The Richmond retail market continues to be strong. Overall vacancy rates are slightly higher than usual, hovering around 7 percent with negative absorption, due to all types of new products coming online in the first half of 2017. The market is adding millennials at double the pace of any other generation and has been recently named in multiple media outlets as one of the top living destinations for millennials nationwide. With this influx, multifamily development in Richmond is robust, which in turn is attracting all types of urban retail and chef-driven restaurants. The most popular submarkets for new urban retail are the Central Business District, Shockoe Bottom and the white-hot Scott’s Addition, with many developers taking advantage of Richmond’s Historic Tax Credit program. Richmond’s famous grocery wars continue with major players jockeying for the best positions. Kroger has historically positioned themselves well in the market with 18 stores, many of which have gone through recent expansions to the Marketplace concept. It recently scrapped plans for the development of two new relocation positions in Mechanicsville and Colonial Heights. The most recent grocery news has been Martin’s Food Markets exiting and Publix entering the market. Martin’s peaked at 19 stores, most of …
ORLANDO, FLA. — Salt Lake City-based M&C Properties has purchased Alta at Eastmar Commons, a newly constructed, 312-unit apartment community located at 10038 Vista Laguna Drive in Orlando, for $56.5 million. Shelton Granade, Luke Wickham and Justin Basquill of CBRE represented the seller, Wood Partners, in the transaction. Constructed this year, Alta at Eastmar Commons features a tech lounge with a coffee bar, sports lounge with billiards room, conference room, fitness center, cycle room, yoga studio, pet park and a pet spa. The community was 95 percent occupied at the time of sale.
ATLANTA — Ackerman & Co. has sold nine buildings within Phoenix Office Park in South Atlanta for $22 million. Stewart Calhoun, Samir Idris and David Meline of Cushman & Wakefield represented Ackerman & Co. in the transaction. WePartner, an Atlanta-based firm, purchased the assets, which total 334,675 square feet. The properties included in the portfolio were Two Crown Center, located at 1745 Phoenix Blvd.; four buildings located at 1800 Phoenix Blvd.; South Pointe located at 1691 Phoenix Blvd.; 1640 Phoenix Blvd.; and 1680 Phoenix Blvd. Ackerman & Co. originally acquired the 100-acre, 11-building Phoenix Office Park in 2005 and invested in capital improvements. The properties that sold to WePartner were the remaining assets in the portfolio. Located within the Airport South Community Improvement District (CID), the office park is roughly three miles from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. At the time of sale, the portfolio was 86 percent leased to tenants including LogistiCare, the State of Georgia and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
NEW BERN, N.C. — Columbia Development has unveiled plans to develop New Bern Marketplace, a 326,850-square-foot grocery-anchored shopping center located on Highway 17 and Glenburnie Road in New Bern near North Carolina’s Crystal Coast. A 100,000-square-foot Harris Teeter, which will include a fuel station and drive-thru pharmacy, will anchor the property. The center will also be home to Academy Sports + Outdoors, Hobby Lobby, West Marine, Ross Dress for Less, Ulta Beauty, Pet Supermarket, Five Below and Lee Nails.
KENNESAW, GA. — Pollack Shores will break ground this month on The Barrett, a 200-unit multifamily community in Kennesaw, roughly 30 miles northwest of Atlanta. The 192,000-square-foot property will include one- to three-bedroom units ranging in size from 700 to more than 1,600 square feet. Apartment units will features granite countertops, shaker-style cabinets, stainless steel appliances and vinyl plank flooring. Community amenities will include a resort-style pool, courtyard, fitness center and a clubroom. The Barrett will be situated one mile from Town Center at Cobb, which features a mix of retail space and dining options. Dwell Design Studio is handling design for the project, and McShane Construction is the general contractor. Matrix Residential, a subsidiary of Pollack Shores, will manage the property. The first residents are expected to move in around December 2018.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Multifamily lending was up 8 percent year-over-year in 2016, with 2,822 different multifamily lenders providing a total of $269.2 billion in financing for apartment buildings with five or more units, according to a new report from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). It was another record year for U.S. multifamily lending, according to Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s vice president of Commercial Real Estate Research. Woodwell says that momentum is still strong in 2017, but this summer the MBA predicted that 2017 volume for commercial and multifamily originations will dip by 3 percent. By dollar volume, the greatest market share (39 percent) went to the government sponsored enterprises (GSEs), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The top five multifamily lenders in 2016 by dollar volume were Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase and Co., CBRE Capital Markets Inc., Berkadia and Walker & Dunlop. The report is based on data from the MBA 2016 Commercial/Multifamily Annual Origination Volume Summation and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The MBA survey targets dedicated originators and covered $491 billion in commercial and multifamily loans in 2016.
