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AcquisitionsDevelopmentDistrict of ColumbiaMixed-UseSoutheastTop Stories

Lowe Acquires Former School Site in Washington, D.C., Plans 500,000 SF Art Museum-Anchored Development

by Kristin Harlow

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Lowe, a national real estate investor, developer and manager, has acquired the former Randall School site at 65 I St. SW in Washington, D.C. Lowe plans to redevelop the 2.7-acre site into a 500,000-square-foot mixed-use project featuring a contemporary art museum. Lowe had first come on as partner for the project in 2017 but is now assuming control of the development from TRSW, a partnership between Telesis Corp., a national affordable housing developer, and the Rubell family, long-standing collectors and patrons of the arts. Lowe intends for the project to create an arts and cultural anchor in the Southwest neighborhood. The designated Arts District will provide a second home for the Miami-based Rubell Family Collection, an internationally acclaimed contemporary art collection that draws visitors from around the world, according to Mark Rivers, executive vice president at Lowe. At the core of the project is the restoration and repositioning of the school’s three buildings, of which two will be transformed into an approximately 31,000-square-foot art museum housing the Rubell Family Collection. Entry to the museum will be free of charge to all residents of the District. The West Randall building will be reconfigured as an 18,000-square-foot creative office …

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Company NewsNew YorkNortheastRetailTop Stories

Barneys New York Files for Bankruptcy, Will Keep Some Stores Open

by John Nelson

NEW YORK CITY — Luxury department store retailer Barneys New York has voluntarily filed for bankruptcy protection and has disclosed plans to close 15 of its 22 brick-and-mortar stores. The Chapter 11 filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Southern District of New York indicated that Barneys had more than $100 million in assets and more than $100 million in debts, according to The Wall Street Journal. Barneys plans to keep five of its flagship locations open, including its famous Madison Avenue store. The retailer will also continue operating its downtown Manhattan, Beverly Hills, San Francisco and Boston stores. The company will also keep two Barneys Warehouse locations open in Woodbury, N.Y., and Livermore, Calif., as well as the Barneys.com and BarneysWarehouse.com websites. Barneys will close all other locations, including flagship stores in Chicago, Seattle, Las Vegas, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Santa Monica, Calif. This is the second high-end retail concept to file for bankruptcy this week, the other being luxury movie theater company IPIC Entertainment. Veteran retail consultant Jeff Green says that American shoppers are shying away from uber-luxury retailers like Barneys and IPIC, which saw its same-store sales drop 21.7 percent in first-quarter 2019 compared to …

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Riverstone-Apartments-Macon-Georgia
AcquisitionsGeorgiaMultifamilySoutheastTop Stories

RSE Capital, Carter Multifamily Acquire Georgia Apartment Portfolio for $202.5M

by Taylor Williams

GEORGIA — A joint venture between Washington, D.C.-based RSE Capital Partners and Tampa-based Carter Multifamily has acquired a portfolio of 11 apartment communities located across five cities in Georgia for $202.5 million. The seller was Savannah-based Kole Management. The new ownership will undertake a capital improvement program that will upgrade the properties’ unit interiors and amenity space. In announcing the value-add deal, the joint venture cited the strong job growth that is occurring throughout Georgia and the limited supply of quality workforce housing as the key driving forces behind the acquisition. The portfolio totals 1,966 units in the Class B and C spaces. Specifically, three of the properties totaling 438 units are in Savannah; three communities featuring 382 units are in Garden City; three assets comprising 716 units are in Macon; one property totaling 240 units is in Canton; and one community featuring 200 units is in Augusta. The Savannah properties were all built between 1969 and 1978 and feature amenities such as pools and playgrounds. Each of the Garden City communities was built in the late 1980s and offers amenities such as pools, playgrounds, sport courts and fitness centers. Garden City is located along the eastern coast near Savannah. …

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Broward County Convention Center rendering
CivicDevelopmentFloridaHospitalitySoutheastTop Stories

