the Editors of Commercial Property Executive
Wyndham to Open 20 Ramada Encore Hotels in South Korea
Parsippany, N.J.-based Wyndham Hotel Group has made a move to increase the visibility of its Ramada properties in South Korea with the signing of an exclusive agreement with Seoul-headquartered AT Hotels Management to open 20 Ramada Encore destinations over the next six years. AT Hotels will develop and manage the properties, which will offer 80 to 200 guestrooms. Wyndham flies its value-conscious Ramada Encore flag at hotels outside the U.S. and Canada. Details on the designated locations of the new properties have not been disclosed; however, the South Korea Ramada portfolio presently consists of two hotels in Seoul, and one…
Adler Takes Naples Industrial Portfolio for $31M
The Adler Group has acquired a 252,400-square-foot industrial portfolio in Naples, Fla., from Lund Capital Group for $31 million. The two-building portfolio is located near Naples Municipal Airport and is 96 percent occupied. The portfolio consists of Collier Park of Commerce, a seven-building, 189,500-square-foot park and Commerce Center, a four-building, 62,900-square-foot park. Collier County is among the tenants, according to Mike Davis, executive director of Florida’s West Coast capitals market group for Cushman & Wakefield Inc., who negotiated the sale of the portfolio for the owner, Naples-based Lund Capital Group.Jason Hochman, managing director of acquisitions for Adler Group, told CPN…
Aussie Firm to Sell Half Interest in King of Prussia Mall
Sydney-based Lend Lease Corp., a multi-national real estate investor and manager, has engaged Holliday Fenoglio Fowler L.P. to sell its 50 percent interest in the 2.6 million-square-foot King of Prussia Mall, in metro Philadelphia. John Pelusi, HFF’s executive managing director, along with Glenn Whitmore and Chris Turner, senior managing directors, will lead the sales team. Pelusi noted in a prepared statement that both the rollover of leases with below-market rents and the redevelopment of the former Strawbridge’s department store represent opportunities to continue to grow the mall’s revenue. Though Minnesota’s Mall of America is larger in total square feet, the…
Tenant Reps Say Sluggish Economy Means Changes in How They Handle Clients
Faced with a sluggish economy, tight credit environment and softening office leasing market, tenant representation brokers say their roles have been changing in recent months. Several brokers on both coasts told CPN they are increasingly taking on advisory roles as they help clients manage their space needs and expenses.“There has been a significant amount of what I would call hand-holding and advisory services in guiding our tenants on the choices available should they need to make a decision,” said Marc Miller, executive vice president at Winoker Realty Company, a privately-held, mid-size commercial real estate management and leasing firm in Manhattan.Miller…
Kenco Takes Over Management of 1.6 MSF Whirlpool Facility in Columbus
Kenco Logistic Services L.L.C. has obtained management rights to a Whirlpool distribution center in Ohio. Kenco will assume control over the 1.6 million-square-foot Whirlpool Distribution Center in Columbus, Ohio, upon its opening in October. Kenco will also manage the firm’s existing facility, located within a mile of the new site, and oversee the transition between the facilities. This agreement continues the relationship that Kenco and Whirlpool have had since 1979, when Kenco first began providing the firm with its logistics services. Kenco presently manages over 5 million square feet of Whirlpool facilities. Kenco expects that it will maintain the current…
Duke’s Savannah-Area Portfolio Grows by 657,600 SF with 2-Building Buy
Already the largest provider of industrial properties in greater Savannah, Ga., Duke Realty Corp. has boosted its portfolio in the area by 657,600 square feet with the acquisition of two distribution centers from local developer Wrenn Blalock. The fully occupied facilities sit within Duke’s Port Logistics Center at Crossroads Business Park, and with the recent purchase, the real estate company now owns in excess of 4.5 million square feet of space in the 1,700-acre park. Originally developed by Blalock in 2007, the properties include the 432,600-square-foot Northpoint IV, home to storage and shipping company Ocean Link Inc., and the 225,000-square-foot…
JV Snaps Up 460,000-SF Atlanta Office-Flex Campus for $47M
Winthrop Realty Trust, acting with joint venture partner Sealy & Co., has acquired a 470,000-square-foot office-flex complex in Northwest Atlanta. The price tag on the six-structure campus was $47 million, including the assumption of a $37 million mortgage loan at 6.12 percent with a scheduled November 2016 maturity date. Winthrop and Sealy will own the property jointly, and Sealy will handle the daily operations for the joint venture. Winthrop and Sealy did not disclose the exact location of the new asset; however, it sits adjacent to the 12-structure, 472,000-square-foot office-flex complex the partners purchased in 2006 for approximately $35.9 million….
Zell: Is the Grave Dancer Finally in Grave Trouble?
It’s probably the biggest grave Sam Zell has ever danced on: the Tribune Co., with its newspapers, broadcast media, the Cubs and other interests. Strictly speaking, it isn’t a grave — plenty of the company’s properties make money — and it isn’t a real estate play. Still, real estate promises to play an important role by providing some of the much-needed liquidity that the company will use over the next few years to pay down parts of its debt, which totals about $12.5 billion. As one “Sam-ism” puts it: “Liquidity equals value.” But will selling off Tribune Co. assets, including…
Cargo Containers to Help Data Centers Go Green
Microsoft’s newest generation of data centers, including one that was announced last week for West Des Moines, Iowa, could represent a turning point in green data center design, according to a data center industry expert.Rich Miller, editor of DataCenterKnowledge.com, told CPN that Microsoft hasn’t yet unveiled full plans for the West Des Moines center. However, although the $500 million, 500,000-square-foot data center being developed by Microsoft outside Chicago, will feature a traditional raised-floor configuration on the upper floor, the servers on the ground floor will be housed in up to 220, 40-foot shipping containers. The Northlake center will be Microsoft’s…
Tropicana Eyes New Buyer for Indiana Casino
Casino Aztar in Evansville, Ind., is reportedly on the block again, but not necessarily to Eldorado Resorts L.L.C. Earlier this year, Casino Aztar owner Tropicana Entertainment L.L.C. agreed to sell the property to Eldorado for $220 million, but Tropicana filed for bankruptcy before the deal was closed. The Indiana property–the first casino opened in the state–is a riverboat gaming facility located an 841,800-square-foot area at Riverfront Park on the Ohio River in Downtown Evansville, which is in the southwest corner of the state. All together, Casino Aztar includes a 2,700-passenger riverboat casino, 250-room hotel, 1,660-vehicle parking garage and Riverfront Pavilion…