Sunday, December 23, 2018

New Digital Platform to Enhance Tenant Experiences at Hines-Managed Properties

 
Lisa Newton

HOUSTON, TX — Hines, the international real estate company, announced today a new partnership with Paris-based Workwell to introduce a market-leading digital experience in its buildings.

Mobile applications help us navigate nearly every part of modern life, and those services shouldn’t stop once you arrive at the office. Hines will connect the dots between the physical and digital through this tenant engagement technology.

Hines is kicking off the partnership in major cities around the U.S. and internationally, including in Houston, New York, Chicago, Atlanta and the United Kingdom. The firm will be adding multiple locations in 2019.

Marie Schneegans

Workwell is a mobile application that connects the spaces, services and people inside buildings. Its purpose is to enrich and facilitate the daily lives of occupiers, and help them connect with each other through an array of features.

These features in turn help simplify operations, streamline communications and enhance the customer experience. In an increasingly connected world, Workwell offers to opportunity to aggregate multiple services and apps under a single screen.

Workwell is built as an open platform that offers core functionality and yet enables buildings to easily integrate their existing systems. This means buildings can bring operations, communications, and social features together on a single screen. 

Tenants themselves can add their own systems and services as well, making it the one-stop-shop for everything related to the workplace. Workwell will also help Hines gather more data regarding its buildings, while fully respecting the privacy of its users.

Charlie Kuntz
Hines Innovation Officer Charlie Kuntz stated, “The market is crowded with options for tenant apps. For an app to drive value, it’s imperative that we pick the right partner and create an effective program, and we believe Workwell is that partner.”     

Hines Senior Vice President, Operations Management, Lisa Newton added, “The occupiers of our leased spaces have been asking for ‘bed to desk’ control of their work environments and lives, demanding an increased set of convenience services that bring a sense of calm to ever busier work and personal lives.

"In addition to our already existing client-focused perspective and Hines expertise, we have been seeking a differentiating product-tool to accomplish this, and we believe we have found that in Workwell.”

Workwell has partnered in the past with leading European firm Unibail-Rodamco-Westfeld and this partnership will be Workwell’s entry into the U.S. real estate market.

“We are thrilled to partner with Hines in their mission to provide a digital experience that will improve the quality of life for the occupiers of their buildings,” said Marie Schneegans, Workwell CEO & Founder.

Workwell Technologies’ mission is to help people be happier and more connected at work. By partnering with leading real estate companies and working directly with some of the world’s largest corporations, Workwell improves the way employees experience their life in the office.

With offices in New York, Paris and Sydney, Workwell’s team is composed mostly of engineers who are highly focused on building the most advanced digital layer for buildings.

 Visit www.workwell.io for more details.

Contact:                                                                                                                                   
George Lancaster
(713) 966-7676
george.lancaster@hines.com



Shaner Hotels Receives Multiple Accolades During Marriott CONNECT Conference

 
AC Hotel Columbus Dublin in Ohio. 
  
STATE COLLEGE, PA –The Shaner Hotel Group, one of the hospitality industry’s leading owner-operators of full-and select-service hotels,  announced the company received three of Marriott International’s top awards during the franchisor’s CONNECT Conference held Dec. 17-19 at the San Diego Marriott Marquis in California. 

Shaner was selected for the Partnership Circle Award, Marriott’s highest accolade honoring companies that live Marriott’s vision, share a mutual, long-term commitment, fully embrace Marriott’s brand initiatives, focus on employees to create a well-managed and engaged workforce, invest in hotel product and providie outstanding customer service. 

A Marriott franchisee for more than 30 years, Shaner is approved to operate its franchised hotels internationally.  

Additionally, Shaner received its second, consecutive Developer of the Year award for its robust pipeline, having opened four hotels in 2018 with an additional five hotels scheduled to open in 2019. 

Plato Ghinos
The company also was recognized for Project of the Year for the company’s AC Hotel Columbus Dublin in Ohio.  

The recently opened hotel was recognized for the strong representation of the AC Brand for Marriott International. 

 The hotel is a top performer for the brand with high guest satisfaction scores, revenue per available room (RevPAR) and penetration success since its opening. 

“We are satisfied with nothing less than excellence throughout our hotel portfolio, as evidenced by the accolades we have garnered this past year,” said Plato Ghinos, president, Shaner Hotels. 

