the Editors of Commercial Property Executive
Economy Draws Lively Debate at CPN Philadelphia Conference
Even experts continue to disagree about the depth of the American economy’s troubles and its impact on commercial real estate. That was clear during the lively opening panel discussion this morning at CPN’s annual Philadelphia Property Opportunities conference. “I think we’re facing the abyss, and it’s principally driven by the home building sector,” Chris Terlizzi, executive vice president for Citizens Bank, told about 300 real estate professionals at the Sheraton Philadelphia City Center. “We have a lot of uncertainty right now, and it’s anybody’s guess as to how it’s going to play out.” The current situation is worse than the…
Lodging Sector: Foreign Investing to Help Offset Slower Growth
The hotel industry is very likely to see declining fundamentals, but the influx of institutional investors to the sector and strong inbound international travel to the U.S. are two reasons the slowdown is unlikely to be as severe as the last industry slump, concluded a panel held at the Americas Lodging and Investment Summit that was held on Wednesday in Los Angeles. John Arabia, panelist on “The Equity Outlook- A Focus on REITS,” commented that he has distilled opinion from a number of leading economists who have recently weighed in on the subject, and said the U.S. economy is projected…
Tribune to Snag Newspaper Properties for $175M; Sell Hollywood Studio Property for $125M
Tribune Company is making some bold moves with its real estate. In a like-kind exchange, the media conglomerate will acquire eight office properties it currently leases from TMCT L.L.C. for $175 million, relying on funds it will gain from the sale of its Tribune Studios (pictured) in Los Angeles to Hudson Capital L.L.C. for $125 million. Accounting for over 2.9 million square feet of space, the office assets Tribune plans to acquire are home to some of the company’s long list of owned newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times, Newsday, Baltimore Sun and the Hartford Courant. Tribune was awarded the…
New Brands, Asian Markets Help Drive Starwood’s Aggressive Expansion Plans
Recession? Market correction? What’s that? Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide’s just-released summary of their current expansion plans shows anything but pessimism. The chain, owner of such high-profile brands as Sheraton, Westin, St. Regis and Le Meridien, currently has in the pipeline 500 hotels totaling 120,000 rooms. Its 900th hotel will open this year, and the company expects to increase its portfolio by 50 percent over the next five years. Part of that growth will come from the opening this year of Starwood’s first hotels in its Aloft and Element brands. Built in a high-ceilinged loft style, the Aloft properties are…
Global CRE Investment Reaches Record $759B in 2007
Investment in commercial real estate across the globe rose $59 billion in 2007 to $759 billion, making it a record year for activity despite the dragging effect the credit crunch had on the market in the second half of the year, according to a report today from Jones Lang LaSalle. “2007 was a year of two halves. The very strong performance in the first half helped overall investment to exceed 2006–itself a record year,” Tony Horrell, CEO European Capital Markets at Jones Lang LaSalle, noted in a release. “The sub-prime crisis, ensuing credit crunch and re-pricing led to a marked…
ProLogis Lands New Leases in Central Ohio
Denver-based ProLogis has leased additional space at ProLogis Park 70-Etna–in development near Columbus, Ohio–to current customers at the site. The tenants are California-based Menlo Worldwide Logistics and Texas-based SpeedFC. SpeedFC will add another 158,000 square feet to arrive at a total rental of 318,000 square feet. Menlo Worldwide will expand its current rental of 311,000 square feet with the addition of another 150,000 square feet.Prologis already has three buildings in development at the park is a 220-acre facility. These have a combined area of 1.6 million square feet. Plans now call for the park to include five facilities with a…
ProLogis Expands ProLogis Park Suzhou in China
ProLogis is expanding its platform at one of its largest industrial parks in China, ProLogis Park Suzhou, with new inventory facilities of more than 613,000 square feet, the company has reported. The industrial powerhouse recently bought land at the park to enable development of five additional facilities–more than 1 million square feet. Construction as begun on three. Strong leasing activity during the fourth quarter has contributed to the development pace. Currently, the 27-building, 3.6 million-square-foot park is 100 percent leased. The five-building expansion is due for completion in the first half of 2009, at a cost above $34 million. All…
The W. P. Carey Group Completes Third Sale-Leaseback with OBI
Investment firm W. P. Carey & Co. has acquired a retail facility in Wroclaw, Poland, from German do-it-yourself retailer OBI, it reported. The $14 million deal is the third sale-leaseback W. P. Carey has arranged with the OBI Group over the last two years, providing more than $200 million in financing to the German Do-It-Yourself retailer.One of the leading DIY retailers in the world, OBI currently operates more than 500 stores in Central and Eastern Europe and is looking to further expand in this region. “The sale-leaseback and build-to-suit transactions we’ve completed with W. P. Carey have played a significant…
Castlethorn Announces $1.7B Mixed-Use Urban District in Ireland
Castlethorn Construction has submitted a major planning application to the South Dublin County Council for the $1.7 billion, 1.65 million-square-foot Adamstown Central, one of the largest mixed-use projects in Ireland. The project (pictured), which is a new urban district on a greenfield site adjoining the main Dublin-Kildare railway line, will provide a full range of community, civic, residential, retail and commercial facilities for the town’s expected population of 30,000 by 2015. Planned facilities include a primary healthcare center, an inter-church place of worship, a leisure center, library, enterprise center and several civic squares. The 20-acre town center will include 60…
UDR to Pocket $1.7B on Apartment Portfolio Sale
Plans have been made for UDR Inc. to sell a portfolio of 86 multi-family properties to a joint venture involving DRA Advisors L.L.C. and Steven D. Bell & Co. As per the terms of the contract, UDR will walk away with an aggregate $1.7 billion. DRA and Steven D. Bell & Co. will fork over $1.5 billion in cash as well as a $200 million principal note in exchange for the group of assets, which encompasses 25,684 apartment residences. Presently, the apartment properties haven an average occupancy level of 94.4 percent and an average age of 24 years. For UDR,…