Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Legacy Partners Completes $264M Mixed-Use TOD at Hollywood and Vine in Los Angeles


LOS ANGELES, CA,  June 30, 2010 — Legacy Partners, a leader in residential and commercial real estate for four decades, has completed development of 1600 Vine (top left photo), a $264 million mixed-use community that combines sleek with sustainable in one of California’s most avant-garde Transit Oriented Developments (TOD).

With 12 stories at the iconic corner of Hollywood and Vine in Hollywood, this premier community features market rate and affordable apartment units, nationally known retailers and a dedicated public parking lot, all located on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame (middle right photo)  and directly above the Hollywood/Vine Red Line Metro Station. (lower right  photo)

Ten years in the making, 1600 Vine was a collaborative effort between Legacy Partners Residential, Gatehouse Capital and the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (CRA/LA).

 It encompasses 375 apartments (297 market rate, 78 affordable), 32,595 square feet of ground floor retail featuring Trader Joe’s, Wells Fargo Bank, CafĂ© Entourage, Bubbles (a full service dry cleaners), and a 215-space, on-site public parking lot.

 The community also shares a city block and grand valet parking entry and podium with the W Hotel Hollywood and W Residences, which boasts the famous 30,000-square-foot Drai’s Hollywood nightclub, (middle left photo) one of the most popular rooftop club destinations in Los Angeles. Collectively, the property brings the Golden Age of Hollywood into today’s fast-paced, celeb-driven LA.

With a multitude of floor plan configurations, pet-friendly apartment homes at 1600 Vine range in price from $2,375 to $11,125 per month.

There are 110 studios, 132 one-bedroom flats, 6 one-bedroom townhomes, 78 two-bedroom flats, 47 two-bedroom townhomes and 2 three-bedroom townhomes ranging in size from 612 square feet to 3,183 square feet.

Chic, spacious flats and lofts feature expansive windows, allowing residents to experience the city light and hillside views, including the famous Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory.

Apartment amenities include spacious gourmet kitchens with solid surface counter tops and Energy Star gas range, microwave, dishwasher and refrigerator with icemaker; full-size stack washer and dryer; bathrooms featuring solid surface countertops and framed mirrors; central heat and air; and pre-wiring for high speed Internet access and cable TV.

Enviable on-site community amenities include a Resident’s Lounge with LCD TVs, billiards, bar and catering kitchen; 6th floor pool, spa, outdoor fireplace and gas barbeques; fitness studio with cardio, free weights, boxing bag and yoga/Pilates room; multiple outdoor furnished lounge retreats with Los Angeles skyline views; 11th floor rooftop terrace featuring outdoor fireplace, LCD TV, lounges and Zen garden; and an executive conference room and fully-equipped business center.

Contact: David Ebeling, Ebeling Communications, (949) 278-7851, david@ebelingcomm.com

JLL Completes 28,700-SF Lease in Lake Forest, CA


LAKE FOREST, CALIF., June 30, 2010 – Jones Lang LaSalle represented Trimedyne in a multi-year, 28,700-square-foot lease renewal at 25901 Commercentre Drive in Lake Forest, California. This one building property serves as the company’s headquarters.

Trimedyne, Inc. is a manufacturer of lasers and disposable fiber optic delivery devices for use in a variety of surgical applications including, urology, orthopedics, ENT surgery, gynecology, GI surgery, and general surgery.

David Y. Cantwell, Executive Vice President of Jones Lang LaSalle, represented Trimedyne in the transaction. Curt Stalder of Lee & Associates represented the landlord, a private investor.

“Trimedyne took advantage of the current commercial real estate market conditions and achieved substantial more favorable lease term saving thousands of dollars,” said Cantwell

Contact:  David Ebeling, Phone:, +1 949 278 7851, Email:, david@ebelingcomm.com

Arbor Closes $15M Fannie Mae DUS® Loan for Continental Village Apartments in West Covina, CA


Uniondale, NY (June 30, 2010) - Arbor Commercial Funding, LLC (“Arbor”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arbor Commercial Mortgage, LLC, announced the recent funding of a $15,000,000 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS® product line for the 200-unit complex known as Continental Village Apartments in West Covina, CA.

