Top Stories

Extell Receives $530M in Financing for 68-Story Residential Condo Development in Brooklyn

by Taylor Williams August 6, 2018

NEW YORK CITY — New York-based Extell Development Co. has received $530 million in financing for the development of Brooklyn Point, a 68-story residential condo tower under construction in Brooklyn. The property is located within City Point, a development featuring 600,000 square feet of dining and retail. The financing consists of a $425 million senior construction loan, led by M&T Bank, and a $105 million mezzanine loan from New York-based RXR Realty. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox, the building will offer studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units for sale. The property will feature 40,000 square feet of amenities, including rooftop and indoor pools, a fitness center, cocktail lounge, chef’s demonstration kitchen, game room, rock climbing wall, children’s playroom and screening/performance room. The ninth floor will offer a landscaped terrace with a putting green, fire pit and bar. “We were overwhelmed with interest in the building as soon as we opened the doors to our sales gallery,” says Ari Alowan Goldstein, senior vice president at Extell Development Co. “Our strong sales velocity is an indicator of pent-up demand for high-quality ownership opportunities in this extremely desirable neighborhood.” Pricing for studio to three-bedroom residences will start at $850,000. Purchasers will benefit from …

August 6, 2018

Acquisitions New York Northeast Office Top Stories

Deutsche, BLG Capital Acquire Fifth Avenue Office Building in New York

by Kristin Harlow August 3, 2018

NEW YORK CITY — A joint venture between Deutsche Finance America and BLG Capital have acquired the upper floors of 685 Fifth Ave., an office tower known as the “Gucci Building” in Midtown Manhattan. Other purchasing partners include developer Michael Shvo, The Wings Group and Latner Partners. The sellers are GGP and Thor Equities. The purchase price was $135 million, according to the New York Post. The buyers raised $155 million of equity for the acquisition and will seek approximately $100 million of debt financing to fully capitalize the project. The partnership is also looking at the potential for redevelopment, according to Sven Neubauer, chief investment officer for Deutsche Finance Group. Built in 1926, the 20-story building features more than 100,000 square feet of office space. Coach, Stuart Weitzman and Tag Heuer occupy the multi-level retail space at the property. GGP will continue to own the first through fourth floors. In its second-quarter results released on July 31, the company disclosed the refinancing of a consolidated floating-rate loan of $340 million for 685 Fifth Ave. Deutsche Finance America is a subsidiary of Germany-based Deutsche Finance Group. BLG Capital is a division of Bilgili Group, which focuses on hotel and lifestyle investments. — Kristin …

August 3, 2018

Acquisitions California Company News Florida Healthcare South Carolina Southeast Top Stories Western

HCP Forms $605M Medical Office Joint Venture With Morgan Stanley

by Camren Skelton August 2, 2018

IRVINE, CALIF. — Irvine-based real estate investment trust HCP (NYSE: HCP) has entered into a definitive agreement to form a new $605 million joint venture with Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investment (MSREI) on a 2 million-square-foot medical office building portfolio. MSREI will provide cash to the joint venture for a 49 percent stake, while HCP will contribute nine wholly owned medical office buildings valued at approximately $320 million. These assets, located primarily in Texas and Florida, comprise 1.2 million square feet of leasable space and are 80 percent occupied. The joint venture will use the cash contributed by MSREI to fund the $285 million acquisition of a medical office portfolio in Greenville, S.C. Healthcare Trust of America Inc. (NYSE: HTA) has agreed to sell the Greenville portfolio, which includes 16 medical office buildings totaling approximately 856,000 square feet. HTA originally acquired the portfolio in 2009 for $163 million as part of a sale-leaseback transaction. HCP and MSREI will immediately market for sale three of the smaller assets within the Greenville portfolio, leaving the venture with a combined 832,000 square feet of leasable space. Greenville Health System, the largest health system in South Carolina, occupies 94 percent of the portfolio’s square …

August 2, 2018

University-Park-at-MIT-Cambridge-Massachusetts

Brookfield to Acquire Forest City in $11.4B All-Cash Merger

by Taylor Williams August 1, 2018

CLEVELAND — Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE: BAM) has agreed to acquire Cleveland-based Forest City Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: FCEA) in an all-cash transaction valued at $11.4 billion. The price includes Forest City’s consolidated and unconsolidated debt, which totals approximately $4.6 billion. The transaction is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2018. Under the terms of the agreement, Brookfield will acquire Forest City for $25.35 per share. This figure represents a 26 percent premium over Forest City’s closing stock price of $20.03 per share on June 15, the day reports of the merger surfaced, as well as a 9 percent increase over the closing price of $22.99 per share on July 30. Forest City’s portfolio is mostly comprised of assets in gateway markets. The company’s holdings by property type span 6.3 million square feet of office space, 2.2 million square feet of retail space and 18,500 multifamily units. Flagship properties include the 52-story New York Times building in Manhattan and Pacific Park, a massive mixed-use development surrounding Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Additional components of the portfolio include 2.3 million square feet of life science properties, mostly located in Cambridge, Mass. Forest City also has five large-scale projects …

