Top Stories

Food Halls Make Their Way onto the California Foodie Scene

by Katie Sloan June 28, 2016

There were food courts, then there were food trucks. Now, the latest trend to fill the needs of today’s fast-paced culinary crowd is the food hall. Though the Todd English Food Hall at The Plaza hotel in Manhattan is generally credited with starting this latest development trend, the idea of creating a large space with multiple vendors offering fresh, locally sourced fare, is nothing new to California. Pair that with a little natural sunlight and communal seating, and you have the recipe for success in the sun-worshiping state. “California has long suffered a dearth of quality fast-casual dining,” says Anthony Deen, creative director of branded environments for CBX, a New York-based creative marketing service that specializes in food halls, among other things. “Pretty much every neighborhood in California has one great cheap place to eat, but to get variety, customers have to follow food trucks around. Food halls will solve these problems.” Though the food hall scene has not yet penetrated every region of California, its presence is definitely felt up and down the coast. It started with classics like the Ferry Building Marketplace in San Francisco, Grand Central Market in Downtown Los Angeles and the Original Farmer’s Market, which …

June 28, 2016

The Meridian Group Acquires International Place Office Building Near D.C. for $106.5M

by Nellie Day June 27, 2016

ROSSLYN, VA. — The Meridian Group has acquired International Place, a 293,539-square-foot office building in Rosslyn, for $106.5 million. Beacon Capital Partners sold the building, which is located at 1735 N. Lynn St. in an area of Northern Virginia that sits directly across the Potomac River from Georgetown. International Place is across from the Rosslyn Metro station, which contains Blue, Orange and Silver lines and is only one stop away from Washington, D.C. The Pentagon, Reagan National Airport, Tysons and Dulles International Airport are also in close proximity. The LEED-Gold certified building’s amenities include a new ground-floor, 4,376-square-foot fitness center, conference facility and management office. International Place also has “the largest potential for balconies and outdoor space in the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor,” according to the buyer. The building overlooks the Jefferson Memorial, Memorial Bridge and Potomac River. It also features a centralized location near JBG Cos.’ newly constructed Central Place Development. This project features a 17,000-square-foot public plaza, a 377-unit residential tower and 45,000 square feet of ground-level retail. Bill Collins, Paul Collins, Drew Flood and Shaun Weinberg of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller in this transaction. — Nellie Day

June 27, 2016

Georgia Hospitality Mixed-Use Southeast Top Stories

Great Wolf Resorts to Open $150M Lodge, Indoor Water Park in LaGrange, Georgia

by Christina Cannon June 24, 2016

LAGRANGE, GA. — Great Wolf Resorts Inc. has unveiled plans to open a new $150 million destination resort in La Grange, approximately 70 miles southwest of Atlanta, by 2018. The company has entered into a partnership with the state of Georgia and the City of LaGrange, but no other details of the partnership have been released. Great Wolf Lodge Georgia will offer 500,000 square feet of entertainment space. The centerpiece of the resort will be a 93,000-square-foot indoor water park that will include a multi-level treehouse, tipping water bucket, high-thrill water slides, a lazy river, wave pool, several zero depth entry pools and kids water play areas. The lodge will also include 456 rooms that will each accommodate at least five people. Rooms will include refrigerators, microwaves and coffee makers. Great Wolf Lodge will also offer kid-focused suites such as the Wolf Den and KidCabin, which will feature various themes and bunk beds. Other entertainment options will include a ropes course, climbing attraction, miniature golf, bowling alley, spas, dining options and numerous shows and programs. The lodge will also feature over 16,000 square feet of meeting and conference space with audio-visual technology and catering options. “Creating more than 600 jobs and …

