Greenville is undergoing significant growth and capturing the attention of national investors and tenants. Historically high rental rates, increased occupancy and strong construction activity for the first time in recent years collectively indicate a healthy market. Additionally, tight market conditions provide an ideal investment sales environment encouraging landlords to market their office assets for sale, something they couldn’t justify doing a few years ago. The market’s occupancy rate was up to 85.2 percent at year-end 2015 from 83.7 percent the previous year. As demand grows and space is absorbed, the market is shifting in favor of landlords, who are pushing up rental rates to levels never before seen in the market. Asking rental rates for Class A office space in the market averaged $22.41 per square foot at year-end 2015, increasing 9 percent in a one-year span. Class A space in the central business district (CBD) is even more costly with asking rental rates averaging $25 per square foot. With office users showing a strong desire to locate in the market and willingness to pay higher rental rates for quality space, developers are turning to new construction and adaptive reuse projects to meet the heightened demand for space. Several projects …
PITTSBURGH — UC Funds has completed a $24.2 million adaptive reuse bridge loan for the conversion of the historic Salvation Army building into the Distrikt Hotel in downtown Pittsburgh. The 183-room hotel will operate as a full-service boutique hotel with amenities including a high-end restaurant with room service, bar and lounge, fitness center and rooftop patio.
WESTERLY, PROVIDENCE AND WARWICK, R.I. — Rhode Island Commerce Corp. Board of Directors and Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo have approved more than $7 million in state relocation and redevelopment credits. Funding three projects, the economic development tools include $362,055 in tax credits under the Qualified Jobs Incentive Tax Credit Program to support company relocation and growth, $3 million for the first Tax Increment Financing agreement to support hotel development and $3.6 million Rebuild Rhode Island tax credits to fund the redevelopment of a historic property. Ivory Ella, a socially-minded online retailer, will receive the $362,055 for the relocation of 40 of its current jobs, 19 of which qualify under the Qualified Jobs Incentive Tax Credit program, from Connecticut to Westerly. Homewood Suites Hotels – Exchange Street LLC will receive $3 million for the construction of a $24.5 million 120-room hotel with ground-floor retail in downtown Providence. The board approved $3.6 million in Rebuild Rhode Island tax credits to support the adaptive reuse of a vacant historic mill complex along the Pawtuxet River in Warwick. The property will be redeveloped into a 200,000-square-foot mixed-use development, costing an estimated $34.6 million.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. — Investor WNC has completed the conversion of a 106-year-old warehouse building to a 44-unit affordable housing community in Minneapolis. WNC provided nearly $4 million in low-income housing tax credit equity and historic tax credit equity to fund the adaptive reuse project. The Cameron Apartments, located at 756 N. Fourth St., features 23 studio units, 17 one-bedroom units and four two-bedroom units. The four-story building was originally constructed in 1910. Amenities at the apartment property include a fitness center, picnic and grilling area, laundry facility and bike storage. Unit amenities include appliances, secure intercom entry and a patio or balcony. SR Development LLC is the project developer.
DALLAS — Citadel Partners LLC has represented the Richardson Independent School District in the acquisition of an 86,310-square-foot office building situated on 4.5 acres in Dallas. The property will undergo an adaptive reuse process to transform from an office building into an elementary school. Scott Morse, Scott Jessen, Andy Goldston and Mac Morse of Citadel Partners represented the buyer, and Grant Brodeur of Novus Realty Advisors LLC represented the seller, Cocanougher Asset 2 Ltd.
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — KeyBank has provided $12 million in capital to help develop Niagara City Lofts in Niagara Falls. The adaptive reuse project will convert an existing vacant public high school building, which was built in 1923, into 61 units of workforce housing, affordable housing, market-rate apartments and commercial community space. The project is being funded in partnership with the NYS Housing and Community Renewal Division, NYS Empire State Development Corp. and RBC Tax Credit Equity. Rob Likes and Joe Eicheldinger of KeyBank secured the financing for the borrower.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILL. — Square Mile Capital Management LLC has provided a $50 million refinancing loan for One Arlington, a luxury multifamily property in Arlington Heights, approximately 26 miles northwest of Chicago. Stoneleigh Companies LLC was the borrower. One Arlington is an adaptive reuse conversion of a former Sheraton Hotel. The conversion was completed in June 2015. The property features 214 residential units, 17,200 square feet of ground floor retail space and an attached 313-space underground parking garage.
The long-held perception of the Milwaukee office market is that it mostly trades tenants between buildings with one landlord winning at the other’s expense, while the overall pie remains the same size. However, with cranes dotting the horizon, large blocks of vacant space quickly leasing up, a number of major new developments waiting to break ground, and the inflow of outside dollars into Milwaukee, the market has recently experienced some amazing deal velocity. This activity is expected to continue as we head into 2016. However, the office market could slow down due to the completion of several projects currently under construction. The greater Milwaukee office vacancy rate stood at 15.5 percent in the third quarter, down slightly from 15.6 percent in the third quarter of 2014. The vacancy rate in the central business district (CBD) dropped from 16.2 percent to 14.9 percent during the same period. Meanwhile, rental rates have increased slightly in both the overall market and the CBD. Cranes in the skies Construction on the Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons began in late 2014 in downtown Milwaukee and is scheduled for completion in late 2017. A 32-story office tower will adjoin a two-block-long, three-story space known as The Commons. The new development …
LAWRENCE, MASS. — Malden Mills Phase II Loft Five50, which comprises 62 units of affordable housing in Lawrence, is complete. WNC, a national investor in real estate and community development initiatives, provided approximately $12.7 million in low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) equity to WinnDevelopment to fund the adaptive reuse project that is transforming the historic former Malden Mills manufacturing site into affordable housing. Malden Mills Phase II Loft Five50 delivers a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Amenities include onsite management, a clubhouse and community area, fitness center, theater, Wi-Fi lounge, laundry facility, playground, picnic area and elevator. Each unit is equipped with air conditioning. WNC also provided $14.4 million in LIHTC equity to help construct the first phase of Malden Mills Loft Five50 in 2012, including 75 units that are fully occupied.
CHICAGO — Associated Bank has closed a $7.7 million loan for the adaptive reuse of an office building located two blocks east of the intersection of Milwaukee and Ogden avenues in Chicago. Rockwell Partners/Chicago 925 Investment Partners LLC was the borrower. Rockwell is converting the office space into a 38-unit apartment building. Plans include expanding the building by two floors and renovating the street-level commercial space. Michael McGovern of Associated Bank managed the loan closing.