville market is experiencing unprecedented growth from both a rent and employment standpoint,” says Marc …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail