The Tampa market has passed through the most severe phase of the recession, a period during which the apartment vacancy rate climbed 360 basis points. In some Pinellas County submarkets, vacancy will surpass 11 percent this year as the local unemployment rate exceeds metro and state levels, while subdued population growth will reduce housing demand. Hillsborough County submarkets, meanwhile, will fare somewhat better as completions slow. Still, sluggish demand will be behind apartment performance, forcing owners to continue to offer concessions to maintain sufficient occupancy levels. The metro area’s vacancy rate is expected to be among the highest in the country this year, and revenues will contract sharply. In 2010, employers will cut 4,000 jobs, a 0.3 percent reduction, but an improvement from last year, when 51,000 positions were eliminated. Developers are forecast to complete 1,000 units this year, down from 1,400 new rentals in 2009. Planned projects total about 5,100 units, or 3 percent of existing stock. Although supply growth will ease in 2010, demand will remain weak, resulting in a 30 basis point rise in vacancy to 10.8 percent. Last year, vacancy climbed 180 basis points. This year, asking rents should fall 3.8 percent to $767 per month, …
TARRYTOWN, N.Y. — DLC Realty Trust, an affiliate of DLC Management Corp., has filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission proposing an initial public offering of its common stock. DLC intends to list its stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “DLC”. According to a press release, the offering will only be made by means of a prospectus. Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Barclays Capital will act as the joint book-running managers for the offering. According to DLC's S-11 statement, the offering will generate as much as $575 million. The company plans to use the proceeds from the offering to pay down existing debt as well as provide working capital. As of the end of 2009, DLC Realty Trust had a portfolio of 86 shopping centers totaling 13.4 million square feet. The properties are located throughout the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Midwest, and they anchored primarily by grocery stores and value-oriented retailers. DLC Realty Trust formed last month. Its parent, DLC Management Corp., formed in 1991 and is headquartered in Tarrytown, N.Y. A call to DLC was not returned as of press time. — Coleman Wood * 4/13 – UPDATE: This version …
CHICAGO — Testa Produce has broken ground for the construction of its state-of-the-art freezer/cooler distribution facility within Stockyards Industrial Park in Chicago. Located on a 13-acre site at 4555 S. Racine Ave., the property will offer 91,000 square feet of distribution space. Summit Design + Build is consulting on the project, which is designed to achieve LEED Platinum certification.
CHICAGO Ń The Bankruptcy Court has approved an extension of General Growth Properties' (GGP) exclusivity period regarding its Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. Under the terms of the extension, GGP has until July 15 to file a reorganization plan and until September 15 to solicit acceptances of a plan of reorganization. During the exclusivity period, no other part is permitted to file a competing plan of reorganization. In addition, shares of GGP's common will resume trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol GGP. The shares had previously traded in the over-the-counter Pink Sheets markets under the ticker symbol GGWPQ. Ń Coleman Wood
TEXAS — InterContinental Hotels will have opened 13 new Candlewood Suites properties in Texas by the mid-mark of 2010. This will increase the company's Texas holdings to 50 properties. Candlewood Suites locations have already opened in San Antonio, Austin and the Houston metro area. Two more will open in Houston in the coming months, and another San Antonio property is being built. Texas locations are also planned for Abilene, Fort Stockton, Fort Worth and Temple.
CHICAGO Ń The latest turn in the saga of General Growth Properties' (GGP) emergence from bankruptcy surprisingly has nothing to do with Simon Property Group. On Wednesday, GGP agreed in principle with Brookfield Asset Management on a $2.625 billion equity commitment. Under the terms of the agreement, Brookfield would invest $2.5 billion in exchange for new GGP common stock priced at $10 per share. Brookfield would also invest up to $125 million at $5 per share in common stock for General Growth Opportunities, a new company created to hold certain GGP non-core assets, including all of the company's master-planned communities and its landmark developments. In return, Brookfield will own approximately 30 percent of GGP and be able to nominate three of the company's directors. According to a release issued by GGP, the deal is expected to create a floor value for the purpose of raising additional capital for the company. The deal will also provide sufficient liquidity to fund GGP's needs while it emerges from bankruptcy. GGP plans to pursue additional capital-raising alternatives totaling up to $5.8 billion, and Brookfield will assist it in raising the capital. For example, GGP plans to raise $250 million in a stock offering of …
CHICAGO — Chicago-based Testa Produce has broken ground for the development of a state-of-the-art, 91,000-square-foot distribution facility at Stockyards Industrial Park in Chicago. Located at 4555 S. Racine Ave. on a 13-acre site, the property will offer 18,000 square feet of office space and 73,000 square feet of freezer/cooler distribution space. Designed by A. Epstein & Sons, the facility is striving for LEED Platinum certification. Green elements include a wind turbine to co-generate electricity, hot water solar panels, PV solar panels, an extensive green roof, rainwater harvesting and daylight harvesting. Summit Design + Build is managing the project, which is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2011. Wendy Berger Shapiro of WBS Equities represented Testa Produce in the transaction with Back of the Yards Council, the property manager for the business park.
Lately, it has been quite challenging to pick up a newspaper, watch television or even view an online news source and not be inundated by sour economic events occurring throughout the world, as well as in the Greater Cleveland area. As we navigate our way through these uncertain times in the economy, and more specifically in the commercial real estate industry, owners and users of real estate will be faced with challenges as well as opportunities. The Cleveland industrial real estate market, which ranks as the ninth largest industrial market in the United States, remains healthy largely due to its conservative growth during the last decade. The Cleveland economy is comprised of a diverse range of businesses from many different sectors, making it less prone to volatile cycles common in other industrial-based regions. Our local industrial market, which consists of numerous submarkets, had a vacancy rate ranging from 8 to 10 percent throughout 2009. The average lease rate for industrial space was approximately $3.90 per square foot. Both of these indicators compare favorably to the U.S. average, which has slightly higher vacancy and lease rates. A major obstacle weighing on today’s real estate consumer in the Cleveland area is the …
BOSTON — Construction is advancing for Liberty Wharf, a $43 million mixed-use project located on the South Boston Waterfront. The project consists of three buildings totaling approximately 74,000 square feet of space. Tenants already signed on to occupy the restaurant component of the project include Legal Sea Foods and a steakhouse operated by Tavistock Group. The project will also include a 570-foot extension of the HarborWalk and will be LEED certifiable. The project is nearing shell completion, and restaurant build-out will commence in the second quarter. Bill Motley and Katherine Small of Jones Lang LaSalle will be leasing the project on behalf of Cresset Development. Elkus Manfredi Architects is designing it and John Moriarty & Associates is building it.
WOODSTOCK, GA. — McWhirter Realty Partners began construction February 1 on a 33,000-square-foot office building for Pinnacle Orthopaedics. The $7 million property is located on a 4-acre site on Towne Lake Parkway in Woodstock. Building features include an MRI suite, clinic space and an ambulatory surgery center. Delivery is expected this fall.