The 10-year loan amortizes on a 30-year schedule and carries a note rate of 5.26 percent.

The loan was originated by Greg Gillam (top right photo), Director, in Arbor’s full-service Manhattan Beach, CA lending office. “This is another example of Fannie Mae’s ability to provide low-cost financing for properties that provide affordable market rental rates,” said Gillam.

Contact: Ingrid Principe, P: 516.506.4298, F: 516.542.2555, http://www.arbor.com/, Follow us on Twitter @ arbor1

Buffalo Wild Wings in Brandon, FL Gets $2M Loan


SARASOTA, FL, June 30, 2010— Thomas D. Wood and Company, a Strategic Alliance Mortgage LLC member, secured financing in the amount of $2,070,000 for the Buffalo Wild Wings in Brandon, Florida.


Brad Cox, (top right photo)  CCIM, CPM, Company Vice President, secured financing for the Buffalo Wild Wings through Thomas D. Wood and Company’s relationship with a national bank.

The borrower is a Buffalo Wild Wings franchisee who was leasing the space from the former building owner, and was given the opportunity to purchase the property through a SBA-504 Program.

The full-recourse loan has an interest rate of 6.25%, based on a 20-year term and 25-year amortization. The loan-to-value is 90%. The 6,400 square-foot single-tenant restaurant was built in 2004 and is located at 2055 Badlands Drive, Brandon, Florida.

For further information, please contact:

Brad Cox, CCIM, CPM (941) 552-9731 bcox@tdwood.com
Jessica Kinnee (407) 937-0470 jkinnee@tdwood.com

$10.1M Ground Lease for Lowe's Listed by Marcus & Millichap


KNOXVILLE, TN – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has retained the exclusive listing for a 160,000-square foot Lowe’s ground lease in Knoxville. The listing price of $10.1 million represents $63 per square foot.

Alvin Mansour, (top right photo)  a senior vice president investments and a senior director of the firm’s National Retail Group in San Diego, is representing the seller. Anne Williams, an investment specialist in the firm’s Memphis office, is also providing representation.

“Lowe’s has signed a 20-year triple-net ground lease with rent increases between each of the six five-year options,” says Mansour. “The property is positioned immediately east of a Wal-Mart Supercenter and a Home Depot. Other retailers close by include Food City, Goody’s, Walgreens, Sprint, IHOP and H&R Block,” adds Mansour.

The property is located at 7520 Mountain Grove Drive at the intersection of Highway 441 and Highway 168, with excellent exposure along these two dominant traffic corridors.

Lowe’s is publicly traded on the NYSE under the ticker symbol LOW. The company currently has Standard & Poor’s credit rating of A.

Knoxville is one of the nation’s fastest-growing MSAs.

Charles G. Shillington  Promoted to First Vice President Investments in Ontario, CA

ONTARIO, Calif.., June 30, 2010 — The board of directors of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has promoted Charles G. Shillington (bottom right photo)  to the position of first vice president investments.

This achievement is one of the highest levels of recognition the firm awards to its investment specialists. It represents excellence in the development and servicing of long-term client relationships, according to Douglas J. McCauley, regional manager of the firm’s Ontario office.

Shillington joined Marcus & Millichap in February 1990. He was promoted to associate in December 1996 and senior associate in June 1998.

He became a senior investment associate in July 2002 and earned vice president investments status in January 2008. He specializes in the sale of retail assets and currently serves as a director of the firm’s National Retail Group. Shillington has received numerous sales achievement awards from Marcus & Millichap, including four National Achievement Awards.

Contact: Stacey Corso, Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716

HFF Securities serves as financial advisor in sale of $1.35 billion iStar CTL Portfolio


LOS ANGELES, CA – HFF Securities L.P., an affiliate of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. (HFF), announced today that it served as the exclusive financial advisor to iStar Financial Inc. (NYSE:SFI) in the sale of a nationwide portfolio of 32 corporate tenant-leased properties, or interests therein, totaling approximately 11.3 million net rentable square feet of office and industrial space.

