Alex Girda
Alex is a senior editor with Multi-Housing News and Commercial Property Executive who has more than a decade of experience in the industry. Mainly focused on data-driven exploits, he works with Yardi Matrix and CommercialEdge to provide insights into the real estate market.
Forest City Enterprises Offloads Coveted Office Property in Downtown San Jose
One of San Jose’s largest office buildings recently traded hands after Forest City Enterprises Inc. agreed terms with CBRE Global Investors for the sale of Fairmont Plaza. CBRE Global Investors paid $93.1 million for the Bay Area asset. The property, also known as the Knight-Ridder building, was sold in order to generate net cash proceeds for the Cleveland-based owner. Also part of this strategy was the recent sale of the company’s Emerald Palms apartment community in southwest Miami.
Caruso Targets a Host of Properties in Central Pacific Palisades for Renovation and Rebranding
The central properties seem to have cost Caruso a total amount in the $40-$50 million range. However, the financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed to the media and an accurate number is currently not available. Most of the properties are currently tenant-free and are 50-60 years old, making them perfect for a complete overhaul. The Times points out that even the tenants in place have clauses in their short-term contracts that stipulate that the owner has the right to modify the property and redevelop the site. Continue reading →
Perry & Associates Plans Spring Start for 70 KSF Lehi Office Project
The 70,000-square foot, Class A office construction is scheduled to begin in May 2013, with the development process set to be completed in one year, by March 2014. Set to take shape in the immediate vicinity of Interstate 15, the three-story office building will be located to the east of the State Road 92 exit, the Tribune writes. Its placement next to a TRAX line and proximity to the new Adobe campus and the Outlets at Traverse Mountain retail center make for an attractive location.
Indian Residential Market to Shine Stylishly via Swarovski Brand
Gateway Towers I is the latest Indian property to try and dazzle luxury seekers by associating itself with bedazzling brand giant Swarovski.
Vulcan Real Estate Debates Multifamily Developments as Project Pipeline Grows Longer
The project is somewhat unusual for the Paul Allen-controlled entity as the company has focused its attention on South Lake Union, its only non-SLU development being the Martin apartments, an ongoing residential project next to the Cinerama Theater. The Seattle Housing Authority is currently considering Vulcan, along with a number of other developers, for the redevelopment of the Yesler Terrace public housing project in First Hill, while the company is also set to develop a City Hall complex for the city of Bothell. However, that last project is currently on standby on the municipality’s part.
South African Developer Secures Financing for Retail, Residential projects in Pretoria
Nedbank Corporate Property Finance, a Durban-based financial organization, has reportedly provided a Pretoria developer with crucial financing that will be used in the development of two properties.
Stalled Pioneer Park Condo Project Gets $4.5M in City Financing
Set to comprise 17 live/work units, two 580 square-foot units, ten 700 square foot condo units, ten 900 square foot apartments and 12 units with 1,200 square-foot floorplans, Broadway Park Lofts will be used to liven up the residential market of Salt Lake City’s 300 South Corridor. With prices ranging from just under $100,000 to somewhere around $500,000, the residential development will benefit from close proximity to Pioneer Park, ensuring both good exposure and an easy marketing project for the end product.
U.of Phoenix Consolidates Footprint; Officials Weigh Growth for Tahoe
The University of Phoenix is reportedly tightening its belt and currently attempting to reorganize its space in the Las Vegas Valley. According to industry magazine VEGAS INC, the education entity is looking to cut costs and has already made some moves to that effect. The University has inked a deal with American Nevada Co., securing space in a building located in the vicinity of the Nevada Cancer Institute. The education institution’s new landlord is the real estate arm of the Greenspun Corp., an entity that currently owns two of the city’s largest publications, VEGAS INC and The Las Vegas Sun.
TMG Partners Acquires Recently Vacated Office Property, Seeks to Improve Existing Space
A vacant North San Jose office building was recently acquired by San Francisco-based real estate company TMG Partners. The buyer acquired the Class A property with the aid of equity partner Alcion Ventures LP. The seller was real estate investment company Kaufman Jacobs out of Chicago. The deal was perfected for an undisclosed amount with the buyers representing themselves and Kaufman Jacobs employing Mark Ziemendorf, a representative of Cornish and Carey, Newmark Knight Frank.
Amazon’s Denny Triangle Campus Phase One Gets General Contractor in Sellen
By Alex Girda, Associate Editor
Amazon.com has recently announced the developer that will be taking charge of its first phase Seattle campus in the downtown area of Denny Triangle. The tech giant has named local company Sellen Construction as the contractor for the much talked about development in downtown Seattle, the Puget Sound Business Journal wrote. Sellen has handled a number of high profile Seattle developments in the past, including the redevelopment of the PacMed Tower, which interestingly enough became Amazon’s headquarters at the time it was finished, as well as the green tech-laden Federal Way South redevelopment. That last project, previously referenced on this page, was handled for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The phase that Sellen Construction was hired to handle will include a Seventh Avenue 37-story office tower, as well as a 2,000-seat gathering space. Plans filed by the developer indicate that a retail component is also part of phase one, as well as an underground parking facility that will be able to hold around 1,000 cars. A ground breaking won’t be held soon, although reports this summer placed the start of the construction process sometime during 2013. Now that most of the planning approvals are in place and a general contractor is selected, there should be no major stalls to keep Sellen from building phase one of the three-block, NBBJ-designed Amazon campus.