Adriana Pop
Adriana Pop is a senior editor with Commercial Property Executive and Multi-Housing News. She joined CPE and MHN in 2012, with an academic background in economics, English and Italian. She currently curates the CPE Sneak Peek newsletter, highlighting noteworthy stories and emerging topics for readers. Connect with her at adriana.pop@cpe-mhn.com or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ioana-adriana-pop-811772108/.
Construction to Begin on Pittsburgh International Business Park
Developers have broken ground on two buildings that will anchor the Pittsburgh International Business Park on Cherrington Extension Parkway in Moon Township. The single story brick and glass facilities will each offer 53,000 square feet of high end Class A office space. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that Columbus, Ohio-based Continental Real Estate Cos. and Cranberry-based Chaska Property Advisors Inc. will spend between $12 million and $15 million on the construction of the two facilities. Upon completion in the summer of 2013, mortgage services company ServiceLink will move into the buildings with approximately 700 employees.
Two Apartment Projects Totaling 500 Units to Break Ground in Residential Community
In the coming months, two projects are expected to break ground at the Heritage residential community in Wake Forest. According to the NewsObserver, the new developments will bring more than 500 units to Heritage. Atlanta-based TWO Capital Partners will develop Capital Creek, a 315-unit apartment complex. The project will be built on a 26-acre site next to Heritage Middle School. The company expects to purchase the land in February and open the property by next fall. The second development is a 260-unit apartment complex called Heritage Gardens. Greensboro-based Certus Properties will build the project on a 17-acre parcel of land. The company recently purchased the property for $1.74 million and expects to open the new complex late next year.
Rhode Island Housing Wins 2 Awards in National Competition
Rhode Island Housing has received the National Council of State Housing Agencies’ special achievement and communications awards. NCSHA cited the state agency’s comprehensive approach to foreclosure prevention and its efforts to forge human and electronic links with more than 60 local and national lenders in its special achievement award. Housing finance agencies nationwide compete for NCSHA awards in 18 categories. In the communications category, Rhode Island Housing was recognized for its Hardest Hit Fund Rhode Island outreach efforts. Through newsletters, targeted automatic phone messages and coordination with members of the General Assembly, the agency has encouraged attendance of free informational meetings. As a result, homeowners at risk of losing their home due to a sudden financial hardship were the beneficiaries of effective federal foreclosure assistance.
Developer Plans Large Mixed-Use Community in Downtown Kihei on Maui
The Krausz Cos. is planning a 320,000-square-foot sustainable, mixed-use project in the city of Kihei, one of Maui’s most populated communities. According to the Pacific Business News, the proposed Downtown Kihei project calls for a village square; more than 200,000 square feet of office, medical office, retail and restaurant space; a 44,180-square-foot movie theater; a four-story, 150-room hotel; and more than 1,000 parking stalls. The new development will be built between the Piilani Village Shopping Center and the Longs and Azeka’s centers, on four parcels of land totaling 27 acres.
Expedient Plans Major Expansion for Pittsburgh Data Center
Expedient is planning a six-month, multi-million dollar project that will double the size of its second Pittsburgh data center. Located within Allegheny Center Mall, the facility is expected to reach a total of 18,000 square feet of computing space and 25,000 square feet overall. It is the company’s third data center expansion in Pittsburgh since 2008. “We are pleased with the accelerating demand for our private cloud and colocation services in the Pittsburgh market and we look forward to the opportunities that our expansion projects will provide to our current and future customers,” said Shawn McGorry, President and COO of Expedient.
Walmart Takes Steps to Open Another Express Store In North Carolina
Wal-Mart plans to open a Walmart Express store in Rolesville. The NewsObserver reports that the retailer is using North Carolina as a primary test market for its smaller store concept. Wal-Mart is now in the process of acquiring a parcel of land at the corner of Rogers Road and Grand Rock Way. The company will then need to apply for a land reclassification and obtain a special-use permit for its new project. According to Thomas Lloyd, Rolesville’s planning director, the retailer is expected to submit more detailed architectural drawings within next week. Walmart Express stores are generally less than one-tenth the size of the company’s typical retail centers, which can be 200,000 square feet or larger. The smaller stores employ between 20 and 25 people and offer a good variety of products at the same prices. The company has opened 10 Express stores so far, half of which are located in North Carolina.
Pittsburgh Neighborhood Developments to Receive Federal Funding
Two neighborhood development projects in Pittsburgh will receive $1.6 million in federal grants from the Office of Community Services, an agency of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. The funding was announced by the administration of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl. East Liberty Development Inc. has been awarded approximately $800,000 for the transformation of a historic East Liberty building into the city’s first boutique hotel. The five-story, former YMCA building has been vacant for 10 years. Plans call for 63 guest rooms, a restaurant, exercise facilities, coffee bar, specialty retail, and event and programming spaces.
BB&T Takes Over Lease of 390,000-Sq.-Ft. Building Formerly Occupied by American Express
BB&T Corp. of Winston-Salem has signed a seven-year agreement to lease the former American Express call center building in Greensboro. The company plans to add 1,700 jobs to the region over the next five years. Located west of Piedmont Triad International Airport, the 390,000-square-foot structure will eventually house up to 2,500 employees working primarily in back office, administrative and support functions. Between 50 and 100 workers will move into the bank’s Triad Corporate Center by December. BB&T neither sought nor was offered any economic development incentives as part of the transaction. According to Chris Henson, the bank’s chief operating officer, the expansion was prompted by the company’s internal growth.
Honolulu Officials Approve Leasehold Sale of City-Owned Affordable Housing
The Honolulu City Council has approved Mayor Peter Carlisle’s plan to sell the city’s 12 leasehold affordable rental complexes situated in various parts of Oahu to a private entity for $142 million. Called Honolulu Affordable Housing Partners L.L.C., the corporation comprises Highland Property Development L.L.C. of Arcadia, Calif.; Richard Gushman of Honolulu, who has more than 40 years of real estate experience; and Stephen Gelber, a Honolulu real estate and tax attorney who has worked on many affordable housing transactions in Hawaii.
The leasehold purchase agreement requires the entity to make a a one-time payment of $142 million to the city and spend an additional $42 million within the first two years of the 65-year lease term to renovate the apartments.
Providence’s Waldorf Capital Buys M-F Asset in Fall River
Tag Fall River Real Estate III LLC, a division of Providence-based Waldorf Capital Management LLC, has purchased a 49-unit apartment complex in Fall River, Mass. for $3.42 million, the Boston Business Journal reported. NAI Hunnema’s investment sales team represented the seller, Clearview Investments, and procured the buyer. Tag Fall River Real Estate III LLC., the affiliate that acquired the property for Waldorf Capital, bought the property at a discount of about 30 percent from the property’s most recent sale price in 2007. Located at 4000 North Main Street, Clearview Apartments is comprised of two three-level buildings containing 42 two-bedroom units and seven one-bedroom units. The apartments feature a balcony or ground-level patio overlooking the Tauton River.