Wednesday, September 25, 2013

What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’? W Guangzhou Hotel offers personalized cooking classes with Chef Garth Welsh


Chef Garth Welsh, W. Guangzhou Hotel, Guangzhou, China

Guangzhou, CHINA (Sept. 25, 2013) – Want to learn what’s next in cuisine?  W Guangzhou invites adventurous foodies to “What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’?”, a series of small, personalized cooking classes at The Kitchen Table with Director of Cuisine Chef Garth Welsh. 

The innovative experience from mainland China’s first W Hotel is perfect for individuals, couples or groups looking for ways to infuse a little W into their every day lives and kitchens.

“Learn how to make each of your meals a little more fabulous,” said Chef Garth Welsh.  “We are excited about sharing our favorite recipes and cuisine tricks and helping you learn how to make and present your favorite dishes with signature W style.”

 Whether looking for an original date night idea or planning a night out with the girls, What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’? is a customized signature experience. 

The classes will take place every other Monday, beginning on September 30 from 3:00pm – 5:00pm.  Under the direction of Chef Garth Welsh, each hands-on class will feature personalized cooking instruction for up to 12 people at The Kitchen Table, W Guangzhou’s signature international eatery. 

Guests will explore a different recipe at each in The Kitchen Table’s state-of-the-art kitchen, with several W Guangzhou chefs available to assist with every slice, dice, mix and blend.

 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Hwee Peng Yeo
Director of Asian Markets
Glodow Nead Communications
Level 21, Centennial Tower
3 Temasek Avenue

Singapore 039190

Avison Young completes office lease with GumGum, Inc. at historic Clock Tower in Santa Monica, CA

   
Clock Tower office building, 225 Santa Monica Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA

Los Angeles, CA – Avison Young, the world’s fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm, announced today that it has completed a five-year office lease valued at $1.35 million with GumGum, Inc., an image-based advertising firm.

Randy Starr
GumGum will occupy 4,390 square feet (sf) on the sixth floor of the historic Clock Tower building at 225 Santa Monica Blvd. in Santa Monica, CA.

 Avison Young Principal Randy Starr, based in the company’s Santa Monica office, represented GumGum in the transaction. Michael Preiss of rsfLA, Inc. represented the building’s owner, Sorgente Group of America Corp.

 “I showed my client every available office location in Santa Monica,” comments Starr. “The Clock Tower is one of the most desired, creative-space addresses for technology and entertainment businesses within Silicon Beach. This prestigious space will help GumGum attract and retain some of the area’s best talent.”

Michael Preiss
 Starr adds: “This transaction with GumGum marks the first new tenant to sign a lease at the property since Sorgente Group acquired it in April of this year.”

 Built in 1929, the 12-story Clock Tower is Santa Monica’s second-tallest building. The landmark property offers tenants unobstructed ocean views and was recently fully restored while maintaining its art deco architectural style. Other building tenants include: TrueCar, Inc., LivingSocial, Inc. and Gerber Group.

 GumGum will be relocating and expanding from its current Santa Monica location at 1207 4th Street where it occupies 2,400 sf. The firm anticipates occupying its new space in January 2014. 


Founded in 2007, GumGum invented the image-based advertising category and has grown to become the largest premium in-image advertising platform for publishers and brands. GumGum is headquartered in Santa Monica and has offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Detroit.

 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Darcie Giacchetto
D.G. Communications, Inc.

949.278.6224

FrontDoor Communities Adds Top Talent to its Atlanta, GA and Naples, FL Offices


Mike Langella
ATLANTA, GA (Sept. 25, 2013) – In preparation for new phases of growth, FrontDoor Communities announces the hiring of three key people to its Atlanta and Naples offices:

 Luis Cuevas as assistant superintendent in the Naples office;
Donna Meador as senior purchasing associate in the Atlanta office;
Alison Moats as senior market analyst in the Atlanta office.

Luis Cuevas
“As we continue to grow and build momentum across the Southeast, we’re fortunate to have such a strong team of seasoned experts supporting these efforts,” said Mike Langella, president and partner at FrontDoor.

“I’m pleased to welcome Luis, Donna and Alison to the FrontDoor family and am confident their talents will enhance and strengthen our goals and mission to build better homes through quality design.” 

Donna Meador
Cuevas brings more than a decade of experience to his role as assistant superintendent position at FrontDoor’s Naples office, where he will oversee the daily operations of construction projects. Previously, Cuevas was a member of the guest services team at the Waldorf Astoria Naples.

Alison Moats
In Meador’s new role as senior purchasing associate at FrontDoor’s corporate office in Atlanta, she will maintain and manage purchase orders, cost data reports and invoices. Before joining FrontDoor, Meador was senior estimator at John Wieland Homes for 12 years.