HFF Securities head of investment banking Dan Cashdan, senior managing director Doug Bond and director Mike Joseph, CFA, led the team exclusively advising iStar on the sale. Dividend Capital Total Realty Trust, Inc. purchased the portfolio for approximately $1.35 billion.

Working on behalf of Dividend Capital, executive managing director John Fowler and directors Janet Krolman (top right photo)  and Greg LaBine (top left photo)  of HFF Boston arranged approximately $750 million of senior secured acquisition financing through a combination of fixed and floating-rate facilities.

“We believe that this is the largest real estate transaction completed this year,” said Cashdan. “Both iStar and Dividend Capital worked cooperatively to execute a large, complicated transaction in a timely manner.

"We are honored to have served as financial advisor on this transaction and to have achieved the objectives of both the buyer and seller.”

“We are pleased to have assisted Dividend Capital in arranging a creative financing solution for the transaction,” said Fowler. “The parties worked diligently to complete the financing transaction on attractive terms in a narrow time frame.”

HFF Securities L.P. is a registered broker-dealer with the SEC and a member of FINRA.


Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P., and HFF Securities L.P. are acting by and through Holliday GP Corp., a real estate broker licensed with the California Department of Real Estate, License Number 01385740

Contacts:

Doug Bond, CA Lic (#01701004), HFFS Senior Managing Director, (310) 407-2100, dbond@hfflp.com
 Janet Krolman, HFF Director, (617) 338-0990, jkrolman@hfflp.com
Kristen Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com


HFF to market for sale two GSA-leased single tenant office properties

DALLAS, TX – The Dallas office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that it has been exclusively retained to market for sale two U.S. Government-leased, single tenant office buildings in Las Vegas, Nevada and Denton, Texas, a suburb of Dallas-Fort Worth.

The FBI Building, (middle right photo)  in Las Vegas, Nevada totals 106,955 square feet and is leased to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) through October 2021.

The FEMA Building is an 83,481-square-foot facility in Denton, Texas that is leased to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) through May 2022. Both buildings were constructed in the past nine years as build-to-suit facilities for these GSA entities.

Contacts:

Barry M. Brown, HFF Senior Managing Director, (214) 265-0880, bbrown@hfflp.com
Andrew S. Levy, HFF Senior Managing Director, (214) 265-0880, alevy@hfflp.com
Todd W. Savage, HFF Managing Director, (214) 265-0880, tsavage@hfflp.com
Kristen M. Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com


HFF named to market for sale Simi Valley Town Center in California

IRVINE, CA – The Orange County and Los Angeles offices of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that they have been exclusively retained to market for sale Simi Valley Town Center, (bottom right photo)  a newly-developed, trophy lifestyle center located off the 118 Freeway in Simi Valley, California.

HFF senior managing director Ryan Gallagher (lower left photo)  and directors Bryan Ley, Kelly Rohfeld (bottom right photo) and John Crump will market the property on behalf of the seller.

The 612,000-square-foot lifestyle center has an impressive merchandising mix containing some of the nation’s most recognizable retailers including: Macy’s, Apple, Anthropologie, Chico’s, Coldwater Creek, California Pizza Kitchen, Forever XXI, Urban Outfitters and Victoria’s Secret.
 
Developed by Forest City Enterprises and designed by F+A Architects, the project is modeled after a hillside Italian village with oak trees, a Koi pond, an outdoor fireplace and garden. F+A also designed such recognizable projects as Glendale Galleria and the internationally renowned South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa.

The project is currently 86% occupied by 90 tenants and provides additional land for outparcel development.

The center serves the affluent and growing community of Simi Valley. The average household income in Simi Valley exceeds $112,000 per year and the population has grown more than 12% over the past decade.

In addition, Simi Valley Town Center is strategically located adjacent to the upscale, 500-unit Archstone Simi Valley apartment community. The project is expected to garner interest nationally from a wide range of private and institutional investors.

