LAKELAND, FLA. — Rockefeller Group Development Corp. (RGDC) has acquired approximately 113 acres in Lakeland with plans to build a 1 million-square-foot industrial park. Located at the former USA International Speedway, the property lies within close proximity to Interstates 4 and 75, the Florida Turnpike, the Tampa and Orlando airports, and the proposed CSX Intermodal Center in nearby Winter Haven. “Central Florida is quickly becoming a prime distribution center for the state, replacing traditional regional distribution hubs, such as Atlanta,” says Edgar Jones, vice president and regional development officer, Florida, for RGDC. “We are confident in the long-term potential of Central Florida and will continue looking for other development opportunities in the area.” The park will be targeted to large-scale tenants. RGDC currently has a portfolio of industrial properties in New Jersey and California. Construction is scheduled to begin in Lakeland first quarter 2009. Edward Miller and Dolores Seymour of Colliers Arnold’s Tampa office represented the Manhattan-based buyer in the transaction. The seller and transaction amount were undisclosed.
WOONSOCKET, R.I., AND WALNUT CREEK, CALIF. — In one of the largest retail acquisitions of the year, Longs Drug Stores Corp. has agreed to be acquired by CVS Caremark Corp. for $2.9 billion or $71.50 per share. Included in the purchase price is the assumption of Longs net debt. Woonsocket, R.I.-based CVS will acquire Longs’ 521 retail drugstores located in California, Hawaii, Nevada and Arizona, as well as its Rx America subsidiary. Longs also owns the real estate associated with approximately 200 store locations, three distribution centers and three office facilities. The store locations alone have been valued at more than $1 billion. CVS plans to monetize a substantial portion of these assets over time. Warren Bryant, chairman, president and CEO of Longs, says he believes the acquisition will provide their customers with top-notch service and products. “Over the course of the last 5 years, we have transformed Longs into a stronger, more productive, more profitable company,” he says. “Given the changing industry landscape, we believe this combination is the logical next step for Longs. CVS Caremark has a strong record of successfully integrating drug store chains and pharmacy benefit services into its portfolio and working with employees to strengthen …
ST. LOUIS, BALTIMORE, AND WASHINGTON, D.C. — Colliers Turley Martin Tucker, Colliers Pinkard and Cassidy & Pinkard Colliers have announced plans to consolidate their ownership into one holding company. Following the closing of the deal, the new holding company will expand to include Colliers ABR in New York. Mark Burkhart, CEO of St. Louis-based Colliers Turley Martin Tucker, says the consolidation was based upon the outstanding growth experienced by the firms. “All four firms have been growing tremendously over the years,” he says. “For the most part, we’ve all known each other for 25 years. We’ve had great success and we felt like now was a good time to come together. It’s more of an evolution than anything.” All offices will continue to operate under their respective names and will continue to function as they did before the consolidation. “There isn’t really any redundancy in any of our firms and will all operate autonomously; however, there are centers of excellence that each of us have and under (certain) functional services,” Burkhart notes. “For example, Cassidy & Pinkard Colliers in our Washington, D.C., office, along with Colliers Turley Martin Tucker’s capital markets group, is really a world-class capital markets group combined. …
ATLANTA — CB Richard Ellis Investors has acquired Northcreek Office Park in Atlanta on behalf of its Strategic Partners U.S. 5 fund. The park comprises of four, 8-story office buildings totaling 532,916 square feet. Located at 3715 Northside Pkwy., the property is situated in the Buckhead community of Atlanta along Interstate 75 and West Paces Ferry Road. CB Richard Ellis Investors plans additional capital improvements including roof replacements, HVAC and electrical system upgrades and surface parking repairs. Implementation of their 5-Star Worldwide service program will include conversion of existing office space into a conference center and maintaining a recently renovated fitness center. The building will also apply to become LEED certified. “Atlanta is a blue chip market with an economy that is still expanding and outperforming the nation, and our forecasts for tenant demand continue to be positive,” says Mike Burrichter, principal with CBRE Strategic Partners U.S. “The acquisition of this quality office property with some vacancy and near-term rollover at a significant discount to replacement cost is consistent with the Strategic Partners U.S. 5 office repositioning strategy.” The seller’s name and transaction amount were undisclosed.
ATLANTA — CB Richard Ellis Investors has acquired Northcreek Office Park in Atlanta on behalf of its Strategic Partners U.S. 5 fund. The park comprises of four, 8-story office buildings totaling 532,916 square feet. Located at 3715 Northside Pkwy., the property is situated in the Buckhead community of Atlanta along Interstate 75 and West Paces Ferry Road. CB Richard Ellis Investors plans additional capital improvements including roof replacements, HVAC and electrical system upgrades and surface parking repairs. Implementation of their 5-Star Worldwide service program will include conversion of existing office space into a conference center and maintaining a recently renovated fitness center. The building will also apply to become LEED certified. “Atlanta is a blue chip market with an economy that is still expanding and outperforming the nation, and our forecasts for tenant demand continue to be positive,” says Mike Burrichter, principal with CBRE Strategic Partners U.S. “The acquisition of this quality office property with some vacancy and near-term rollover at a significant discount to replacement cost is consistent with the Strategic Partners U.S. 5 office repositioning strategy.” The seller’s name and transaction amount were undisclosed.