 Moats brings 15 years of experience to her new role as senior market analyst to FrontDoor’s Atlanta office. 

In this position, she will conduct market research, financial modeling, create market summaries for business plans and more. Moats will also coordinate with FrontDoor regional departments to improve company operations. Prior to joining FrontDoor, Moats served as market analyst for the land department at Ryland Homes.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Leigh Taylor
The Wilbert Group
o: 404-343-0637
c: 404-263-9415


Investors Make $1.6 Million Land Acquisition in Fort Pierce, FL




ORLANDO, FL --  Daryl M. Carter, Trustee of Carter-St. Lucie Indrio Land Trust recently purchased approximately 53 acres on the south side of Indrio Road at Kings Highway in Ft. Pierce, St. Lucie, County, Florida. The 53 +/- acre parcel was acquired from Capstone Res Dev, LLC for $1,300,000 cash.

Daryl M. Carter
Another Carter-led affiliate, the Chester C. Fosgate Company purchased an adjoining 2+/- acre tract from John V. Langel and Patrick J. Langel for $300,000 cash.

 Aggregate purchase price of the 55+/- acre assemblage was $1,600,000 cash.

 Nikolaus Schroth with NAI Southcoast represented the seller on the 53 acres and David Tubeck with Tubeck Realty, Inc. represented the seller on the 2 acres.

 Daryl. M. Carter, President of Maury L. Carter and Associates, Inc., Jeff Douglas and Hal Dodt represented the buyer. 


 Carter said the acquisitions are consistent with the firm's history of buying well-located land for investment with interim agricultural uses. Carter's investors have been very active lately, having acquired approximately 6 tracts of land in Florida in the last 12 months. 

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Maury L. Carter & Associates, Inc.
3333 S. Orange Avenue, Suite 200, Orlando, FL 32806
407-422-3144

Lincoln Brokers Pitney Bowes’ 66,254-Square-Foot Lease Renewal in Atlanta, GA


Airport West Distribution Park, Atlanta, GA

Denton Shamburger
ATLANTA, GA (Sept. 25, 2013) – Lincoln Property Company Southeast (Lincoln) has brokered Pitney Bowes Presort Services’ renewal of its 66,254-square-foot lease at Airport West Distribution Center in Atlanta.

Denton Shamburger, vice president of industrial leasing at Lincoln, represented the landlord in the transaction. James Halepis and Rick Nash of DTZ represented the tenant.

Airport West Distribution Center is a two-building industrial park totaling 287,520 square feet. The lease with Pitney Bowes maintains the occupancy of Airport West at 100 percent.

Tony Bartlett
“The industrial park is located near interstates 75, 85 and 285, and is also about five minutes from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

 “With its proximity to the airport and the area’s major interstates, Airport West Distribution Center is the ideal location for Pitney Bowes,” said Tony Bartlett, senior vice president for Lincoln who oversees the firm’s Atlanta office.

 “Denton has done a tremendous job in driving occupancy at this property and delivering great returns for our client.”

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Stephen Ursery
The Wilbert Group
404-405-2354


Del Webb Stone Creek Celebration Welcomes 1000th Homeowner in Ocala, FL


Dixie and Rene Tigcheler from The Netherlands are 1000th homeowner
at Del Webb Stone Creek community, Ocala, FL





  
Ocala, FL--- Del Webb Stone Creek in Ocala recently hosted a celebration to welcome its 1,000th homeowner – a couple from across the world – at the community’s Reunion Center Ballroom.

Sean Srickler
Sean Strickler, vice president of sales for Del Webb in North Florida, said Dixie and Rene Tigcheler from The Netherlands purchased the Copper Ridge Loft home design by Del Webb.  “This is a meaningful benchmark for Del Webb Stone Creek just seven years after opening,” Strickler said. 

 “We both got a good feeling about Stone Creek when we visited three years ago in the spring.  It’s full of friendly, caring, sociable, people from the office staff to the residents.  We visited several Del Webb communities in various states but we knew Stone Creek was where we wanted to spend our retirement years,” said RenĂ© and Dixie Tigcheler.  “We look forward to our arrival in October and making new friends.”

Bob Foisy
Bob Foisy, general sales manager at Del Webb Stone Creek, said he has been waiting for the 1,000th home buyer. “From the moment we gave the keys to the first homeowner at Del Webb Stone Creek seven years ago we knew this community would appeal to its own kind of active, vigorous and engaged residents and we were right,” Foisy said.
  