Contacts:

Ryan Gallagher, Ca. Lic. (#01269918), HFF Senior Managing Director, (949) 798-4100, rgallagher@hfflp.com
Bryan Ley, Ca. Lic. (#01458927), HFF Director,  (310) 407-2120, bley@hfflp.com
Kristen Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com

Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II Acquires Livingston Medical Arts Pavilion in Texas

 
LIVINGSTON, TX  (June 30, 2010) – Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II, Inc. today announced that it has acquired Livingston Medical Arts Pavilion, (top left photo)  a two-story, 30,000-square-foot, multi-tenant medical office building in Livingston. The acquisition closed on June 28.

Located at 403 Ogletree Drive, Livingston Medical Arts Pavilion is located on the 41-acre campus of, and adjacent to, the Memorial Medical Center – Livingston, (lower left photo)a 66-bed facility specializing in critical access care and women’s health.

A member of the Memorial Health System of East Texas, the medical center recently constructed a new 160,000-square-foot hospital wing in response to growing demand for healthcare services in the community.

“Livingston Medical Arts Pavilion is a Class A building that is fully leased on the campus of a thriving medical center,” said Danny Prosky (middle right photo), president and chief operating officer of Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II. “Additionally, this acquisition is immediately accretive and supportive of our stockholder distribution, making it an ideal and very attractive addition to our portfolio.”

Built in 2007 within close proximity of Highway 59, the property is 100 percent leased to multiple tenants, but primarily to Memorial Health System of East Texas, which leases approximately 94 percent of the building.

 Livingston Medical Arts Pavilion offers multiple clinical procedures, including: neurology, sleep medicine, podiatric surgery, sports medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics, gynecology, family medicine and rheumatology.

Livingston Medical Office Building was acquired from McShane Development, an unaffiliated third party represented by Toby Scrivner and Jeff Matulis of Stan Johnson Company. Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II financed the acquisition using cash proceeds received from its offering.

Contact: Damon Elder, Phone: 714.975.2659, Email: damon.elder@grubb-ellis.com

Grubb & Ellis Facilitates REO Sale of Kaleidoscope Retail Center in Mission Viejo, CA for $22M

NEWPORT BEACH, CA (June 30, 2010) – Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced that Dixie Walker (lower left photo) , executive vice president, Financial Services Asset Management, represented both parties in the sale of Kaleidoscope Retail Cente (lower right photo)  in Mission Viejo.

 Westport Capital Partners LLC purchased the 220,000-square-foot center from C-III Asset Management LLC, the special servicer of the property formerly known as Centerline, for $22 million in an all-cash sale.

“Westport Capital was a very committed buyer who saw the tremendous potential of this property and executed very quickly. Their active, hands-on management will help this property realize its full potential. This deal is significant as it represents one of the first significant retail foreclosures in Orange County,” Walker said.

The three-story Kaleidoscope lifestyle and entertainment center is located at 27741 Crown Valley Parkway at the intersection of Interstate 5 and Crown Valley Parkway. Constructed in 2000 on nearly five acres of land, the property is 62 percent leased to retailers such as Regal Theatres, Buffalo Wild Wings, Islands Restaurant, Burke Williams Salon and Day Spa, Riptide Restaurant, The Derby Restaurant and Piano Bar and Laser Quest.

“The City of Mission Viejo is looking forward to the upcoming renovation and transformation of Kaleidoscope Retail Center into a vibrant retail, restaurant and entertainment center serving the needs of South Orange County,” said Trish Kelley, mayor of Mission Viejo.

Westport Capital Partners named Mark Baziak, senior vice president, and Terrison Quinn, associate, also of Grubb & Ellis’ Retail Group, as the leasing agents of the property at the time of the sale.

Contact: Julia McCartney, Phone: 714.975.2230, Email: julia.mccartney@grubb-ellis.com

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Bainbridge To Develop High-Rise Apartments In Bethesda, MD


WELLINGTON, FL--Bainbridge Companies is pleased to announce that it will be developing a 200-unit luxury high-rise rental apartment community (above centered rendering) in downtown Bethesda, MD.

The asset will be developed in conjunction with our partner – Restis Group, with additional equity being provided by National Real Estate Advisors.

Bainbridge has acquired the site and anticipates ground-breaking for fall 2010, with initial occupancy in the fall of 2012.

 “We are all very excited to bring this project closer to the construction phase and to deliver a superior community for the neighborhood and our future residents,” remarks Thomas Keady, (middle right photo)  President of Development for The Bainbridge Companies.

