FORT MYERS, FLA. — Dallas-based Behringer Harvard, in partnership with DeBartolo Development and Christian Tyler Properties, has sold the 408-unit The Palms of Monterrey, located at 15250 Sonoma Dr. in Fort Myers, to Newton, Mass.-based Churchill Forge Properties for $39.2 million. Amenities include a clubhouse with a business center, a fitness center with a racquetball facility, a lighted tennis court, a playground, two heated pools and a poolside hot tub.
ALPHARETTA, GA. — Meritex Enterprises, along with its undisclosed joint venture partner, has purchased the 92,000-square-foot Rubicon in Windward, a two-building office and warehouse property located at 1005 Alderman Dr. in Alpharetta, from MSB Alderman. The properties are 85 percent leased to 19 tenants. Resource Real Estate Partners represented the buyer in the transaction and has been retained as the leasing agent for the property. Meritex will manage the properties.
BATON ROUGE, LA. — Walker & Dunlop has secured $26.5 million in financing for the 312-unit Bristol Place Apartments, located at 5960 Siegen Ln. in Baton Rouge. Stephen Farnsworth arranged the 7-year loan with 2-years interest only and a 30-year amortization schedule on behalf of the borrower, AMG Properties, through Freddie Mac's CME program.
Tenants and landlords forge into 2012 confronting many of the same challenges they had going into 2011. Atlanta’s office market still has a great deal of excess supply and demand remains below its pre-recession levels. The entire market has not pushed fully past concerns about properties with significant vacancy and looming debt obligations. Doubts about the broader economy also inhibit long-term strategic planning. The office market closed out 2011 largely unchanged from a year ago. The overall availability rate only fell by 1.1 pp from 26.5% to 25.4% over the course of the last four quarters. ““Vacancy rates remain high throughout the market and the vast majority of tenants have many options to choose from when negotiating leases,” says Andrew Lechter, executive vice president and branch manager of Studley Inc. The U.S. economy has shown signs of minimal gains in momentum and remains vulnerable to a sharp shock such as what has been called Europe’s “Lehman moment” or a spike in oil prices precipitated by a Mideast crisis. Some of the chronic problems that hampered U.S. growth – weak labor and housing markets – remain particularly acute in Atlanta and registered minimal improvement in 2011. Until employment and labor markets …
ATLANTA — The $60 million SkyHouse Midtown, a 23-story high-rise apartment building, has broken ground at the corner of West Peachtree and 12th streets in Midtown Atlanta. SkyHouse Midtown is being developed by a joint venture between Novare Group and Batson-Cook Development Co. Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart is the project architect, and an investor account advised by the U.S. real estate business of UBS Global Asset Management is providing construction and permanent financing for the project. NGI Investments, LLC and Batson-Cook Development Co. are providing equity. Construction is set to be completed by January 2013.
ATLANTA AND MEMPHIS, TENN. — Atlanta-based Noble Investment Group has plans to begin a $40 million renovation of the 191-room Hyatt Atlanta Midtown and the 243-room Memphis Marriott East. The Hyatt Atlanta Midtown is located at the corner of Peachtree and 10th Streets in Atlanta. The $21 million renovation will include removal of the old facade and creation of a modern architectural design, as well as a complete renovation of guest rooms and public spaces. Completion is slated for early 2013. The Memphis Marriott East, located at the intersection of Interstate 240 and Poplar Avenue in Memphis, will undergo a $19 million renovation, which will include a modernized exterior as well as upgraded guest rooms, reconfigured public spaces, a new restaurant and bar, incorporation of a Marriott Great Room lobby and enhancement of 10,000 square feet of meeting and event space. Completion is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2012.
DELRAY BEACH, FLA. — Deerfield Beach, Fla.-based SIKON Construction Co. has broken ground on the 258,000-square-foot Delray Marketplace, a lifestyle center located at the intersection of West Atlantic Avenue and Lyons Road in Delray Beach. The center will include a 46,000-square-foot Publix, a 12-screen Frank Theatres and a 16-lane bowling alley, as well as retail shops and restaurants including Chico's, White House Black Market, Charming Charlie, Jos A. Bank, Bobby Chan Apparel, Max's Grille, Japango Sushi Thai Asian Cuisine, Shula Burger and Terra Fiamma. Indianapolis-based Kite Realty Group owns the property, and Orlando-based Cuhaci & Peterson designed it.
DAHLONEGA, GA. — The 264-bed Liberty Hall, a residence hall located at the North Georgia College & State University at 82 College Cir. in Dahlonega, has opened. The three-story, 65,343-square-foot building includes 84 suite-style units, a fully equipped kitchen, a computer lab, and a common space featuring gaming, television and areas designed for military unit assembly. The facility was developed through a turnkey design-build contract between Ambling University Development Group and the state of Georgia and was funded through tax-exempt bonds.
GAINESVILLE, VA. — Calkain Cos. has arranged the approximately $3 million sale of a 7,440-square-foot retail property, located in Gainesville. Tenants include 7-Eleven and a local veterinarian. Jeff Bogart of Calkain Cos.' Reston, Va., office represented Buchanan Partners, the seller, in the transaction. Ui Chung of Annandale, Va.-based Hana Realty represented the buyer, a local investor.
PEACHTREE CITY, GA. — Atlanta-based NorSouth Development has plans to break ground this summer on the $14.2 million, 96-unit HearthSide Peachtree City, an affordable rental community for seniors located in Kedron Village in Peachtree City. Foley Design Associates Architects designed the project to meet EarthCraft Communities standards. Amenities will include a walking path, a garden center with planting beds, covered golf cart parking spaces with charging stations, a community room with a bistro, a media room, a fitness center, an art studio and a sunroom. Completion is slated for mid-2013.