August 1, 2018

Development Georgia Loans Maryland Mixed-Use Southeast Top Stories

Armada Hoffler Announces Two Mixed-Use Developments in Baltimore, Atlanta

by John Nelson July 31, 2018

BALTIMORE AND ATLANTA — Armada Hoffler Properties Inc. (NYSE: AHH), a commercial real estate developer and investor based in Virginia Beach, is participating in two new mixed-use projects in Baltimore and Atlanta. The REIT’s wholly owned subsidiary, Armada Hoffler Construction Co., will serve as general contractor for both developments. In Baltimore’s Inner Harbor East district, Armada Hoffler is developing Wills Wharf, a 12-story mixed-use building that will anchor the 27-acre Harbor Point development. Armada Hoffler co-developed the other components of Harbor Point with Beatty Development Group, including the 500,000-square-foot Exelon mixed-use tower, the 260,000-square-foot Thames Street Wharf office building and Point Street Apartments. Situated on the waterfront of the Inner Harbor, the $117 million Wills Wharf project will span 325,000 square feet of office and retail space and will feature a 156-room Canopy by Hilton hotel on the top four floors. Armada Hoffler expects to deliver the building in the first quarter of 2020. “Wills Wharf represents the latest evolution of a relationship with the principals of Beatty Development Group that has spanned over two decades,” says Louis Haddad, president and CEO of Armada Hoffler Properties. “We are excited to continue our relationship with Beatty Development Group in leading Baltimore’s …

July 31, 2018

Acquisitions Industrial Midwest Minnesota Top Stories

Foodservice Distributor UNFI to Acquire Grocery Retailer Supervalu for $2.9B

by David Cohen July 30, 2018

PROVIDENCE, R.I. AND MINNEAPOLIS — Natural and organic products distributor United Natural Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: UNFI) has agreed to acquire grocery retailer Supervalu Inc. (NYSE: SVU) for $2.9 billion. UNFI, which distributes to Whole Foods Market and other grocery chains, will pay $32.50 per share in cash for Supervalu, according to a joint statement. The deal includes the assumption of outstanding debt and liabilities. Steve Spinner, UNFI’s current CEO, will lead the combined entity. Sean Griffin, UNFI chief operating officer, will head the Supervalu integration efforts and lead an integration committee comprised of executives from both companies. Reasons cited for the acquisition were a diversified customer base, more cross-selling opportunities, larger market reach and scale. and an estimated $175 million in efficiency savings over the first three years. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Supervalu is one of the largest grocery wholesalers and retailers in the U.S., distributing to 3,437 stores. Supervalu operates 29 distribution centers serving 48 states and 114 grocery stores. Fiscal-year 2018 annual sales were approximately $14 billion. UNFI specializes in “healthier food options” and distributes more than 110,000 products to 43,000 customer locations including natural product superstores, independent retailers, conventional supermarket chains, ecommerce retailers and food service customers. “We have been executing an ambitious strategic transformation for over two …

July 30, 2018

Development Georgia Office Southeast Top Stories

German Elevator Maker to Build 420-Foot-Tall Headquarters Near Massive Shopping, Sports Complex in Atlanta

by Kristin Harlow July 27, 2018

ATLANTA — Thyssenkrupp Elevator, one of the world’s largest elevator companies, has unveiled plans to build a new headquarters complex near The Battery Atlanta in Cobb County. The German company will develop the facility in collaboration with the Braves Development Co. (BDC). BDC is the owner and operator of The Battery, the 1.5 million-square-foot mixed-use development surrounding SunTrust Park, home ballpark of the Atlanta Braves. The Thyssenkrupp headquarters, dubbed The Innovation Complex, will feature three buildings anchored by a 420-foot tall elevator qualification and test tower — the tallest of its kind in the country and one of the tallest in the world, according to Thyssenkrupp. According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the Development Authority of Cobb County agreed to issue up to $264 million in bonds for the new building last month. With 18 shafts, the Innovation Complex test tower will be used to evaluate new concepts and product pilots, including high-speed elevators; TWIN, a two-cabins-per-shaft elevator system; and MULTI, the world’s first rope-less and sideways-moving elevator system. In addition, the test tower will conduct tests to ensure compliance with safety requirements on standard elevators. Atlanta is already home to the first TWIN elevator system in North America. The technology is …