FORSYTH COUNTY, GA. — RocaPoint Partners and The Georgetown Co. have unveiled plans to open Cherry Street Brewing at Halcyon, a 150-acre mixed-use project under development in south Forsyth County. The Cumming, Ga.-based brewery will open an 8,000-square-foot brewpub and beer garden in the center of Halcyon’s restaurant village. The brewpub will have a seasonal food menu and 16 Cherry Street beers on tap, as well as a new Halcyon-specific brew. The beer garden will feature communal tables, bar space and a stage for special events. Nick Tanner, Cherry Street owner and brewmaster, will own and operate the new brewpub alongside his sister, Alisa Tanner. Halcyon is slated to open in 2018. Upon completion, the development will feature more than 480,000 square feet of office and retail space, a movie theater, two hotels and 690 residential and seniors housing units.
RALEIGH AND CARY, N.C. — CBRE | Raleigh has arranged the sale of a five-building office portfolio in metro Raleigh. Ben Kilgore, Jim McMillan, Elliott Brewer and Leslie Holmes of CBRE | Raleigh arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller, Highwoods Properties Inc. Alder Kawa Real Estate Advisors (AKREA) acquired the assets for a combined $38.9 million, according to the Triangle Business Journal. The portfolio includes Situs Office Park, a three-building office park totaling 156,665 square feet located adjacent to the interchange of Interstates 440 and 40 in Raleigh, that sold for $25.5 million. At the time of sale, the office park was 89.7 percent leased to tenants including Circle K Convenient Stores, GSA, Millennial Patient Services and Ameriprise. ParkWest Office Park, located off of Weston Parkway in Cary, was acquired for $13.4 million. The property includes ParkWest One and Two and totals 94,800 square feet. At the time of sale, the property was 85.5 percent leased to tenants including Arysta Lifescience’s U.S. headquarters, Informatica and Ignite Social Media. Lee Clyburn and Brian Carr of CBRE | Raleigh’s Investor Leasing group will handle the portfolio’s leasing assignment.
ORLANDO, FLA. — Brookwood Financial Partners LLC has sold Lakefront I & II, a four-building, 192,654-square-foot office complex in Orlando, for $16.7 million. Mark Busekus of HFF represented Brookwood in the transaction. The buyer was not disclosed. Brookwood originally acquired the asset in 2012 for $11.3 million and invested in capital improvements, including upgraded landscaping, enhanced exterior lighting, improved signage and construction of an additional surface lot. At the time of sale, the property was 86 percent leased, including a long-term lease to an indirect subsidiary of CVS Health Corp.
HAPEVILLE, GA. — Atlantic | Pacific Cos. (A|P) has acquired The Atlantic Aerotropolis, a 269-unit multifamily community in Hapeville, two miles north of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Additional terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The Atlantic Aerotropolis features a saltwater swimming pool, fitness center, grill and picnic areas, gaming room with billiards and shuffleboard, a business center, conference room and a rooftop deck. A|P will invest in capital improvement to the property including updating unit interiors with quartz countertops and stainless steel appliances. A|P Management, the property leasing and management platform under A|P, will manage the property. The acquisition brings A|P’s regional portfolio to 18 multifamily communities.