DAILY READS: Dec. 16, 2019

Cannabis REIT GreenAcreage Closes Industry’s Largest Sale-Leaseback Deal in Illinois

“As part of Cresco’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its balance sheet and build up capital to expand in Illinois, the publicly-traded medical cannabis company sold the asset to GreenAcreage and signed a 15-year, triple-net lease — with two extension options — to continue operating the site, which is currently undergoing an expansion.” 

—Commercial Observer

Credit Suisse, CitiGroup, BOA Abandon Ucommune IPO Amid Valuation Questions

“It has only been a few days since China’s largest co-working operator officially filed a prospectus for its US IPO, but Ucommune’s debut on the New York Stock Exchange is already said to be facing opposition from its own bankers over its target valuation. Credit Suisse and Citigroup are said to have defected from the Beijing-based firm’s stock sale over concerns regarding Ucommune’s reported valuation goal of $2.6 billion, according to a report by Reuters citing people with direct knowledge of the matter.”

—Mingtiandi

How Amazon Became the Leasing King of E-commerce

“The company leases nearly 154 million square feet of warehouse space compared to the 4 million square feet it owns, SEC filings show, making it the biggest tenant of the largest landlords in the country. Most of its industrial space is located on the edge of cities and there’s an additional 41 million square feet planned, according to a report by logistics consulting firm MWPVL.”

—The Real Deal

Developer spins off from partners to launch her own real estate firm

“The prominent real estate executive MaryAnne Gilmartin is splitting with developers she partnered with two years ago to launch a new real estate firm. Gilmartin said she had exercised an option to exit from the venture with David Levinson and Robert Lapidus, the chief executives of the real estate investment and development firm L&L Holding Company. Gilmartin’s new company will be called MAG Partners and will continue to focus on ground-up real estate projects in the city.”

—Crain’s New York Business

Chinese Investment Nosedives in Bay Area, While Dropping By Half in SoCal

“The flow of mainland Chinese capital in amounts of $2.5M or larger into commercial real estate dropped by more than 50% in SoCal markets, and vanished almost entirely in San Francisco, in 2019.”

—Bisnow

How a Little Bank from Little Rock Took Over Miami Real Estate

“OZK always has the first lien on the property securing its loan. It also requires developers to put a chunk of their own equity in first. On average, OZK covers about $49 of every $100 of a project’s costs; the developer must come up with the rest — in the form of cash equity, which may include buyer deposits on condo deals. These funds are typically expended prior to the bank funding the loan.”

—Miami Herald

A New Vision for Part of the Williamsburg Waterfront

“Developers Two Trees Management—also behind the Domino megaproject—unveiled a proposal to build two mixed-use towers, up to 650-feet-tall, designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), and a six-acre park with access to the East River, designed by James Corner Field Operations (the firm behind Domino Park and the High Line).”

—Curbed NY

Here’s what will happen in multifamily real estate in 2020

“‘Increasing completions point to a competitive leasing environment for luxury product in 2020. About 550,000 market-rate apartments are under construction right now. Approximately 366,000 of them are scheduled to finish in 2020,'” Willett said. “‘That targeted delivery volume jumps sharply from 2019 completions of around 279,000 units.'”

—HousingWire

WeWork Begins Offloading Acquired Startups to Renew Co-Working Focus

“Another part of the plan appears to be The We Company’s swift move to shut down Spacious, the restaurant-slash-co-working startup that competed with WeWork until WeWork bought it out for $42.5 million just this past August. The shutdown of Spacious, which turned empty restaurants into temporary work spaces, is also accompanied by an investigation into the acquisition by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to probe Spacious’ finances.”

—Commercial Observer

Hill West Architects Reveals Renderings For Massive Waterfront Complex In Flushing, Queens

“Known as the Special Flushing Waterfront District, the project area is bound by 40th Road to the south, College Point Boulevard to the east, 36th Avenue to the north, and Flushing Creek to the west. The proposal includes nine buildings spread across four neighboring sites. Overall, the proposed project will comprise 1,725 apartments, 1,397,040 square feet of commercial area, and 21,913 square feet of community facilities.”

—New York YIMBY