Thursday, March 19, 2015

JLL Named Aflac Partner of the Year


Tiffany Jenkins
ATLANTA, GA, March 19, 2015  – JLL today announced the firm has received a prestigious 2014 Partner of the Year Award from Aflac.

 Each year, the Fortune 500 insurance firm chooses a winner in each of four categories — Quality, Service, Technology and Value — and JLL won the Service category for its crucial role in support of the restructuring of U.S. sales operations and Aflac Group Insurance Headquarters operations.




Joanna Roche
Aflac invited nearly 130 of its vendors to apply for the awards and then chose three finalists in each category. Over the years, winners have included such notable firms as Federal Express and Xerox.

“JLL has enjoyed a tremendous working relationship with Aflac over the past decade, and our work with the firm has given us a chance to put our wide range of expertise and skills to highly effective use,” said JLL Senior Managing Director Brad Armstrong.

“We are extremely honored by this award and look forward to continuing this very successful partnership.”



Dwana Killian
Last year, Aflac restructured its sales operations, creating a new level of leadership in the organization. 

As a result, Aflac assumed the office leases and transitioned various IT systems into an Aflac-managed system, two processes that JLL efficiently managed.

Overall, JLL oversaw Aflac’s assumption of 92 office leases across the U.S.; the leases total 515,439 square feet and nearly $6 million in lease liabilities.

In Columbia, JLL managed the consolidation of a rapidly growing group sales unit that had been spread out across four geographically diverse locations into adjoining buildings, providing considerable cost savings and dramatically improving the operational efficiencies of the division.



Karen Avery
 JLL team members involved in the award-winning projects include Projects Manager Kristy Williams, Associate Project Manager Tiffany Jenkins, Lease Administration Transition Team Manager Joanna Roche, Senior Lease Analyst John Muschar, Armstrong, Senior Managing Director Tim McCarthy, Managing Director Dom Wyant, Senior Vice President Chris Wagner, Vice President Jim DiDia, Vice President Dwana Killian, Senior Associate Shannon Newell, Analyst Mary Katherine McRae, Analyst Tamme Scott and Transaction Manager Karen Avery.

For more news, videos and research resources on JLL, please visit JLL’s U.S. Media Center web page.

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

Stephen Ursery
+1 (404) 549-7150


29th Street Capital Acquires Denver, CO Multifamily Community; Deal is Firm’s Eighth in Eight Months


Asbury Plaza Apartments, Denver, CO
DENVER, CO -- 29th Street Capital (29SC) has acquired Asbury Plaza Apartments, a 110-unit rental community located in the southeast submarket of Denver, Colorado.

 The multifamily property resides in an infill location central to many of Denver's employment, retail and entertainment hubs.

 It is located immediately east of I-25, within walking or bicycling distance of a pedestrian bridge – scheduled for completion this year – that leads to the RTD Colorado light rail station.

29SC plans to invest approximately $850,000 ($7,700 per unit) to improve the property.

The firm will upgrade the roof, windows, landscaping, corridors and resident amenities, including the BBQ area and rooftop deck.

New appliances, countertops, fixtures, lighting and flooring are planned for the interiors. Exterior work will be finished within six months and the interior work will be completed as tenants vacate.

“Our goal is to position Asbury Plaza as a convenient and updated rental option for residents seeking moderately-priced apartments in the booming Denver market,” said Todd Jaycox, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions for 29SC.

“We intend to invest in the asset, manage it more proactively, and take full advantage of its central location within the Denver MSA. Asbury Plaza is well-maintained, and will benefit greatly from strategic value-add improvements designed to modernize it and increase its appeal.”

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

Terri Thornton

Hold-Thyssen Negotiates New Lease with National Homebuilder relocating division offices to Winter Park, FL


Darby Hold
WINTER PARK, FL  --- Hold-Thyssen, Inc., a real estate services firm, recently negotiated a three-year lease agreement for 907 rentable square feet in Suite 201 at 243 W. Park Ave. in downtown Winter Park.  

Darby Hold, lease consultant for Hold-Thyssen, Inc., negotiated the transaction with the new tenant Weekley Homes, LLC representing the local landlord, New England Partners, LLC.   

Weekley, who was represented in the deal by Karen Jacobs of Orchid Lake Realty, relocated its Orlando division offices to the building because of the central location to its communities.   Weekley is based in Houston with 18 division office across the U.S.

