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Westchester

HAWTHORNE, ELMSFORD AND YONKERS, N.Y. — JLL has arranged a $455 million refinancing loan for a portfolio of 45 properties totaling approximately 2.6 million square feet across three industrial parks in New York’s Westchester County. Bank of America provided the floating-rate, non-recourse loan to the borrower, Robert Main Co. Mike Tepedino, Andrew Scandalios, Jose Cruz, Peter Rotchford and Tyler Peck of JLL arranged the financing transaction. The loan terms were not disclosed. The portfolio is situated in infill locations within in the New York metropolitan area. The properties benefit from significant barriers to entry, limited new supply and access to Interstates 287 and 87. Over the past few years, Robert Martin Co. has made improvements to the properties including new roofs, LED lighting upgrades, solar panel installations, paving and landscaping. The three industrial campuses include Mid Westchester Executive Park at 2 Skyline Drive in Hawthorne; Cross Westchester Executive Park at 100 Clearbrook Road in Elmsford; and South Westchester Executive Park at 7 Odell Plaza in Yonkers, according to the Commercial Observer. The properties are occupied by approximately 300 tenants in a wide variety of industries including warehousing, transportation, mechanical, child care, health technologies and quantum computing research. “This portfolio has …

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PHILADELPHIA — Equus Capital Partners has acquired a 5.4 million-square-foot industrial portfolio located across the Sun Belt and East Coast. The properties were purchased from Prologis for $900 million, according to the Philadelphia Business Journal. The 75-property portfolio primarily comprises multi-tenant, infill, shallow-bay assets located across seven major distribution markets in Texas, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia. The acquisition was made on behalf of the company’s sponsored value-add fund, Equus Investment Partnership XII L.P. The portfolio was 98 percent leased to 250 tenants at the time of sale, which included e-commerce, logistics providers, manufacturing, business-to-business and business-to-consumer users. Equus made headlines with another large-scale industrial acquisition in October of last year, buying a 7.3 million-square-foot industrial portfolio in Arizona for $1.1 billion. “We remain disciplined in our approach to appropriately scaling our industrial holdings across the U.S. on behalf of our investment partners,” says Kyle Turner, partner and director of investments for the Philadelphia-based firm.  “This most recent investment further diversifies our platform holdings in the industrial sector and provides access to dynamic distribution locations poised to benefit from improving industrial fundamentals and sustained population growth,” he continues.  Kyle Turner, Tim Feron, Laura Brestelli, Joe Felici, Scott Miller and Ryan Klancic …

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GLENDALE HEIGHTS, ILL. — Turner Impact Capital has acquired Ellyn Crossing Apartments, a 1,155-unit workforce housing property in Glendale Heights, a western suburb of Chicago. The sales price of $137 million, as reported by Crain’s Chicago Business, and the number of units mark the biggest suburban Chicago apartment deal ever, according to research firm Real Capital Analytics. With this acquisition, Turner Impact Capital’s housing portfolio now includes nearly 2,800 units in the Chicagoland area and over 11,200 units of workforce housing in metropolitan areas across the nation. These properties serve more than 18,600 low- and moderate-income residents such as teachers, police officers and healthcare workers. These employees often earn too much to qualify for subsidized housing but too little to afford higher-cost housing near their workplaces, according to Turner Impact Capital. “As Americans face double-digit rent increases in markets nationwide, along with limited housing supply and uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, our need for housing solutions is more urgent than ever,” says Bobby Turner, CEO of Turner Impact Capital. “Our scalable investment model has uplifted communities far and wide by putting affordable, quality housing within reach for thousands of families while generating strong risk-adjusted returns for investors. The model proves that …

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AUSTIN, TEXAS — Inspire Development, an Austin-based developer of residential and commercial properties, has broken ground on the first phase of Pearson Ranch, a new mixed-use campus in northwest Austin. The $2 billion project will include 2.6 million square feet of new office space; 200,000 square feet of stores, restaurants and community and cultural spaces; two hotels; thousands of high-end residences; and 30 acres of park land. Phase I of Pearson Ranch will span 41 acres and feature approximately 600,000 square feet of office space, three high-end apartment communities and some lifestyle retail space. “We worked very closely with our team to create a plan that tightly knits the past, present and future into the most compelling land plan possible,” says Brett Ames, managing principal of Inspire Development, as well as president and CEO of Austin-based Ames Design Build. “Frankly, we feel a true sense of obligation to get it fully right.” The Pearson Ranch site is located on 156 acres at the corner of State Highway 45 and West Parmer Lane, which is approximately two miles north of Apple’s new $1 billion corporate campus. Other nearby employers include Dell, PayPal, Amazon and Visa. Pearson Ranch will include a 48-acre …

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Broad-Washington-Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA — A partnership between developer Post Brothers and Tower Investments has started construction of Broad & Washington, a $750 million, multi-phase multifamily project in Philadelphia. Designed by BKV Group, the project will consist of 1,457 apartments, 65,000 square feet of retail space and a parking garage. According to the architecture firm, the site consists of two parcels: Parcel A, which spans approximately 1.4 million square feet, and the 318,000-square-foot Parcel B. The project is located at 1001 S. Broad St. at the corner of Washington Avenue, near the end of the Avenue of the Arts district. Russell Schildkraut and Christine Zivkovic of Ackman-Ziff Real Estate Group arranged $250 million and $100 million, respectively, in construction financing from Bank OZK and Starwood Property Trust for the first phase of Broad & Washington. Both direct lenders have partnered with Post Brothers on past projects as well. All told, Post Brothers has secured more than $400 million in construction debt for the first phase of the project, which will comprise some 600 units and 50,000 square feet of commercial space across four interconnected buildings. Delivery of the first phase is slated for 2024, and the development team expects to complete the entire project …