Bainbridge is actively seeking select development opportunities throughout the Mid-Atlantic and urban in-fill areas in major East Coast markets.

Founded in 1993, The Bainbridge Companies (www.bainbridgecompanies.com) is engaged in the development, construction, management, acquisition and disposition of residential and commercial real estate.

The Bainbridge principles have developed, redeveloped, and/or repositioned more than 35,000 multifamily units. The firm’s full service real estate platform includes asset and property management, leasing, sales, marketing, renovation, construction, and development. Bainbridge’s emphasis is on innovation, creativity, resident service and cultivating relationships.


Based in Wellington, Florida, it also has offices in North Carolina and the Washington, D.C. metro area.

Contact: Terri Thornton, 404-687-8760, 404-932-4347 (Cell) , http://www.territhornton.com/
www.twitter.com/Ttho

HFF secures $23.13M financing for AMLI at Bryan Place in Dallas


DALLAS, TX – The Dallas office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that it has secured $23.13 million in financing for AMLI at Bryan Place (top left photo) , a 420-unit, Class A multi-housing community in Dallas, Texas.

Working exclusively on behalf of AMLI Residential Properties, HFF senior managing director Mona Carlton (bottom right photo)  placed the 7-year, adjustable-rate loan with Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation).

 Loan proceeds are refinancing an existing agency loan. HFF will service the loan through their Freddie Mac Program Plus® Seller/Servicer program.

Located at 910 Texas Street, AMLI at Bryan Place is adjacent to Interstate 45 close to the Arts District and Deep Ellum neighborhoods of Dallas
.
The property was completed in 1999 and features one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Community amenities include a swimming pool, clubhouse, fitness center, game room, bbq grills and a movie theatre.

AMLI Residential Properties is focused on the development, acquisition and management of luxury apartment communities throughout the United States

Contacts:

Mona K. Carlton, HFF Senior Managing Director, (214) 265-0880, mcarlton@hfflp.com
Kristen M. Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com

Fort Lauderdale's Condo Supply Surged 66% During Boom


MIAMI, FL--Nearly 5,100 new condominium units were added in Fort Lauderdale's Downtown and Beach neighborhoods during the last real estate boom, increasing the existing inventory by 66 percent in less than a decade, according to a new report from CondoVultures.com.

Since 2003, developers constructed and converted 47 projects of 15 units or more in a stretch of central Fort Lauderdale from Sunrise Boulevard south to State Road 84/Southeast 24th Street, Northwest 7th/Southwest 4th Avenue east to the Atlantic Ocean, according to research compiled for the soon-to-be-released Condo Vultures® Official Condo Buyers Guide To Fort Lauderdale™.

The surge in new condo construction increased Fort Lauderdale's total condo inventory in the Downtown and Beach neighborhoods to nearly 12,800 units located within 180 projects that feature a combined 1,500 floors of residential living, according to the study.

"Fort Lauderdale experienced tremendous growth in the number of new condos constructed in the city's Downtown and Beach neighborhoods during the last real estate run up," said Peter Zalewski, a principal with the Bal Harbour, Fla.-based real estate consultancy Condo Vultures® LLC.

 "If not for the controlled-growth approach, relatively speaking, by the city leaders at the time, the condominium markets in Fort Lauderdale's eastern corridor would likely be in the same state as the markets to the south in Greater Miami."

Contact:  Peter Zalewski, Condo Vultures®,  800-750-0517,  peter@condovultures.com.

Arbor Closes $22M Fannie Mae DUS® Loan for Brook Arbor Apartments in Cary, NC


Uniondale, NY (June 29 , 2010) - Arbor Commercial Funding, LLC (“Arbor”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arbor Commercial Mortgage, LLC, announced the recent funding of a $22,000,000 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS® product line for the 302-unit complex known as Brook Arbor Apartments in Cary, NC.

The 10-year loan amortizes on a 30-year schedule and carries a note rate of 5.68 percent.

Joseph Donovan, (top right photo)  Senior Vice President, Production Management, in Arbor’s full-service Boston, MA lending office said, “We were please to deliver a loan amount, terms and pricing that met our valued client’s needs.”