Balfour Beatty to Build $1B Broward County Convention Center Expansion in Fort Lauderdale

by Jeff Shaw

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — General contractor Balfour Beatty has signed a $780 million agreement with developer Matthews Southwest, making Balfour Beatty the design-build lead for the over $1 billion expansion of the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale. The project will add 525,000 square feet of meeting space to the complex, plus a 29-story, 800-room Omni Hotel. Located on Florida’s southeastern coast approximately 25 miles north of Miami, the completed convention center will total 1.2 million square feet. The expanded property will include 350,000 square feet of contiguous exhibition space, a 65,000-square-foot waterfront ballroom, modern technology, new dining concepts, enhanced water taxi access and a waterfront plaza with public access. The Omni Hotel will add 73,000 square feet of meeting and ballroom space; multiple restaurant options including a rooftop bar; an 11,000-square-foot, full-service spa and fitness center; and over 30,000 square feet of pool decks. The hotel will be positioned along the city’s famed Intracoastal Waterway with a scenic view of the Atlantic Ocean. Matthews Southwest has called on London-based firm Balfour Beatty for projects in the United States before. The company was hired by Matthews Southwest to build the Omni convention center hotel in Dallas and a residential …

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AcquisitionsHealthcareMidwestMultifamilyNortheastOhioSeniors HousingSoutheastTexasTop StoriesWestern

Welltower Shakes Up Portfolio, Commits to Nearly $2.75B in Transactions

by Alex Tostado

TOLEDO, OHIO — Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL) has expanded its senior living portfolio to the tune of 15 properties worth $949 million across the country. Simultaneously, the healthcare REIT giant exited its partnership with seniors housing operator Benchmark Senior Living, selling its 48-property portfolio to an undisclosed buyer for $1.8 billion. The 48 properties that Benchmark operates total 4,137 units and are located in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. As part of the recapitalization, Benchmark will invest in improvements at the properties. Benchmark will continue to manage the portfolio under a new management agreement with the new capital partner. Ted Flagg of the JLL Capital Markets team represented Welltower in the Benchmark transaction. With the new acquisitions, Welltower expanded its footprint by entering into or expanding partner agreements with senior living operators Balfour Senior Living, Sunrise Senior Living and Discovery Senior Living. The three partnerships yielded 14 properties in Maryland, Colorado, California and Texas. Welltower acquired six properties from Balfour, including Balfour’s flagship Balfour at Riverfront in Denver and the recently opened Lavender Farms, for $308 million. The other four properties are situated in the Denver and Boulder metro areas. Additionally, Welltower has the option to …

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DevelopmentMixed-UseNevadaTop StoriesWestern

Bleutech Park Properties to Develop $7.5B Technology-Driven Project in Las Vegas

by Kristin Harlow

LAS VEGAS — Bleutech Park Properties Inc. has unveiled plans for a $7.5 billion mixed-use project known as Bleutech Park Las Vegas. The developer plans to break ground this December, and construction is expected to take six years. Bleutech has confirmed that financing is in place. Bleutech Park will be home to workforce housing, luxury residential, office, retail, hotel and entertainment space. The project will incorporate environmental and technological features such as water purification, on-site waste treatment and localized air cleaning. Described as an “insular mini-city,” plans call for use of autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, robotics and other advanced technologies. Smart buildings will be equipped with energy-generating materials using wind, water, solar and other sustainable forms of power. Flooring systems within Bleutech Park will capture and reuse the energy of human movement throughout the park, including common areas and parking structures. Resources for heating, cooling, lighting and electricity will be harvested on-site. Project partners include general contractor Martin-Harris Construction and technology company Cisco. Aerial construction, digitization and robotics will be utilized during the construction of the project, which is expected to create 25,000 jobs. “Bleutech believes in the rise of digitization and robotics in construction as this will …

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AcquisitionsDevelopmentIllinoisMidwestNew YorkNortheastStudent HousingTop Stories

Core Spaces Aligns with Goldman Sachs in $600M Student Housing Deal

by John Nelson

CHICAGO AND NEW YORK CITY — Student housing developer Core Spaces has entered into a partnership with Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) to recapitalize nine of its properties in a deal valued at $600 million. The national portfolio consists of seven operating student housing properties and two projects under development, totaling 4,358 beds. The Wall Street Journal reports that Goldman Sachs will likely utilize its newly launched, $2.5 billion real estate investment fund for the Core student housing portfolio. The newspaper reports that the New York-based financial giant has purchased more than $30 billion in real estate since 2012 mostly using its own capital. Core will keep a small ownership percentage in the portfolio and keep the assets under its management. The deal is a strategic decision by the Chicago-based firm to aggregate its portfolio with an institutional investor and retain an interest in its developed properties for the long haul, says Core’s founder and CEO, Marc Lifshin. “We believe in the long-term performance of our assets,” he says. “Our assets have proven to perform over time. We would rather be involved for the growth period. It creates a much more sustainable model for us going forward.” The operating properties that …

