the Editors of Commercial Property Executive
Does $124M Connecticut Trade Point to More Big Deals in NYC Area?
After a slow spring and early summer, a major apartment acquisition near New Haven, Conn., could be a signal that the greater New York City region’s deal pipeline could start to flow more freely before long. “We’re seeing some signs of people doing major deals,” Jeffrey Dunne, vice chairman for CB Richard Ellis Inc.’s investment properties unit, told CPN. Dunne made the observation in light of the $124 million trade of a 764-unit apartment community (pictured) in Hamden, Conn., recently arranged by his team, which also included Patrick Bisceglia and Todd Newman in collaboration with Baltimore-based William Roohan. Elsewhere in…
COO Peddicord Prepares to Bid Adieu to Arden
After 11 years with Los Angeles-based real estate concern Arden Realty Inc., chief operating officer Robert Peddicord (pictured) has announced his resignation. “I think at this point in time, I’ve done all that I can do at Arden, and as they head into a national platform and investment management, the company is in good hands, so it felt it was a good time to go,” Peddicord told CPN. During his tenure at Arden, Peddicord moved from his first position of leasing manager up to COO upon General Electric acquisition of the company in May 2006. He will leave Arden having…
‘New Generation’ of Synthetic Ice Gains Popularity
On a planet that’s getting gradually warmer, it could be one of the coolest, slickest recreational amenities, and although it’s white, it’s also quite green. “It” is synthetic ice for ice rinks and arena.Now, faced with higher energy-related energy costs, some hospitality venues have taken note of its potential green maintenance savings. There are some very sizable installations of synthetic ice across the country. Viking Ice , Wilsonville, Ore., is one of the largest and most established makers of synthetic ice, and its product, a polymer bonded to a proprietary wood laminate core, has been installed at resorts and entertainment…
Investcorp Forms $1B Entity to Acquire RE Debt
Though the acquisition of real estate debt isn’t new, current market conditions seem to have given investors new impetus to acquire such debt. Recently, Investcorp’s U.S.-based real estate group formed a new entity, Investcorp Real Estate Credit Fund L.P., to do just that, and more recently, it has closed on real estate debt valued at $210 million for an undisclosed, but presumably discounted, price. The acquisition involved several mezzanine loans collateralized by various single-asset properties and multiple-asset hotel portfolios across the United States. Both junior and senior mezzanine loans were included in the deal. Investcorp completed these transactions using capital…
Bankruptcy Court Signs Off on Boscov’s First-Day Motions
Boscov’s Department Store L.L.C. just announced that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware has signed off on the Reading, Pa.-headquartered company’s first-day motions, which were heard on Aug. 5. Sidelined by a souring economy that has put a damper on retail sales, Boscov’s filed a voluntary petition under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code earlier this week. As part of its restructuring effort, the company plans shutter the doors of 10 of its 49 stores. Paving the way for Boscov’s to return to a healthy relationship with its vendors and keep the merchandise rolling…
CBRE Investors Grabs Buckhead Office Park
CB Richard Ellis Investors has purchased Northcreek Office Park in the Buckhead community of Atlanta on behalf of the company’s Strategic Partners U.S. 5 fund. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. According to Real Capital Analytics, a New York City-based research firm, 29 Atlanta office properties sold for a total of $1 billion and an average price of $42 million over the last six months. Office sales in the overall Atlanta market totaled $2.1 billion over the past 12 months. The average transaction carried a cap rate of 6.7 percent and an average cost-per-square-foot of $209. In the…
Retail Investors Seek Bright Spots
It is hardly a secret to investment sales professionals that the retail sector is going through tough times and that the prospects for the rest of the year are uncertain at best. “We don’t have a crystal ball here, but I think the economy is the wild card,” said Dan Fasulo, managing director for Real Capital Analytics Inc. “This is the first consumer-led recession we’ve had in two decades.” Retail was also among the first sectors to bounce back in 2003-04 during the earlier part of the cycle, he noted. That said, Real Capital Analytics’ most recent analysis underscores how…
General Growth Postpones Summerlin Opening
General Growth Properties has delayed the opening of its 1.4 million-square-foot Las Vegas regional mall development, the Shops at Summerlin Centre (pictured), by perhaps a much as a year. Such a delay would push the opening of the property to 2010, when General Growth anticipates a stronger financial and retail environment. “If we had stuck to our original opening date, I think we would have opened that center probably around 70 percent, maybe 75 percent [occupied],” Robert Michael, president of the Chicago-based REIT, said recently during a conference call. “I think by delaying it… this project will open 90 percent…
$28M Financing Deal Paves Way for NJ Mixed-Use Waterfront Project
Plans to erect an upscale 564,000-square-foot mixed-use project on a 2.7-acre coastal brownfield site in Jersey City, N.J., move forward with the closing of a $27.5 million loan to fund the acquisition and the environmental cleanup of the property. EnviroFinance Group L.L.C. provided the financing for developer Statue of Liberty Harbor North Redevelopment Urban Renewal L.L.C. Known as Liberty Harbor North, the downtown parcel is the former home of Flinktote Co.’s manufacturing plant. Flinkote’s production of shingles that were tainted with asbestos left the property contaminated. However, Statue of Liberty Harbor saw the blighted spot as an opportunity to convert…
Secluded Caribbean Destination to Get $217M Airport
Officials of St. Vincent and the Grenadines have made headway in the plan to make the multi-island country more accessible with the groundbreaking on the Argyle International Airport. The development, which carries a price tag of $217, million will mark the country’s largest project ever to be undertaken. The new facility will occupy a 375-acre parcel that is currently home to the Joshua Airport. Upon Argyle’s scheduled completion in 2011, the former airport will be transformed for commercial use. Prime Minister Ralph E. Gonsalves and the International Airport Development Company (IADC) – the state-owned entity that will manage the airport…