June 24, 2016

Arizona Office Top Stories Western

Desert Troon Sells 638,717 SF Office Portfolio in Scottsdale for $122M

by John Nelson June 23, 2016

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — Desert Troon Cos., a Scottsdale-based real estate developer, has sold a 638,717-square-foot office portfolio within the 260-acre Perimeter Center business park in Scottsdale. The buyers, Wentworth Property Co. LLC (WPC) and Northwood Investors, purchased the Class A portfolio for $122 million. Desert Troon originally developed the five-building portfolio, which features Perimeter Gateway I, II, III and V, and Terra Verde. WPC plans to start renovations to the portfolio immediately, including upgrades to the lobbies and common areas of Perimeter Gateway I, II and V, as well as adding a cafe, tenant lounge and fitness center to Perimeter Gateway I that will be available to tenants of all four Perimeter Gateway buildings. WPC also plans to convert roughly 162,000 square feet of the portfolio into spec space, with each building having two or three spec office suites. In addition, WPC plans to build two new parking garages, with construction starting in the third quarter for an estimated 2017 completion. Tom Knoell Jr. represented Desert Troon internally in the transaction, and Jeff Wentworth, Chris Walker, Mike Beall and Sean Spellman of Cushman & Wakefield represented the buyers. “As one of the premier office portfolios in the state, it has …

June 23, 2016

Conference Coverage Features Illinois Midwest Multifamily Seniors Housing Top Stories

Non-Core Properties Present Best Buying Opportunities in Seniors Housing Today, Say InterFace Panelists

by Christina Cannon June 23, 2016

CHICAGO — What are the best buying opportunities today for investors in the seniors housing space? The answer begins with an understanding of the deals that are among the least attractive, according to veteran broker Ryan Saul. A property that is 99 percent full that trades at a 6.5 percent cap rate could hardly be called opportunistic because there is no upside, points out Saul, managing director of Chicago-based Senior Living Investment Brokerage. Instead, buying a property that is 75 percent occupied for $100,000 a unit with a broken management team in place presents real opportunity, he believes. “You can go in, turn it around and really add value so that you can sell it stabilized for a much larger premium.” Saul’s insights came during a panel discussion on the state of the investment market at InterFace Seniors Housing Midwest, which took place Tuesday at the Westin Chicago River North Hotel. The conference attracted 265 attendees from a cross-section of the seniors housing industry. Moderated by Ben Firestone, managing director of Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors, the investment panel discussed who’s buying, who’s selling and what’s driving deal velocity. In addition to Firestone, the panelists included Talya Nevo-Hacohen, chief investment …

June 23, 2016

District of Columbia Loans Mixed-Use Office Retail Southeast Top Stories

KeyBank, Walton Street Originate $196M Refinancing for The Atlantic Building in D.C.

by Haisten Willis June 22, 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A partnership between KeyBank Real Estate Capital and an affiliate of Walton Street Capital LLC have originated a $196 million first mortgage loan for Douglas Development Corp. The loan is secured by The Atlantic Building, a 280,000-square-foot trophy office building with ground-floor retail located in the east end of Washington D.C. The 10-year, fixed-rate loan includes a 65 percent loan-to-value ratio and refinances the existing debt on the property. KeyBank and Walton Street will provide servicing and advisory services for the life of the loan. The Atlantic Building is located at 950 F St. N.W. The property integrates seven historic buildings and facades with a 10-story office building next to Ford’s Theatre, the site where President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865. Built in 1887, the building was the city’s first privately constructed high-rise with elevator service. The historic exteriors have since been preserved and incorporated into the modern version of the property, which was redeveloped between 2004 and 2006. The Atlantic Building includes 283,512 rentable square feet, of which 29,172 square feet is retail and 35,340 square feet is office. In addition, there are 322 below-grade parking spaces and Metro access from the red, blue and …

June 22, 2016

Features Retail Top Stories

Wave of Store Closures Presents Opportunity to Reimagine Retail Spaces

by Christina Cannon June 22, 2016

The recent move by several national retail chains to close hundreds of their stores across the country creates a tremendous opportunity for shopping center owners, developers, communities and design professionals. This is a nationwide trend that reflects a shift in how we are shopping and living today. Property owners around the country are evaluating what to do with these empty big boxes. In years past, if a large retailer couldn’t be found, the space would be divided into two or three smaller retail spaces. This remains a viable option today in some cases. Expanding retailers with a store footprint of 10,000 to 20,000 square feet are also attracted to these locations. Breaking down the large boxes to mid-size footprints creates an opportunity for expanding retailers to open a new store in an established, mature location. However, with more cities encouraging mixed-use and vertical developments, owners are studying options to break out of the confines of the enclosed mall to create a multi-use environment. Such developments might include residential, hotel, shopping, dining and office uses, much like what is found on the vibrant streets of the world’s greatest cities. This forward thinking is redefining shopping centers and big-box retail spaces across …

