CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Beacon Partners has broken ground on a new five-story, Class A office building located at 1616 Camden Road at the corner of Camden Road and Kingston Avenue in Charlotte’s South End submarket. The property, known as 1616 Center, will feature 10,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor and 65,000 square feet of office space on the four floors above. Construction began on Oct. 14, which included the demolition of two existing buildings on the site. The project’s construction is estimated to wrap up in the third quarter of 2015. Architect David Furman of Centro Cityworks designed the property to feature a fitness center, locker rooms, a pedestrian plaza, patio space for the restaurants and retail space on the ground floor and an executive conference room overlooking the East/West Lynx Light Rail line. Boatsman Gillmore Wagner has signed a 12,000-square-foot lease at 1616 Center. The design team includes general contractor Edifice and architect Axiom. Charles Swanson and Kristy Venning of Beacon Partners will handle leasing 1616 Center’s office space, and Aaron Ligon of Ligon Commercial Real Estate will handle leasing the project’s retail space.
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INDIANAPOLIS — Mission Capital Advisors’ debt and equity finance group has arranged $31.4 million in construction financing for a 215-unit multifamily complex in Indianapolis. The financing comprised $7.1 million of institutional joint venture equity and a $24.3 million construction loan for the 225,000-square-foot project. A local sponsor is developing the project, which is located at 600 E. Michigan St. The project will comprise two, four-story multifamily structures around a landscaped courtyard with a resort-style pool, constructed over one level of subterranean parking. Brad Lyons, Ari Hirt and Steven Buchwald of Mission Capital Advisors represented the sponsor in arranging the financing with PNC Bank.
PALO ALTO, CALIF. — Bloomingdale’s has opened a 125,000 square-foot store at Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto. The three-level store contains 68 designer shops, more than 100 new brands. The new store will anchor the northeast side of the mall as part of a multi-phase renovation of the shopping center.
NEWARK, DEL. — Ingerman has broken ground for the development of Alder Creek, Delaware’s newest affordable housing community. Located in Newark, the community will feature 13 two-story buildings offering a total of 56 one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom apartment units. Each residence will have a private entrance, front porch, rear balcony or patio, and ample parking. On-site amenities include a community building with a meeting room, laundry facilities, fitness center and maintenance space, as well as an after-school program. The project is slated for completion in summer/fall 2015.
LOUISVILLE, KY. – Doster Construction Co. has broken ground on the $45 million The Clubhouse Student Apartments in Louisville. The project will be located adjacent to the University of Louisville campus and consists of three five-story wood frame buildings. The new complex will have 758 beds and more than 400,000 square feet of living space. Amenities will include two courtyards, a swimming pool, a club room, fitness area, a theater, computer/study room and a hammock garden. The project also includes a five-and-a-half level parking garage that will accommodate more than 625 spaces. Buck Development Louisville LLC, affiliated with The John Buck Co., is the project’s developer, Doster is the general contractor and Henneman Engineering Inc. is the architect of record. Peak Campus Management will manage the asset.
CULLMAN, ALA. — Birmingham, Ala.-based Merchants Retail Partners has broken ground on the expansion of Cullman Shopping Center, bringing the retail asset to more than 325,000 square feet. New tenants coming to the center include Publix, PetSmart and a custom-designed Dick’s Sporting Goods. All three tenants are new entrants to the city of Cullman. Existing tenants at the shopping center include Belk, Books-A-Million and Shoe Dept.
SAN DIEGO – McDonald Property Group and an entity owned by First Industrial Realty Trust have announced plans to develop La Pacifica II, a 237,275-square-foot industrial park in Oceanside. The $26-million project will be the first speculative industrial construction to occur in North San Diego since 2008, according to the developers. The three-building project will be located on a 15.8-acre site within the master-planned Ocean Ranch business park. It will be situated off Interstate 5 and Oceanside Boulevard. Ocean Ranch is also home to Coca Cola, Taylor Made and Genentech, among others. US Foods and FedEx will soon occupy space within the immediate area as well. The new project will feature three light warehouse manufacturing buildings that contain 108,413 square feet, 63,262 square feet and 65,600 square feet. This will be the first development project for McDonald Property Group, a company formed by Bruce McDonald in 2013. First Industrial Financing Partnership acquired the fully improved and entitled site from La Pacifica 2-Ocean Ranch LLC, an entity owned by Cruzan Monroe Investments, this past September for $9.6 million. La Pacifica 2-Ocean Ranch was represented by Aric Stark and Dennis Visser of Cassidy Turley in the sales transaction. The land was sourced …
First Niagara Closes $65M Construction Loan for Mixed-Use Development on D.C. Waterfront
by John Nelson
WASHINGTON, D.C. — First Niagara’s commercial real estate group has closed on a $65 million loan with Mid-Atlantic Realty Partners (MRP Realty) for the construction of a 305-unit mixed-use apartment project. The property, known as The Waterfront, will be located along the Anacostia Waterfront across the street from Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. The development will feature ground-floor retail and underground parking space. Riverfront Holdings I LLC, a joint venture between MRP Realty and Florida Rock Properties, is overseeing the development of the project, which is slated for delivery by September 2016. The Waterfront will feature a rooftop swimming pool with an indoor lounge and kitchen area, local art gallery, fitness center, ground-level lounge with billiards, a bar area, outdoor seating with a fireplace, rooftop movie screen and an outdoor kitchen. Yvonne Ulrich of First Niagara originated the loan.
AUSTIN — True Food Kitchen restaurant has signed a 7,000-square-foot lease on the ground floor of the Seaholm Residences, a 30-story condo residential tower under construction as part of the Seaholm Power Plant development in Austin. The project developers include CIM Group and Seaholm Power LLC. True Food Kitchen is a restaurant developed through a partnership between Fox Restaurant Concepts and Dr. Andrew Weil, an author on holistic health. Its lead chef is Arik Markus and the restaurant is expected to open in 2015. The Seaholm Power Plant project is the redevelopment of a 1950s power plant. When finished, the project will include 11,000 square feet of restaurant space and 3,500 square feet of public space. Construction began in April 2013 and is expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2015. The project is located on the southwestern edge of downtown Austin, bounded by Cesar Chavez Street, West Avenue, 3rd Street, Seaholm Drive and the A&NW rail line.
BOSTON — New Boston Fund Inc., Asian Community Development Corp. (ACDC), New Boston’s Urban Strategy America Fund and Suffolk Construction have topped off the North Building of One Greenway, a mixed-income residential development located in Boston’s Chinatown neighborhood. The property, which is revitalizing an entire city block on Hudson Street, consists of two buildings bookended by an open space and new pedestrian connection between Hudson and Albany streets. Upon completion in summer 2015, the 312-unit North Building will offer 217 market-rate rentals and 95 affordable rental units. The second building, South Building, will offer 51 middle-income home ownership opportunities within a transit-oriented location. One Greenway received significant public support for its 146 affordable units from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, the Department of Housing and Community Development, Department of Neighborhood Development and various other city and state agencies. Private investors and lenders include National Real Estate Advisors, PNC Bank, People’s United Bank, Property and Casualty Initiative, Boston Private Bank and RBC Capital Markets. Suffolk Construction is serving as general contractor for the project.