WESLACO, TEXAS — Glazer’s Beer & Beverage will open a 250,000-square-foot distribution center in the Rio Grande Valley city of Weslaco. The wholesale alcoholic beverage distributor will be the anchor tenant of Mid Valley International Industrial Park, a 122-acre master-planned development on which the Weslaco Economic Development Corp. recently broke ground. The move is expected to add about 200 new jobs to the local economy.
NEWARK, N.J. — A public-private partnership between RISE: A Real Estate Co. and the New Jersey Institute of Technology has completed Maple Hall, a 548-bed student housing project located on the university’s Newark campus. The eight-story development includes a game room, an outdoor terrace, full kitchens, private and group study rooms, a creative studio, an outdoor kitchen and onsite parking. The community also features 2,145 square feet of retail space. RISE will provide ongoing property management at Maple Hall, which opened before the start of the 2022-2023 academic year. The development team for the project included Niles Bolton Associates, Netta Architects, Terminal Construction, T&M Associates, Langan Engineering and RBC Capital Markets.
ROMULUS, MICH. — The Kroger Co. has opened its newest customer fulfillment center (CFC) in Romulus. Powered by the Ocado Group, the roughly 135,000-square-foot CFC will leverage advanced robotics technology and creative solutions for Kroger delivery services. Kroger utilizes temperature-controlled vans and machine-learning algorithms that optimize delivery routes for grocery deliveries. Machine-learning algorithms adjust themselves to perform better as they are exposed to more data. Orders are delivered to customers’ doorsteps by trained Kroger associates. The CFC in Romulus will reach customers up to 90 minutes from the site and will employ more than 700 associates. Kroger first announced its partnership with Ocado, a technology company that specializes in grocery e-commerce, in 2018. Kroger currently operates CFCs in Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Wisconsin, Texas and Michigan. Additional centers are slated for California, Maryland, Arizona, Ohio, North Carolina and Colorado as well as South Florida and the Northeast.
BILLINGS, MONT. — Dwight Capital has provided a $37.7 million HUD 221(d)(4) construction loan for InterUrban Apartment Homes Phase II, a proposed multifamily expansion project in Billings. The borrower is Montana-based Stock Development. Situated on more than 10 acres, the community will feature six three-story, garden-style buildings and a one-story clubhouse. The 216 units will offer patios, soundproofing, in-unit washers/dryers and smart home packages, which include remote access to HVAC, lighting and security. The buildings will be constructed to National Green Building Standard Bronze guidelines, which enabled the borrower to qualify for a Green Mortgage Insurance Premium Reduction set at 25 basis points. Brandon Baksh of Dwight Capital originated the transaction for the borrower. Dwight Capital also provided a $24.4 million HUD 223(a)(7) loan for the first phase of the property in April 2020.
MARRIOTT-SLATERVILLE, UTAH — St. John Properties has broken ground on 12th Street Exchange, a 19-acre business park located at 1200 South and S 1900 West in Marriott-Slaterville, approximately 35 miles north of Salt Lake City. Once completed, 12th Street Exchange will offer 170,000 square feet of commercial flex/R&D and retail space. This project is St. John Properties’ fourth Utah development and its first project north of Salt Lake City in Weber County.