June 22, 2016

New York Northeast Office Top Stories

SL Green Taps AECOM’s Tishman Construction to Manage Construction of $1B Office Project in Manhattan

by Jeff Shaw June 21, 2016

NEW YORK CITY — SL Green Realty Corp. has chosen AECOM’s Tishman Construction unit to manage the construction of One Vanderbilt, a 58-story office development located adjacent to Grand Central Terminal in New York City’s East Midtown business district. The total value of construction for the project is approximately $1 billion. The skyscraper will contain 1.6 million square feet of Class A commercial space, a public transit hall and a 14,000-square-foot public plaza. The development will also include $220 million worth of public transit improvements to the Grand Central transit hub. When One Vanderbilt is complete, the building is expected to be the second tallest office tower in New York City, reaching heights of 1,401 square feet, according to Tishman. The tower will be second only to One World Trade Center, which Tishman also built. Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) designed the building to pay homage to the Grand Central Terminal and fit into the skyline alongside the Chrysler Building, located one block away from the development site. The developers plan to achieve LEED v4 Gold certification for the project. Primary construction is scheduled to begin in 2016, with completion expected in 2020. — Katie Sloan

June 21, 2016

Features Multifamily Seniors Housing Top Stories

Greystone: 5 Ways to Get More Out of Class B Seniors Housing Properties

by Christina Cannon June 21, 2016

There are a lot of ways to increase and unlock value in lower-quality seniors housing, according to the June 2016 Seniors Housing Market Trend Report from Greystone Real Estate Advisors. According to Senior Care Investor’s annual report, Class A properties reaped $248,500 per unit for assisted living and $243,300 per unit for independent living communities in 2015. Class B properties, comparatively, earned only $138,300 per unit for assisted living and $72,900 per unit for independent living. In 2015, approximately 60 percent of assisted living properties sold were Class B, while 40 percent were Class A. In independent living, approximately one-third of the properties sold were Class A, while two-thirds were Class B. In Greystone’s report, the writers distinguish three different factors — physical location, asset quality and operational performance — that set Class A and Class B properties apart. The report outlines five ways to boost value if a property is lacking in one of those measures. 1. Add amenities — Location is extremely important when it comes to the value of an asset, the report suggests. Since this factor is out of the owner’s control when disposing of a property, owners should focus on increasing the quality of the …

June 21, 2016

California Retail Top Stories Western

Two Southern California Shopping Centers Change Hands for $352M

by Nellie Day June 20, 2016

LOS ANGELES AND SAN DIEGO — Savills Studley has arranged the sale of a pair of shopping centers in Southern California for a combined sales price of $352 million. In the first transaction, ROIC California purchased North Ranch Shopping Center, a 146,625-square-foot neighborhood shopping center in the Los Angeles submarket of Westlake Village, for $122.8 million. Ralphs Fresh Fare, Rite Aid, Trader Joes and Petco anchor North Ranch. It is located at 3815-3963 Thousand Oaks Blvd., one block from the 101 Freeway. In the second transaction, Stockbridge Capital Group purchased Mira Mesa Marketplace, a 487,807-square-foot regional shopping center in San Diego, for $229 million. Smart & Final Extra, CVS, Home Depot, Edwards Theatre, Ross, Old Navy and Barnes & Noble anchor Mira Mesa. It is located off Interstate 15 on Mira Mesa Boulevard. Bill Bauman and Kyle Miller of Savills Studley’s National Retail Services Group represented the unidentified seller of the two properties. ROIC California is an entity of the Retail Opportunity Investment Corp., a publicly traded REIT. Stockbridge Capital Group is a real estate investment firm headquartered in San Francisco. — Nellie Day

June 20, 2016

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