UPLAND, CALIF. — The partnership of Koll/PER has acquired College Business Park in Upland from Wohl Investment Company for $39.9 million. The buyer is a limited liability company owned by The Koll Company and the Public Employee Retirement System of Idaho (PERSI). College Business Park features 17 single-story industrial, office and flex buildings totaling 313,367 square feet of space. The tilt-up buildings range in size from 13,369 square feet to 22,426 square feet with tenant sizes ranging from 600 square feet to 14,000 square feet. The site offers more than 200 suites. Armando Enriquez, acquisitions manager for The Koll Company, says his company was attracted to the property due to its exceptional location in a strong market area, great visibility, curb appeal and functional site layout. “This was an opportunity to acquire one of the largest multi-tenant business campuses in Southern California that provides the flexibility of offering 100 percent office build-out and flex and industrial space in one project,” Enriquez says. This variety of product appeals to a diverse set of tenant types and the diversification helps limit risk exposure to any one tenant type.” Located at the intersection of Foothill Boulevard and Monte Vista Avenue, the property is …
APPLETON AND NEENAH, WIS. — The Sanders Trust has acquired a medical office portfolio in Appleton and Neenah from ThedaCare for $34 million. The Birmingham, Ala.-based buyer will provide building management services for Medical Office Building West, Medical Office Building South and the Appleton Heart Institute buildings at Appleton Medical Center; the Theda Clark Medical Plaza office building; and the top two floors of the four-story Aylward Surgery Center at Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah. The buildings total 225,000 square feet and are currently 98 percent leased. ThedaCare will continue to own the land on which each building is built. Tenancy will be restricted to members of the active medical staff at both hospitals, and ThedaCare will retain control over which other types of healthcare services and providers will be located within the buildings. “These facilities are a tremendous convenience for the independent physicians, who spend a great deal of time in the hospital, as well as their patients, who often need hospital-based care in connection with their physician appointments,” says Kathryn Correia, president of Appleton Medical Center and Theda Clark Medical Center. Bart Starr, the Hall of Fame quarterback and former Green Bay Packer, is vice-chairman for The …
HAMDEN, CONN. — Pleasantville, N.Y.-based Baker Properties Limited Partnership has acquired Avalon Walk in Hamden from Washington, D.C.-based AvalonBay Communities for $124 million. The multifamily community features 764 units and offers one-, two-, and three-bedroom floor plans. Located at 100 Town Walk Dr. in New Haven County, the property is situated on 44.9 acres and recently received a $10.3 million interior renovation. Amenities include two heated swimming pools, basketball and tennis courts, and fitness facilities. Jeffrey Dunne, Patrick Bisceglia and Todd Newman of CB Richard Ellis’ New York Institutional Group collaborated with William Roohan of CBRE’s Baltimore office to represent the seller and procure the buyer in the transaction. Maury Zanoff and Mike Sherman of CBRE Melody secured long-term, fixed-rate financing in the amount of $95 million with Fannie Mae, which provided Baker with debt certainty. “Baker has acquired a trophy residential asset with strong in-place cash flow and upside potential through future rent growth in the market,” says Jeffrey Dunne with CB Richard Ellis’ New York Institutional Group. “They should enjoy solid returns as there is limited new supply planned in this market.”
AUSTIN, TEXAS — AFIAA, a Zurich-based foundation investing in international real estate, has acquired the Wells Fargo Tower in Austin. Built in 1981, the 17-floor office tower features 280,000 square feet of space. Located at 400 W. 15th St. in the central business district, the building sits in close proximity to Interstate 35 and the University of Texas at Austin campus. The Wells Fargo Tower is currently 96 percent occupied with 23 percent of leases rolling to market rates by December. Amenities include a restaurant, a gym, conference facilities and a 750-space parking garage. The Austin buy is the latest U.S. acquisition for AFIAA, which acquired an office building in northern Chicago 4 months ago. The company also owns one building in Columbus, Ohio, and two in Philadelphia. In January, AFIAA sold an office property in Manhattan. The majority of the company’s assets are in Europe. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
JESSUP, MD. — Pennsylvania-based Exeter Property Group has acquired a 612,900-square-foot industrial building in Jessup from Washington, D.C.-based Baltimore Land Holdings for $40 million. The building is located at 7605 Dorsey Run Rd. near Interstate 95 and Routes 32, 175 and 100. The 32-foot clear cross-docked distribution facility is currently 30 percent leased to Iron Mountain who occupies 178,000 square feet. “We find the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) industrial corridor to be highly attractive both for the short and longer term,” says Scott Dougherty, Mid-Atlantic region investment officer at Pennsylvania-based Exeter Property Group. “This area has solid demand drivers that include strong population and income growth, increasing Federal procurement spending, and BRAC related jobs. Exeter is able to serve customers with needs from 40,000 to 400,000 square feet in the Baltimore-Washington corridor.” John Wilhide, Benjamin Meisels, Ed Harris and Mike Roden of CB Richard Ellis’ Baltimore office will handle the leasing of the property. “With this purchase, Exeter Property Group has a firm foothold in the land-starved Baltimore/Washington industrial corridor,” says John Wilhide, senior vice president at CBRE. “This property is state-of-the-art and offers a strategic location near BWI and major transportation arteries.” Bruce Strasburg and Benjamin Meisels, …