Contact: Ingrid Principe, P: 516.506.4298, F: 516.542.2555, http://www.arbor.com/, Follow us on Twitter @ arbor1

Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II Acquires St. Vincent Medical Office Building in Cleveland


CLEVELAND, OH  (June 29, 2010) – Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II, Inc. today announced that it has acquired St. Vincent Medical Office Building (top left photo) , a three-story, 51,000-square-foot, multi-tenant medical office building on the campus of St. Vincent Charity Medical Center (middle right photo) in Cleveland.

The acquisition closed on June 25.

Located at 2322 E. 22nd St., St. Vincent Medical Office Building is in the heart of downtown Cleveland and on the campus of, and physically connected to, the 480-bed St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, which has tended to the city’s sick and injured since 1865.

A member of the Sisters of Charity Health System, the medical center is an acute care inpatient and outpatient facility providing comprehensive care.

HealthGrades, an independent healthcare ratings organization, has recognized the center with the Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence award for the past five years.

“When evaluating a potential new acquisition, we are most concerned with the quality of the affiliated medical system and the proximity of the building to the system’s medical centers,” said Jeff Hanson, (lower left photo)  chairman and chief executive officer of Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II.

 “St. Vincent Medical Office Building is a home run on both counts. Our acquisition is not only on the campus of one of the nation’s finest hospitals, but it is actually connected to it.”

Built in 1984 on approximately 4.8 acres of land, the property is approximately 92 percent leased to multiple tenants, but primarily to St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, which occupies nearly 65 percent of the gross leasable area.

The medical office building offers multiple clinical procedures, including: bariatric surgery, oncology, cardiology, rheumatology, ophthalmological and occupational wellness services.

St. Vincent Medical Office Building was acquired from Vincent MBL Investors, LP, an unaffiliated third party represented by Jim Moloney and Joe Dominguez of Cain Brothers. Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II financed the acquisition using cash proceeds received from its offering.

Contact: Damon Elder, Phone: 714.975.2659, Email: damon.elder@grubb-ellis.com

Grubb & Ellis Represents Econocaribe in 144,000-SF Lease in Miami

MIAMI, FL (June 29, 2010) -- Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced that it represented Econocaribe Consolidators, Inc., in the lease of 144,000 square feet of warehouse/distribution space at Airport East Distribution Center, (top left photo)  located at 7000 NW 32nd Ave., from BlackRock Realty.

The lease represents a relocation for the global transportation company, which is relocating one of its Miami area freight forwarding operations from SE 9th Court in Hialeah.

Jonathan Kingsley (bottom right photo) , executive vice president and managing director of Grubb & Ellis’ South Florida offices, facilitated the transaction on behalf of the tenant in what respresents one of the largest industrial lease transactions in the Miami-Dade County industrial market this year.

“Given the current market conditions, this was a great opportunity for Econocaribe to cost-effectively lease space in a high-quality facility that was more efficient over the previous location,” said Kingsley.

Built in the 1960s and renovated in 2008, the 400,000-square-foot facility features ceiling height of 18 to 21 feet, ample parking and gated security.

Contact:  Erin Mays, Phone: 312.698.6735, Email: erin.mays@grubb-ellis.com

PKF-Hospitality Research Releases Hotel Horizons® Forecast Accuracy Assessment


ATLANTA, GA – Hotel industry forecasting is not for the faint of heart. During the recession that began in earnest in 2008, the magnitude of the economic declines deviated so far from long run norms that it was virtually impossible for econometric models to predict what ultimately occurred in the hotel industry.

 Despite the challenge, the lodging forecasts still provided meaningful guidance for owners and investors trying to operate through the historic downturn.

Because of the severity of the decline and its length, lodging forecasts had to be updated based on the ever changing economic outlook. These are some of the conclusions of a whitepaper recently published by PKF-Hospitality Research (PKF-HR) whose purpose was to quantify the accuracy of their proprietary Hotel Horizons® reports.

The assessment compares forecast changes in hotel market performance measures and actual changes at two critical points during the recent economic cycle (2007 – 2009). The whitepaper report is available on a complimentary basis to all industry participants (www.pkfc.com/accuracy).