MIAMI — Housing Trust Group (HTG) and AM Affordable Housing have broken ground on Tucker Tower, a $44 million affordable housing community in Miami for seniors aged 62 and older. Located at 9940 W. Hibiscus St. in the city’s Perrine neighborhood, the eight-story property’s apartments will be reserved for income-qualifying residents who earn at or below 25, 30 and 60 percent of area median income (AMI), with rents ranging from $457 to $1,317 per month. Amenities will include a fitness center, business center with computer stations, swimming pool, pet grooming station, lighted pathways along accessible routes and a library. The property is scheduled to deliver in early 2024. The project team for Tucker Tower includes general contractor BDI Construction; engineer HSQ Group LLC; architect Corwil Architects; landscaper Witkin Hults; and interior designer B. Pila Design Studio. Tucker Tower is the fifth affordable housing collaboration between HTG and AM Affordable Housing, a nonprofit developer founded by former NBA player Alonzo Mourning. Capital sources for Tucker Tower include $28.4 million in 9 percent Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) equity syndicated through Raymond James and purchased by Bank of America; a $30 million construction loan from Bank of America; a $9.5 million …
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Northwood Investors LLC has added two new tenants to Metropolitan, a mixed-use development and lifestyle shopping center located in Midtown Charlotte. The new concepts include Yuliya’s Ice Cream, a locally based, woman-owned ice cream company founded by Belarusian immigrant Yuliya Shvinhelskaya. The eatery will open at Metropolitan, its first brick-and-mortar shop, in early 2023. The other concept is Removery, the largest specialized provider of tattoo removal services. The company operates nearly 100 locations. Other newcomers to Metropolitan include European Wax Center, Open Rice and Clean Your Dirty Face. In addition to new tenants, Northwood Investors is unveiling the refresh of Metropolitan’s exterior that includes new signage, enhanced lighting along the bike path, colorful banners along Charlottetowne Avenue and South Kings Drive, metal and fabric garage screens and vertical wood and warmer colors throughout. Other upcoming renovations include updated landscaping and interior furnishings.
RESTON, VA. — Comstock Holding Cos. Inc. has signed mini-golf retail concept Puttshack to anchor Phase II of Reston Station, an 80-acre mixed-use project underway in Northern Virginia. Located near the Wiehle-Reston East Metro Station at 1850 Reston Row Plaza in Reston, Puttshack will be the project’s first active entertainment venue when it opens in summer 2025. The more than 29,000-square-foot space will feature four nine-hole mini-golf courses equipped with Puttshack’s proprietary Trackaball technology that keeps track of patrons scores as they play. The venue will also have a full dining menu and hand-crafted cocktails, as well as multiple bars and private event spaces for parties and business outings. Chicago-based Puttshack recently completed a growth capital round of $150 million from funds managed by BlackRock and continued support from Promethean Investments to help fuel the operator’s expansion plans.
HAVERHILL, MASS. — Locally based design-build firm Dacon Corp. has completed a 135,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Haverhill, located north of Boston, that is a build-to-suit for Memphis-based Monogram Foods. The facility houses several temperature-controlled storage spaces, as well as production areas and offices. Paradigm Properties developed the facility, which is primarily dedicated to pre-assembled sandwich manufacturing and is ultimately expected to employ about 350 people.
Joint Venture Breaks Ground on Two Spec Industrial Facilities in Hagerstown, Maryland Totaling 2 MSF
HAGERSTOWN, MD. — A joint venture led by an affiliate of Baltimore-based MCB Real Estate LLC has begun construction on Currwood Logistics Park, a 2 million-square-foot industrial park in Hagerstown. Set for delivery in late fall 2023, the 195-acre project will comprise two single-story buildings — one spanning nearly 1.7 million square feet and the other a 300,000-square-foot building that are being developed simultaneously on a speculative basis. Other members of the joint venture include Invesco Real Estate, Curated Development Group and Birchwood Capital Partners. The development is expected to generate nearly 1,500 new jobs for Washington County and the surrounding area. The development team is investing in the construction of a new signalized intersection at U.S. Route 40, as well as a new four-lane extension of Paul Smith Boulevard that extends to another new signalized intersection at Edgewood Drive that will serve as the project’s entrance. The concrete tilt-wall buildings will feature 36- to 40-foot clear ceiling heights, LED lighting, high-efficiency HVAC systems, 185-foot truck courts and segregated parking fields reserved for employee and visitor parking. The larger building will feature 196 dock doors and four drive-in doors, an alternate-energy-ready roof structure designed to accommodate a photovoltaic solar array …