For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-461-3780 or 407-644-4142; lvershelco@aol.com


Englewood Construction Restaurant Group Completes Project in North Dakota


Williston Brewing Co. restaurant and lounge, Williston, ND
              
 CHICAGO (September 25, 2013) – Englewood Construction, one of the country’s leading commercial construction firms, has announced its restaurant group has completed Williston Brewing Co., an upscale restaurant and lounge in booming Williston, N.D.

William Di Santo
 “Williston Brewing Co. provides a much-needed dining and entertainment option for oil field workers and their families,” said William Di Santo, president of Lemont, Ill.-based Englewood Construction. “We’ve been fortunate to take part in the area’s commercial construction boom sparked by North Dakota’s oil rush.”
                                                                                                             In addition to serving as the general contractor, Englewood Construction also assisted in the value-added design of the $5.2 million interior build-out to create a modern Western-themed dining destination.

The 12,000-square-foot space is attached to the 92-room El Rancho Hotel and features wood floors, stone fireplaces and exposed brick. The owners’ big game trophies mounted on the walls and cow-hide leather chairs enhance the western decor. A large, open kitchen allows customers to see the chefs preparing steaks, ribs, pasta and pizza.

“This project helps fill the area’s urgent need for quality dining and entertainment venues to serve the workers that have flocked to this remote town,” Di Santo said. 

“We were able to quickly put our construction team in place to deliver the project on time and under budget.”
                                                            Owned by Williston Holding Co. and designed by Minneapolis-based Studio M. Architects, the restaurant, which opened in mid-September, seats approximately 335 people in a variety of unique spaces.



A huge bar with 40 beers on tap in the center of the restaurant features an artistic counter made from a giant redwood tree and 24 televisions including three with 90-inch screens. A 21-and-over section houses a stage, mechanical bull and gaming tables.

The restaurant’s Buffalo Room provides an intimate setting with leather chairs and sofas, and showcases a glass-enclosed wall with a 3,000-bottle upscale wine selection.

An abundance of jobs fueled by the oil boom has led to a sudden spike in Williston residents.

 The U.S. Census bureau estimates Williston’s population has grown from 14,700 in 2010 to 26,700 in 2012, and a North Dakota State University study stated the number could be as high as 33,000.

 According to Di Santo, such rapid growth can present many labor challenges. Local commercial contractors are back-logged with work for two-to-three years, so commercial construction developers in North Dakota are turning to national commercial construction companies like Englewood Construction to see their projects come to fruition.

 “The owners of Williston Brewing Co. had previously worked with national commercial general contractors to develop Kona Grill restaurants across the country, so it was natural for them to turn to us,” Di Santo said.

“Also, because 67 percent of our work is outside of Chicago, we were able to tap into our extensive network of 20,000 subcontractors around the country to alleviate major labor issues that would hinder other general contractors.”

 On the Williston Brewery Co. project, Englewood tapped contractors from Chicago, a millwork vendor from Indiana and mechanical contractors from Minnesota, Colorado and Utah to complete the commercial construction project.

With Williston boasting 100 percent hotel occupancy rates and hard-to-find one-bedroom apartments renting for $2,300 a month, many workers share space in a trailer and some even sleep in their cars. In fact, Englewood’s project superintendent for Williston Brewing Co. travels and sleeps in his own motor home, which he parked at the jobsite.

 Di Santo noted that this high-profile restaurant project has helped the firm initiate several more projects in the North Dakota market.

 “As Williston city officials scramble to provide adequate services and housing for its burgeoning population, they also have to sift through a multitude of fly-by-night contractors arriving to grab quick profits and then head out of town,” Di Santo said.

 “That’s where Englewood has a significant advantage. Our reputation as a stable nationwide general contractor with a long and successful history of delivering quality work differentiates us.

" In a fast-moving, rapidly changing city, both developers and trades people have confidence in working with us.”

 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Mark Thomton
312-267-4523


Chatham Lodging Trust Prices Public Offering of Common Shares


Hilton Garden Inn Denver Tech Center Hotel, Denver, CO

Palm Beach, FL, Sept.  25, 2013—Chatham Lodging Trust (the “company”) (NYSE: CLDT) today announced that it has priced its public offering of 3,250,000 common shares of beneficial interest, $0.01 par value per share, at $18.35 per share, for total gross proceeds of $59,637,500, prior to underwriting discounts and offering expenses.   

Residence Inn Seattle Bellevue/Downtown
Bellevue, WA
 The offering is expected to close on September 30, 2013.  The underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 487,500 shares to cover over-allotments, if any.

 The company will contribute the net proceeds of this offering to its operating partnership in exchange for common units of limited partnership interest in the operating partnership.