Other major tenants at the New England Building include Harbor Community Bank, Kelly Price and Company and Faiella & Gulden Law Firm.

Hold-Thyssen, Inc. provides commercial property and leasing and management services to institutional and private investor clients nationwide.  The 40-year old firm’s current portfolio includes more that 100 commercial properties throughout the United States.

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

Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications Inc.

407-644-4142  Lvershelco@aol.com.

HFF secures $33.25 million financing for newly-built Class AA multi-housing community in Orlando, FL


Gallery at Mills Park Apartments, 1650 North Mills Avenue, Orlando, FL

Eric Tupler
DENVER, CO – HFF announced today that it has secured $33.25 million in acquisition financing for Gallery at Mills Park, a newly-built, 310-unit, Class AA, luxury midrise residential community within a mixed-use development in the heart of Orlando, Florida.

                HFF secured a 10-year, fixed-rate loan on behalf of the borrower, a client advised by Heitman.  HFF is servicing the loan.

                Completed in 2014, Gallery at Mills Park is composed of one five-story building that contains 133 one-, 125 two- and 10 three-bedroom units and 42 studios averaging 828 square feet. 

The property has 12 different floor plans and features two resort-style pools, an outdoor yoga platform, poolside suites with televisions, poolside fire pit lounges, Wi-Fi surf lounge with Mac computers, conference room, bicycle lockers, outdoor Zen area, game and sports lounge with a 70” television, 24-hour fitness center, spa treatment room, relaxation lounge and storage units. 

Leon McBroom
Situated on 4.23 acres at 1650 North Mills Avenue, the property is located within the Mills Park mixed-use development in central Orlando, approximately 3.2 miles from downtown. 

Gallery at Mills Park is within walking distance to restaurants and one of only three Fresh Markets in Orlando. 

 The Orlando Urban Trail, a recreational trail that eventually will extend to the Central Business District, is adjacent to the community.

                The HFF debt placement team representing the borrower was led by director Michael Weinberg, senior managing director Eric Tupler and real estate analyst Leon McBroom.

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

Olivia Hennessey
Public Relations Coordinator
HFF | 9 Greenway Plaza, Suite 700 | Houston, TX 77046
tel 713.852.3403 | fax 713.527.8725 | www.hfflp.com

Crossman & Company Brings 78,241-SF Publix-Anchored Shopping Center in Orlando, FL to 100 Percent Occupancy

    

Tyler Wilkins
ORLANDO, FL – Minutes from the Lake Nona Medical City, Cornerstone at Lake Hart welcomes Supercuts to the shopping center. 

Located at the corner of Narcoossee Road and Moss Park Road, the 1,300 SF lease brings the center to 100% occupancy.  

Supercuts joins a great mix of local and national tenants such as UPS, GNC, 7-Eleven, Giovanni’s Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria and Orlando Cleaners.

Crossman & Company Associate, Tyler Wilkins, co-brokered the new lease with Joanna Robinson of The Shopping Center Group. 

            Wilkins adds, “With thousands of high paying jobs created in and around Medical City and more on the way, the Lake Nona area will continue to attract the attention of the best retailers in the region.”

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

Sydnie Cobb
Crossman & Company

407.581.6261

Venture Sells The Chicagoan Apartment Building in Chicago’s River North Neighborhood for $104 Million


The Chicagoan Apartment Tower,
North Rush Street and East Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL

CHICAGO, IL – A venture consisting of Chicago-based Draper and
Kramer, Incorporated, National Real Estate Advisors and the Wolbach family announced today the sale of The Chicagoan apartment tower to Planned Property Management.

Forrest Bailey
The Chicagoan, a newly renovated, luxury Class A, 221-unit building is located at the southwest corner of North Rush Street and East Chicago Avenue.

 The property features views of Lake Michigan and downtown, as well as access to all major expressways, train lines and other public transportation routes.

The 37-story tower offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans averaging 925 square feet with amenities including, stainless-steel appliances, granite countertops, in-unit washers and dryers and floor-to-ceiling windows.

Community amenities include a swimming pool with sundeck, fitness center, business center, 24-hour door service and electric car charging stations.

“The Chicagoan attracted a lot of interested buyers,” said Forrest Bailey, president and CEO of Draper and Kramer. “Breaking the $100 million mark wasn’t surprising, given the quality of the property and its terrific location. We are delighted with the result.”