 “As each recognition focuses on a different aspect of our business, from development to operations, I honestly can say we could not have accomplished any of this without our dedicated associates. 

"From our development teams scouting new locations to our housekeeping and engineering staffs keeping our hotels running, I am humbled by and grateful for all the work our teams have accomplished to help us win these awards.”

CONTACT:

Chris Daly
Shaner Hotels           
(703) 435-6293                                                 

Trez Forman Capital Group Provides $48.65 Million Construction Loan to Ensure Completion of Hollywood, FL Multifamily Project


Hollywood East Apartments,
2165 Van Buren Street
Hollywood, FL


Palm Beach, FL  Trez Forman Capital Group funded a $48.65 million construction loan to allow for the completion of a 15-story, 247-unit luxury apartment building in Hollywood, Fla.

 Borrower Hollywood East, LLC is reviving construction of the 2165 Van Buren St. building, which was previously planned as a condominium project.

Brett Forman
The project is located on 1.68 acres adjacent to a proposed station for Brightline, which recently announced a planned rebranding as Virgin Trains USA following an investment from business magnate Richard Branson.

Hollywood East took over the project in 2017 and expects to complete the apartment building within 18 months. Kaufman Lynn Construction is the general contractor.

A previous owner had constructed a 13-story concrete shell in 2015. Hollywood East is working on concrete remediation as the first step in finishing construction. The completed building will include 4,753 square feet of ground-floor retail space and a 443-space parking garage.

Trez Forman President and CEO Brett Forman arranged the loan, which closed on Dec. 11.

“It was a pleasure to work with a borrower that has a vision and clear plan to deliver this long-anticipated project,” said Forman.

Richard Branson
 “Hollywood is an extremely strong multifamily submarket, fueled by its central location within the tri-county area, access to global markets and a multicultural workforce and proximity to transit and major highways. Demand from renters for this product should be high.”

For Trez Forman, a joint venture formed in 2016 by Palm Beach-based Forman Capital and Vancouver-based Trez Capital Group - one of Canada’s largest private commercial mortgage lenders, the Hollywood transaction continues the momentum from a busy first 11 months of the year. The venture has closed more than $500 million in deals in 2018.

Trez Forman provides commercial bridge loans for development and construction and senior stretch financing, starting at about $5 million. It also offers private and institutional investors equity investment opportunities in a variety of funds and assets.


 CONTACTS:

Todd Templin and Eric Kalis
954-370-8999

BoardroomPR
O 954-370-8999
C 305-794-5123
Bank of America Plaza | 1776 N Pine Island Road




GLL completes sale of Papago Spectrum in Tempe, AZ


Papago Spectrum Office Building, 
1225 West Washington
 Downtown Tempe, AZ

Brian Ackerman
TEMPE, AZ -– GLL Real Estate Partners, a member of the Macquarie Group, completed the sale of Papago Spectrum, a 159,261 square foot Class A office building at 1225 West Washington in the heart of downtown Tempe, Ariz.

Papago Spectrum was built in 1999. The building is less than two miles from the campus of Arizona State University in an area of Tempe seeing significant mixed-use development activity including hotels, restaurant, lab and office space.

GLL acquired Papago Spectrum in December 2012 and immediately embarked on a major repositioning of the asset, performing significant deferred maintenance and installing a new roof and HVAC system and upgrading the property’s building management and elevator systems. 

GLL also introduced new signage and conducted extensive landscaping with a view to attracting new tenants.    

The property is currently 93 percent leased and tenants include cybersecurity/data protection firms Acronis and SonicWALL as well as Union Bank.

Brian Ackerman, Senior Vice Present, JLL, handled the sale on behalf of GLL.
  
GLL Real Estate Partners is the real estate equity investment platform for Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, a division of the Macquarie Group. 

A globally-active real estate fund manager and investment advisor headquartered in Munich, Germany, GLL operates 17 offices across the US, Europe, Asia, and Australia.  

The group currently manages USD 8.4 billion, including more than USD 4 billion in the U.S. GLL employs varying commercial property strategies serving an investor group that includes pension funds, insurance companies and sovereign entities.


CONTACT:

O- (925) 930-9848
C- (925) 915-0759