Buchanan Street Buys $52.6M Portfolio; Hines’ Camelback II Earns State’s 1st LEED Platinum for Existing Buildings

By Amalia Otet, Associate Editor

In a $52.6 million deal, Buchanan Street Partners has acquired a 10-building portfolio totaling 446,000 square feet in metropolitan Phoenix from Carlson Real Estate Co. The sale price equates to $118 per square foot.

The portfolio, which was 74 percent leased at the time of the sale, was purchased in four separate transactions and includes a mix of office, industrial, office flex and retail properties. Three of the assets are located in Cotton Center in Phoenix while the fourth is an industrial property in Avondale, in the Southwest Valley submarket.

The Cotton Center is a 280-acre mixed-use business park that integrates a variety of uses including office, industrial, service retail and hospitality.

Newport Beach, Calif.-based Buchanan Street Partners now owns more than 1.2 million square feet of commercial space in the Phoenix area. “This investment underscores our ongoing commitment to invest in Phoenix and select Valley submarkets,” said Tim Ballard, president of Buchanan Street Partners, in a statement. “The improving market fundamentals and the high caliber of tenants in these properties make this an attractive acquisition for us.” The transaction was structured by Eastdil Secured.

Meanwhile, 24th at Camelback II, a 307,000-square-foot Class A office building situated in the heart of Phoenix’s Camelback submarket, has achieved LEED Platinum certification under the U.S. Green Building Council’s existing building program.

Owned by Hines and an East Coast pension fund advised by Invesco, the property is Arizona’s first LEED-EB Platinum building and also earned the ENERGY STAR label in 2012.

Located on an 8.5-acre site at the southwest corner of 24th Street and Camelback Road, the 11-story building was developed by Hines in 2010. The project’s designer, Pickard Chilton Architects of New Haven, Conn., also designed the neighboring 24th at Camelback I. Also managed by Hines, that building earned LEED Gold designation.

Green highlights of 24th at Camelback II include: reduced heat island effect through covered parking and reflective roofing; use of low-VOC materials and finishes; a 30 percent reduction in indoor, potable water usage; electronic waste recycling programs; a 60 percent reduction in landscaping-related water consumption; enhanced indoor air quality systems; and a construction waste diversion rate greater than 50 percent. Additionally, Hines offers its GREEN OFFICE for Tenants program, which is focused on inspiring enhanced sustainable behavior among tenant groups. (Hines)