“When we initially entered the econometric forecasting business over 10 years ago, we committed ourselves to a process of continuous self-evaluation,” said R. Mark Woodworth (top right photo)  president of PKF-HR.

 “Overall, we remain pleased with our demonstrated accuracy. We have learned that our forecasts are extremely reliable during less volatile periods in the business cycle, but less accurate during turbulent times. These findings will be used to inform our ongoing forecasting efforts.”

PKF-HR’s Hotel Horizons® is a series of periodic hotel forecast reports that analyze the historical and expected performance of U.S. lodging markets.

Driven by an econometric forecasting model, the Hotel Horizons® reports cover five years of supply, demand, occupancy, ADR, and RevPAR for 50 major U.S. markets, as well as six national chain-scale segments.

Within each market forecast, separate estimates are prepared for upper-price and lower-price hotels. The model relies on historical lodging data from Smith Travel Research, as well as historic and forecast economic data from Moody’s Economy.com.

“To assess the accuracy of our macro U.S. and MSA hotel forecasting models, we analyzed two forecast periods,” Woodworth said. “The first ran from the fourth quarter of 2007 through third quarter of 2008.

"This represents a fairly traditional expansion phase which culminates at the eventual turning point of the business cycle. The second period of the analysis covers calendar year 2009, a period of extreme stress within the lodging industry.”

“These points in time highlight two very different periods of economic expectations: pre-financial crisis, and post-financial crisis,” said John B. (Jack) Corgel, Ph.D. (middle left photo) , the Robert C. Baker professor of real estate at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration and senior advisor to PKF-HR.

 “Econometric models have a difficult time performing at the turning points of a cycle, and have no ability to predict shocks, such as hurricanes and terrorist attacks. Therefore, we focused on how the model performed during a ‘normal’ period of economic growth, and during a time of economic stress, post-turning point.”


For further information, please contact:
Mark Woodworth, President, PKF-Hospitality Research Tel: 404 842 1150 x 222, Email: mailto:mark.woodworth@pkfc.com 
  http://www.pkfc.com/

Chris Daly, Daly Gray Public Relations, Tel: 703 435 6293, Email: chris@dalygray.com
http://www.dalygray.com/

NAI Realvest Negotiates Two New Industrial Lease Agreements for more than 29,600 square feet in Longwood, FL


MAITLAND, FL – NAI Realvest recently negotiated two new lease agreements for industrial space totaling 29,620 square feet in Longwood.

Robert Blackwell, (top right photo)  SIOR principal at the firm, and associate Sean DuPree (middle  left photo)  CCIM, represented Integrated RX Solutions of Longwood, the new tenant who leased 17,120 square feet for 66 months at 1205 Sarah St.

The landlord, Industrial Property Partners based in Coral Springs, Fla. was represented by Deborah Mickler (bottom right photo) and Forrest Askew of Colliers Arnold.

At 111 Highline Drive, DuPree represented the landlord, Clearwater-based Wolf Baad Investments, LLC in the lease of a 12,500 square foot industrial facility. Dreamway Trading, LLC of Casselberry was represented by Craig Kesler of Re/MAX Select.

For more information, please contact:
Sean DuPree, CCIM or Robert Blackwell, SIOR, NAI Realvest 407-875-9989, sdupree@realvest.com or rblackwell@realvest.com;
Patrick Mahoney, President, NAI Realvest 407-875-9989 pmahoney@realvest.com;
Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142, lvershelco@aol.com

Marcus & Millichap Brokers $14.5M Shopping Center Sale in Westminster, CO


WESTMINSTER, Colo., June 28, 2010 – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has brokered the sale of Mission Commons Shopping Cente (top left photo) r, a 118,673-square foot shopping center in Westminster. The sales price of $14.5 million represents $122 per square foot.

Garrette Matlock, a senior vice president investments and a senior director of the firm’s National Retail Group in Denver, and Jon Hendrickson, a senior associate, handled the transaction.

“Mission Commons provides the new investor with a strong mix of national, regional and local tenants, while offering substantial upside potential that can be realized from leasing the 14,069 square feet of available space,” says Matlock.