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Cityline

SUNNYVALE, CALIF. — STC Venture has broken ground on Phase III of the Cityline Sunnyvale mixed-use project, which will add one residential building and two office towers in downtown Sunnyvale, 12.3 miles west of San Jose. The three new towers will include two seven-story buildings with approximately 590,000 square feet of rentable office, retail, flex and outdoor terrace space. The office portion of the project will be both LEED Gold and WiredScore Gold certified, which measures internet connectivity and digital infrastructure in commercial properties. The third building is The Martin, a 12-story apartment tower with 479 units, including 53 affordable rental units. The residential property will feature a hospitality-level amenity package and ground-floor retail and restaurant spaces. Additionally, the completed three towers will include a public park, which will be used as the town square and gathering space for the downtown area. “These 590,000 square feet of new office and retail space will bring more jobs to the central core of Sunnyvale and boost business for all of the community’s business owners,” says Deke Hunter, president of Hunter Properties. Phase I of Cityline Sunnyvale included 198 apartments located along Washington and McKinley avenues, as well as 85,000 square feet of …

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Hawthorn-Mall

NORTH DECATUR, GA. AND CRESTWOOD, MO. — Real estate developer EDENS and the City of Crestwood have separately announced two massive mall redevelopment projects in the Atlanta and St. Louis metropolitan areas, respectively.  The redevelopment of Class B malls into mixed-use, open-air centers has continued to grow in popularity as shopping center owners and operators look to compete with e-commerce through the delivery of thoughtful spaces that provide an experience for visitors.  North Dekalb Mall EDENS purchased North Dekalb Mall last year with plans to redevelop the property into a mixed-use project. This week, a Development of Regional Impact (DRI) application was filed with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs detailing plans for the project. Located roughly seven miles outside in Atlanta in North Decatur, the development is set to include 300,000 square feet of office space, 200,000 square feet of hospitality, 150 multifamily units and 1,700 townhomes, in addition to retail and restaurant space. A timeline for the project and further information was not disclosed.  The property’s previous owner, Sterling Organization, teamed up with developer Hendon Properties and Lennar Commercial Investors in 2014 with plans to turn the 622,297-square-foot enclosed mall into an open-air shopping center, which ultimately did …

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LANSING, MICH. — Ultium Cells, a joint venture between General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) and LG Energy Solution, has unveiled plans for a $2.6 billion investment to build its third battery cell manufacturing plant in the United States. The facility, which will be located in Lansing, the state capital, is part of a larger $7 billion investment in four Michigan manufacturing sites to increase battery cell and electric truck manufacturing capacity. Detroit-based GM says this is the single largest investment announcement in its history. The Michigan Strategic Fund Board approved $824.1 million in incentives for the projects, according to local media reports. Ultium Cells will build the new plant in Lansing on land leased from GM. The facility is expected to create 1,700 new jobs when fully operational. Site preparation on the roughly 2.8 million-square-foot property is scheduled to begin this summer, and the plant is expected to open in late 2024. The facility will supply battery cells to Orion Assembly in Michigan and other GM electric vehicle (EV) assembly plants. “This significant investment demonstrates our commitment to strengthen our Michigan and U.S. manufacturing presence and grow good-paying jobs,” says Mary Barra, GM chair and CEO. “We will have the …

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CHICAGO — Co-developers Time Equities Inc., JK Equities and Oak Capitals plan to soon begin vertical construction for 1000M, a 73-story apartment high-rise in Chicago’s South Loop district. Named for its address (1000 S. Michigan Ave.), 1000M will stand 788 feet tall upon completion in 2025, making it one of the tallest apartment towers in Chicago. 1000M was originally conceived as a for-sale condominium tower but during a pause in construction during the COVID-19 pandemic, the co-developers decided to reposition the asset as a rental residential tower. Construction recommenced following a $304.5 million loan from Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank Wealth Management, according to various media outlets. The 738-unit apartment tower will offer residences ranging from studios to three-bedroom penthouse units. The development will also feature a golf simulator room, outdoor swimming pool with cabanas, a cookout area and a full-service 73rd floor bar and lounge offering views of the Chicago skyline. In addition, a 325-car parking garage will be concealed behind the apartments. Nearby attractions and venues include Grant Park, Lake Michigan, Soldier Field & Museum, Humboldt Park Formal Gardens, Columbia College Chicago, Hilton Chicago and Trader Joe’s. Helmut Jahn, a world-renowned German architect who was killed last year …

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Cannery-Lofts-Dayton-Ohio

NEW YORK CITY AND PHILADELPHIA — Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust Inc. (BREIT) has agreed to acquire Resource REIT, a publicly registered, non-traded REIT based in Philadelphia, for $3.7 billion in an all-cash transaction. Under the terms of the deal, BREIT will acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Resource REIT for $14.75 per share, including the assumption of existing debt. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter. Resource REIT’s portfolio currently consists of 42 garden-style apartment communities totaling more than 12,600 units across 13 states, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia and Texas. “This transaction represents a continuation of our high-conviction investing in top-quality multifamily communities in growth markets across the country,” says Asim Hamid, senior managing director at Blackstone. “We intend to capitalize on our expertise, scale and management practices to ensure these properties are well maintained and provide an exceptional experience for residents.” Lazard Frères & Co. LLC is acting as exclusive financial advisor to Resource REIT, and DLA Piper LLP is acting as the firm’s legal counsel. BofA Securities, BMO Capital Markets Corp., Eastdil Secured Advisors LLC and RBC Capital Markets LLC are acting as financial advisors to BREIT. Simpson Thacher …

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