 The company’s operating partnership intends to use the net proceeds of the offering to repay debt under the company’s senior secured revolving credit facility (including debt to be incurred to purchase the 180-room Hilton Garden Inn Denver Tech Center in Denver, Colorado, for a cash purchase price of $27.9 million) and to fund a portion of the acquisition of the 231-room Residence Inn Seattle Bellevue/Downtown in Bellevue, Washington, for a cash purchase price of $73.2 million. 

The company’s operating partnership intends to use any remaining net proceeds to invest in additional hotel properties in accordance with the company’s investment strategy and for general corporate purposes.



 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Media
Daly Gray Public Relations
Jerry Daly, 703-435-6293

or

Chatham Lodging Trust
Dennis Craven, 561-227-1386
Chief Financial Officer

HFF represents SL Green Realty Corp. in the sale of 300 Main Street in Stamford, CT

  
300 Main Street, former First Union National Bank Building,  Stamford, CT


Jose Cruz

FLORHAM PARK, NJ - HFF announced today the sale of 300 Main Street, an 80,708-square-foot office building in Stamford, Connecticut, which it sold on behalf of the seller, SL Green Realty Corp.  Seaboard Properties purchased the asset.

Built in 1927, 300 Main Street, also known as the former First Union National Bank building, consists of an eight-story office building with street-level retail and a 147 space parking garage. 

Andrew Scandalios
Most recently renovated in 2011, the building is 76 percent leased to tenants including Elizabeth Arden.  The property is located in the Downtown Stamford Historic District near the intersection of Route 1 and less than one-third of a mile from Interstate 95.

The HFF investment sales team representing the seller was led by senior managing directors Jose Cruz and Andrew Scandalios, managing directors Kevin O’Hearn and Jeffrey Julien and associate director Steve Simonelli.

Kevin O'Hearn
“This asset presented investors with a prime opportunity to acquire a well-maintained and ideally positioned historical property in a great downtown location within Stamford, which is home to numerous Fortune 500 and top flight financial firms,” commented Cruz.

SL Green Realty Corp., New York City's largest office landlord, is the only fully integrated real estate investment trust, or REIT, that is focused primarily on acquiring, managing and maximizing value of Manhattan commercial properties. 

Jeffrey Julien
As of June 30, 2013, SL Green owned interests in 87 Manhattan properties totaling 42.8 million square feet.  This included ownership interests in 24.3 million square feet of commercial properties and debt and preferred equity investments secured by 14.7 million square feet of properties.

  In addition to its Manhattan investments, SL Green holds ownership interests in 31 suburban assets totaling 5.4 million square feet in Brooklyn, Long Island, Westchester County, Connecticut and New Jersey, along with three development properties in the suburbs encompassing approximately 0.4 million square feet. 

Steve Simonelli
The company also has ownership interests in 30 properties totaling 4.1 million square feet in southern California.

               Seaboard Properties Incorporated owns and manages a diverse portfolio of high-quality, distinctive commercial and residential properties.

 Its long-standing commitment to Stamford and Fairfield County is based on a belief that Stamford is poised to emerge not only as an independent financial center but as the major urban center within the New York metropolitan corridor. 

At Seaboard, the firm considers its tenants clients, and believes in establishing relationships built on quality spaces and added services.
  
 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Kristen M. Murphy
Associate Director
HFF | One Post Office Square, Suite 3500 | Boston, MA 02109
Main: 617-338-0990 | Direct: 617-848-1572 | Cell: 617-543-4873 | www.hfflp.com

Essex Realty Group Brokers the Sale Of Courtyard Building in Chicago, IL

  
3348 West Wilson Avenue, Albany Park Neighborhood, Chicago, IL


Kate Varde

CHICAGO, IL- Essex Realty Group, Inc. is pleased to announce the sale of 3348 W. Wilson Ave., a fully renovated, brick, courtyard building located in the Albany Park neighborhood. 

Jim Darrow
The property is situated on the north side of Wilson Ave. in between Kimball and Kedzie Ave. and is conveniently located just steps to the Kedzie CTA Brown line station.

The building contains 33 renovated units all of which have been or are in the process of being upgraded to include granite counters, black appliances, new cabinets, central air, in-unit laundry and iron porches.

 The Subject Property consists of the following unit mix: seven 2 bed/1 bath, twenty-two 2 bed/2 bath, one 2 bed/2 bath (Duplex), two 3 bed/2 bath (Duplex) and one 3 bed/2.1 bath (Duplex).  

Jordan Gottlieb
Jim Darrow and Jordan Gottlieb of Essex represented the seller and Doug Imber and Kate Varde of Essex represented the buyer in the transaction.  The price was approximately $4,890.00.

Doug Imber
Essex Realty Group, Inc. specializes in the sale of investment real estate throughout the Chicago metropolitan area.

 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Douglas Fisher
Essex Realty Group, Inc.
773.305.4910