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Clippers-Arena-Inglewood
CaliforniaDevelopmentRetailTop StoriesWestern

Los Angeles Clippers Unveil Plans for $1.1B Basketball Arena in Inglewood

by Taylor Williams

INGLEWOOD, CALIF. — The NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers have unveiled plans for a $1.1 billion arena and team headquarters in Inglewood, located just southwest of downtown Los Angeles. The Inglewood Basketball & Entertainment Center will be located along Prairie Avenue and West Century Boulevard and offer seating for approximately 18,500 fans. In addition, the building will house the Clippers’ team offices, training facility and a sports medicine clinic, essentially making Inglewood the team’s full-time home. The project will also feature retail, restaurants and educational facilities, as well as public basketball courts and an event plaza. A developer and general contractor have not yet been named, but the project will be entirely privately financed. The proposed site does not house any homes or churches and includes many buildings that have been vacant for decades, according to the developers. It is unclear how many new jobs that the project will create, but the Clippers have pledged to make 35 percent of those jobs local hires. A construction timeline is still being negotiated, but the team’s lease at the Staples Center, which it shares with the Lakers, expires in 2024. In addition, Curbed Los Angeles reports that a lawsuit filed by Madison Square Garden …

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CaliforniaDevelopmentMixed-UseMultifamilyOfficeRetailTop StoriesWestern

San Francisco Planning Commission OKs Pinterest-Anchored Mixed-Use Project

by John Nelson

SAN FRANCISCO — For the second time in a week, the San Francisco Planning Commission has approved a significant mixed-use development in the city’s SoMa (South of Market) district. Following its approval of the Flower Mart redevelopment project, the commission has approved a 1.1 million-square-foot mixed-use development located at 88 Bluxome St. The project, led by developers Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. (NYSE: ARE) and TMG Partners, is nearly 60 percent preleased. The co-developers describe 88 Bluxome as a “high-tech office and laboratory project.” Social media giant Pinterest has signed on to anchor the development with a 490,000-square-foot office lease. The Bay Club, a fitness and social club offering events and a wide range of sports classes, will also anchor the project. The 88 Bluxome campus will feature a technology and life science facility with ground-floor retail space and outdoor deck space on multiple levels of the building. The project also includes an expansion of the neighborhood’s existing Gene Friend Recreation Center, adding two swimming pools and a public activity space. Other features of 88 Bluxome will be a childcare center, a pedestrian “art walk” with commissioned pieces from internationally renowned and local artists, light industrial space available for use …

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Company NewsNortheastPennsylvaniaRetailTop Stories

GNC to Close Up to 900 Stores by End of 2020; Retail Analyst Offers Insight

by Alex Tostado

PITTSBURGH — The vitamin and health supplement niche of the brick-and-mortar retail market continues to experience intense competitive pressure, observes veteran retail consultant Jeff Green. So it came as no surprise to Green when GNC Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNC) officials revealed in a second-quarter earnings call earlier this week that it will shutter up to 900 stores in North America by the end of 2020. “It used to be that specialty health supplements were only found in specialty stores such as GNC, Vitamin Shoppe and other regional chains,” says Green, a partner at Phoenix-based Hoffman Strategy Group. “Now you can find the same products sold at traditional supermarkets, specialty food stores and discount department stores.” Citing a decrease in mall traffic over time, Tricia Tolivar, CFO of Pittsburgh-based GNC, said during the earnings call Monday that the company could close up to 500 of its 800 stores that are currently located in malls across the United States and Canada. Ken Martindale, CEO of GNC, added that 28 percent of the company’s stores are situated in malls, while 61 percent are in strip centers. “The negative trends in traffic that we’ve seen in mall stores over the past several years have accelerated …

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