The property is located at 7615-7689 West 88th Ave. and 8895 Wadsworth Blvd. on the northwest corner of West 88th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard in Westminster, a northwestern suburb of Denver.

Mission Commons is anchored by a Sears’s Outlet store, Bally Total Fitness and Big 5 Sports. The property includes two inline strip buildings divided into 24 tenant spaces and a freestanding Long John Silver’s on a pad. Major tenants include Americas Best, Wild Birds, Hoffbrau Colorado, Sheri’s Hallmark and Souper Salad.

Contact: Stacey Corso, Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716

Monday, June 28, 2010

Fitch Rates Entertainment Properties Trust's Unsecured Revolver and Sr.Unsecured Notes 'BBB-'

NEW YORK, NY--Fitch Ratings-NY-28 June 2010: Fitch Ratings has assigned the following debt obligation ratings to Entertainment Properties Trust (NYSE: EPR):

--Senior unsecured revolving credit facility 'BBB-';
--Senior unsecured notes 'BBB-'.

EPR's $320 million senior unsecured revolving credit facility matures in December 2013. EPR's $250 million 7.75% senior unsecured notes are due in July 2020 and were priced at 98.29% of their face amount to yield 8% to maturity.

EPR will use net proceeds from the note offering and the new unsecured revolving credit facility to repay in full certain of EPR's existing secured debt credit facilities and to pay fees and expenses associated with the early repayment of such facilities.

For additional information regarding Fitch's ratings for EPR, please refer to Fitch's June 24, 2010 press release, 'Fitch Assigns Initial 'BBB-' IDR to Entertainment Properties Trust; Outlook Stable,' available at
'www.fitchratings.com'.

Entertainment Properties Trust is a real estate investment trust (REIT) based in Kansas City, Missouri with $2.9 billion in undepreciated book assets and a market capitalization of $3.5 billion as of March 31, 2010.

EPR's portfolio includes megaplex movie theatres and entertainment retail centers, as well as other recreational and specialty investments.

Relevant criteria available on the Fitch website at 'www.fitchratings.com' include:

--'Criteria for Rating U.S. Equity REITs and REOCs' (April 16, 2010);
--'Equity Credit for Hybrids & Other Capital Securities - Amended' (Dec. 29, 2009);
--'Rating Hybrid Securities' (Dec. 29, 2009);
--'Recovery Rating and Notching Criteria for REITs' (Dec. 23, 2009);
--'Corporate Rating Methodology' (Nov. 24, 2009);
--'Evaluating Corporate Governance' (Dec. 12, 2007).

Contact:
Steven Marks +1-212-908-9161 or Sean Pattap +1-212-908-0642, New York.
Media Relations: Sandro Scenga, New York, Tel: +1 212-908-0278, Email:, sandro.scenga@fitchratings.com.

Grubb & Ellis Adds Multi Housing Capabilities to Phoenix Office


PHOENIX, AZ (June 28, 2010) – Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced that David Cravath  (top right photo) has joined the company as vice president, Multi Housing Group.

“David’s experience spans all facets of the multi housing sector,” said Pete Bolton, (top left photo)  executive vice president and managing director of Grubb & Ellis’ Phoenix office. “He is a smart and intuitive professional who provides clients valuable insight and I am thrilled to bring his expertise to Grubb & Ellis.”

Cravath joins Grubb & Ellis after spending roughly three years as a founding member of The Phoenix Group. Previously, he owned and managed Cravath Commercial Apartment Advisor, a private company he began in 2000 that focused on land and multi housing sales.

 He joined Iliff Thorn in 1989, which later merged with Colliers International, and spent 10 years as a vice president specializing in multi housing sales. While at Colliers he ranked as the leading multi housing professional for nine years.

Cravath began his career in 1983 with Marcus & Millichap. Since that time, he has closed more than 350 commercial real estate transactions valued in excess of $400 million.

Cravath holds a bachelor’s degree from Rocky Mountain College.

Contact: Julia McCartney, Phone: 714.975.2230, Email: julia.mccartney@grubb-ellis.com