July 27, 2018

Acquisitions California Office Retail Top Stories Western

Equus Sells Office, Retail Complex in Downtown San Jose for $284M

by Camren Skelton July 26, 2018

SAN JOSE, CALIF. — Equus Capital Partners Ltd. has sold Cityview Plaza, a nine-building, 579,541-square-foot office and retail complex in downtown San Jose. Jay Paul Co., a privately held real estate development firm based in San Francisco, acquired the asset. The 11-acre property sold for $284 million, according to local media reports. Spanning an entire city block, Cityview Plaza is situated across from the Adobe Worldwide Headquarters, and near the planned 8 million-square-foot Google Village. The complex includes 534,036 square feet of office space and 45,505 square feet of retail. In addition, the property includes more than 1,000 parking stalls situated within both a subterranean and structured parking garage. Equus’ equity fund, BPG Investment Partnership VIII & VIIIA, originally acquired Cityview Plaza in 2007 and invested $10 million in capital improvements. The renovation included new entrance points to the complex, landscaping, renovated lobby entries and common area improvements. Equus added on-site amenities including a fitness center, conference center, new restaurants and seating/meeting areas within the property’s central plaza. “We acquired the 67 percent leased Cityview Plaza in 2007 with a particular focus on the rare opportunity to secure a large, well-located mixed-use property in the rapidly evolving downtown San Jose …

July 26, 2018

Development Loans New York Northeast Office Top Stories

JLL Arranges $235M Construction Loan for 34-Story Office Tower in Brooklyn

by David Cohen July 25, 2018

NEW YORK CITY — JLL Capital Markets has arranged a $235 million loan for the construction of One Willoughby Square, a 34-story, Class A office tower in downtown Brooklyn. One Willoughby Square will rise 560 feet above the future Willoughby Park, a one-acre public green space on top of a 700-space underground parking garage in Brooklyn’s Tech Triangle. The building will feature column-free floor plates as well as 10-foot windows. The tower is the first ground-up office development in downtown Brooklyn in decades, according to JLL. Aaron Appel, Keith Kurland, Aaron Niedermayer, David Sitt and Eliott Zetioune of JLL arranged the four-year, floating-rate loan through Québec-based Otéra Capital Inc. for borrower JEMB Realty. The planned 462,656-square-foot tower is already 27 percent leased to two tenants: architectural firm NYC School Construction Authority and FXCollaborative, the executive architect of One Willoughby Square. JEMB will seek LEED Silver certification for the project, which is scheduled for completion in 2021. “The lending community was impressed by the experienced sponsorship of this project as well as its quality design, location and preleasing,” says Kurland. “Clearly, One Willoughby is destined to become Brooklyn’s most distinctive and sought-after office address.” — David Cohen

July 25, 2018

Development Leasing Activity Office Retail Southeast Tennessee Top Stories

Highwoods to Build Asurion’s $285M Headquarters Campus in Nashville, Creating 400 New IT Jobs

by John Nelson July 24, 2018

NASHVILLE, TENN. — Highwoods Properties Inc. (NYSE: HIW) plans to build a new $285 million headquarters campus in Nashville’s central business district (CBD) for Asurion, a privately held tech solutions firm. The Nashville-based company specializes in providing insurance and warranty plans covering mobile devices and other consumer electronics. Asurion will consolidate four of its existing local offices into the new campus, as well as create 400 new information technology jobs, according to local media reports. Highwoods, a Raleigh-based REIT that now has a development pipeline exceeding $700 million, recently executed the 551,000-square-foot build-to-suit office lease with Asurion. The tech firm will occupy 98.3 percent of the campus under a long-term lease. Nashville has been a haven for employment gains since the downturn. In the past decade, the Middle Tennessee metro has experienced 25 percent job growth, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Nashville MSA’s unemployment rate was 2.3 percent in May 2018. The Asurion campus will be built on a 4.2-acre site located at Church Street and 11th Avenue North along the Gulch Greenway, a seven-mile urban trail. The development will include two buildings rising eight and nine stories built atop a six-level parking podium. The planned parking …

July 24, 2018

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