Jeffrey Kanne
Jeffrey Kanne, president and CEO, of National Real Estate Advisors, said: “The transaction offered National the opportunity to sell a mature asset when demand is peaking for prime infill apartment buildings.

At the same time, National is developing state-of-the-art, sustainable and highly amenitized apartment projects in Denver, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Houston and Jersey City to meet the needs of the modern renter and our build-to-core strategy.”

HFF marketed the property on behalf of the venture. The HFF investment sales team was led by managing directors Marty O’Connell and Sean Fogarty, associate director Wick Kirby and executive managing director Matthew Lawton.

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

David H. Hooks, CRE
Managing Principal
MarketHooks Consulting, Inc.
500 West Madison Street
Chicago, Illinois 60661
Direct: +312.258.8780

Twitter@HFF.




MBA Releases 2014 Rankings of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Firms’ Origination Volumes


WASHINGTON D.C. (March 19, 2015)- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its annual ranking of commercial/multifamily mortgage firms by origination volume.

 The MBA study is the only one of its kind to present a comprehensive set of listings of 127 different commercial/multifamily mortgage originators, their 2014 volumes and the different roles they play.

The report, Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Firms - Annual Origination Volumes, presents origination volumes in more than 140 categories, including by role, by investor group, by property type, by financing structure type, and by the location of the originating office.


The top ten commercial/multifamily mortgage originators in 2014 were: Wells Fargo; J.P. Morgan Chase & Company; Eastdil Secured; HFF, L.P.; Meridian Capital Group, LLC; KeyBank; CBRE Capital Markets, Inc.; Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.; PNC Real Estate; and Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

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

Ali Ahmad

(202) 557-2727 

Berger Commercial Realty Adds New Senior Property Manager; Joseph Ragonese joins firm's Palm Beach County, FL team


Joseph Ragonese
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL– Berger Commercial Realty has announced that Jupiter resident Joseph Ragonese has joined the firm as a senior property manager.

He will be responsible for overseeing the firm's property management assignments in Palm Beach County, including a 280,000-square-foot portfolio awarded in September.

"An experienced property manager with strong knowledge of building operations, we look forward to having Joe lead our Palm Beach County management team as we grow our presence in the area," said Lloyd Berger, founder and president of Berger Commercial Realty, a regional commercial real estate firm with offices across South Florida, including a new office in Palm Beach County that opened last fall.

Lloyd C. Berger
Having started his career in Fairfield, Conn., Ragonese has more than 20 years of experience in the real estate industry across multiple sectors including property management, portfolio management, real estate consulting, and building maintenance engineering.

Prior to joining the firm, he held the position of director of building maintenance engineering for Rendina Healthcare Real Estate in Jupiter.

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

Marielle Sologuren
Pierson Grant Public Relations
(954) 776-1999, ext. 226

Major Portion of Rancherias Plaza in Apple Valley, CA Acquired by Pacwest Management for $3.1 Million


Orlando Acevedo
APPLE VALLEY, CA - The Town of Apple Valley, located in the High Desert region of the Inland Empire in Southern California, announced that a major portion of Rancherias Plaza has sold to Pacwest Management for $3.1 million. The sold portion includes four retail buildings totaling 40,079 square feet.

David Wick of Marcus & Millichap represented Pacwest Management. The seller, Huntington Beach Partnership, was represented by Brad Freeman of Freeman & Associates.
  
“Apple Valley has continued demand for more retail and dining amenities,” noted Orlando Acevedo, economic development manager, Apple Valley. “Retailers and investors are recognizing that demand, especially as Apple Valley presents an emerging market that is on the upswing in this growth cycle.”

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

Darcie Giacchetto
Spaulding Thompson & Associates

949.278.6224

Pangea Properties Picks Taylor Johnson to Handle Marketing


Al Goldstein
CHICAGO, IL -- Taylor Johnson announces it now represents Pangea Properties, a Chicago-based private real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the acquisition and renovation of distressed multifamily properties in lower-middle-income communities where quality, affordable housing options are virtually nonexistent.

Pangea focuses on value-add, urban, scatter-site rental properties and, in just over six years, has amassed a portfolio that includes nearly 11,000 apartments in Illinois, Indiana and Maryland.

Pangea was founded in 2008 by Al Goldstein and Steve Joung, a pair of longtime friends turned business partners who successfully sold a dot-com financial services business in 2006

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

Abe Tekippe at Taylor Johnson (312) 267-4528 or