Marcus & Millichap Closes Retail and Apartment Deals in Crystal River, FL and Winter Haven, FL

TAMPA, FL – June 6, 2008--The sale of Georgetown Apartments was announced today by Steven M. Ekovich, First Vice President and Regional Manager for the Tampa, Florida office of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services.

The property sold for $3,800,000 to Mr. Donald Mason of Mason Properties, LLC, an investor based out of Haines City, Florida.

Michael Regan and Justin Kopcsak of Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office and Douglas Dial of Marcus & Millichap’s Orlando office represented the respective parties in this transaction.

“Recently, we have seen a tremendous amount of action in the secondary and tertiary markets. We believe this is because the ‘yield seekers’ still cannot find the returns they are looking for within the primary markets” states Regan.

Georgetown Apartments is a 90 unit complex, which is made up of six buildings spread over approximately 2.91 acres and located at 130 SE Avenue C in Winter Haven, Florida.

In Crystal River, FL, the sale of The Shoppes of Crystal River (middle left photo) was announced by Steven M. Ekovich, First Vice President and Regional Manager for the Tampa, Florida office of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services.

The property sold for $2,700,000 to an investor based out of Tampa, Florida. The seller, a local Crystal River developer, developed the property last year.

Les Aron, David Goldstein and Michael A. Mele, Vice Presidents Investments in Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office represented the seller in the transaction, while Messrs. Aron and Goldstein, together with Matt Reichenthal represented the buyer.

The Shoppes of Crystal River is a 14,000 square foot, brand new, 100 percent occupied shopping center located at 7957 Gulf to Lake Highway/State Road 44 in Crystal River, Florida.

CONTACTS:

Sue Sampson, Brokerage Administrator/CAST, Marcus & Millichap,
7650 Courtney Campbell Causeway, Suite 920, Tampa, FL. 33607.
Phone: (813) 387-4700. Fax: (813) 387-4710

Steven M. Ekovich, Marcus & Millichap, 813 387 4700.

SchenkelShultz to Design Orange County, FL Public Schools' $52.7M, 325,000-SF Renovations and Addition to Oak Ridge High

ORLANDO, FL – SchenkelShultz Architecture, Orlando, one of Florida’s leading green designers, will design Orange County Public Schools’ $52.7 million, 325,000-square-foot renovations and addition to Oak Ridge High School in Orlando, FL.

Wharton-Smith, Inc. Construction Group, Sanford, FL, serves as construction manager for the project which is slated for completion in 2011. The Orlando office of SchenkelShultz is located at 200 East Robinson Street, Suite 300, Orlando, FL, phone 407-872-3322.

SchenkelShultz has designed more than 28 million-square-feet of K-12 projects in 28 Florida school districts. In addition, the firm has designed numerous higher education projects including the award-winning six-story Stetson University Lynn Business Center, the first LEED®-certified building in the state of Florida, and the LEED®-Gold certified Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University.

In Boston, SchenkelShultz announced its design of Signature Flight Support’s newly-completed Boston-Logan Executive Terminal (top right photo) was awarded LEED® Certification.

SchenkelShultz, in conjunction with Chan Krieger Sieniewicz, Cambridge, MA, designed the two-story glass and metal-panel terminal and ground support equipment facilities at Boston Logan International Airport.

Incorporating sustainable architectural design features, environmentally-friendly building products, energy-efficient systems and environmentally-sensitive construction practices, the 19,800-square-foot project is the first Signature Flight Support facility in North America to be awarded the LEED® certification.

The Signature Boston-Logan Executive Terminal, which operates as the ‘front door” welcoming visitors to the City of Boston, provides passenger support services with a large lobby, customer service desk, seating areas, coffee bar, conference room, phone/Internet rooms, restrooms and vending areas.

The Orlando office of SchenkelShultz is located at 200 East Robinson Street, Suite 300, Orlando, FL, phone 407-872-3322.

CONTACT:
Kenneth H. Cristol, President, Cristol Marketing Company, 237 Hunt Club Blvd., Suite 102, Longwood, FL 32779 USA. PH 407-774-2515. FX 407-774-6647. Strategic Marketing, Brand Management,
Publicity and Advertising, and Corporate Communications
khc@crismktg.com

http://www.crismktg.com/

Marcus & Millichap Promotes Stuart Steinberg to Vice President/Sales Manager

Steinberg will also continue to serve as the sales manager of the Encino office.

ENCINO, CA– Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has named Stuart Steinberg (top right photo) vice president, according to Harvey E. Green, (middle left photo) president and chief executive officer of Marcus & Millichap.

Steinberg currently serves as the sales manager in the firm’s Encino office.
“Stuart’s demonstrated management skills and transactional experience as an investment specialist make him an excellent resource for agents and clients throughout Southern California,” comments Green.

Steinberg joined the firm in December 1997 as an agent in the Encino office specializing in multi-family investments. He also served as an associate director in the firm’s National Multi Housing Group. Steinberg was promoted to senior associate in December 2001 and was named a senior investment associate in 2004.

He earned a National Achievement Award in 2003. Steinberg joined the firm’s management team in October 2005 as the sales manager of the Encino office. Steinberg was also called upon to serve other offices throughout United States.

In September 2006, he became the sales manager of the West Los Angeles office. He also served as acting regional manager of the Portland office from November 2006 to July 2007 before returning to the Encino office as a sales manager.

Press Contact: Stacey Corso
Communications Department
(925) 953-1716

Alabama Senior Housing Property Sells for $27.25M

TAMPA, FL--CLW Health Care Services Group is pleased to have represented Carlton Cove, Inc. in the sale of Carlton Cove, (top left photo) an Entrance Fee Continuing Care Retirement Community located in Huntsville, Alabama.

The 43-acre campus is comprised of:
• 49 Single-Family and Duplex Homes
• 113 Independent Living Apartments
• 91-unit/105-bed Health Center (Skilled Nursing, Alzheimer’s Care and Personal Daily Assistance)

Carlton Cove was purchased by ACTS Retirement-Life Communities. The purchase price was $27,250,000.

CLW Health Care Services Group is a division of CLW Real Estate Services Group, a national, commercial real estate firm providing investment sales, multi-market tenant representation, project management, and construction services throughout the United States.



(Allen McMurtry, photo at right), is president of Tampa, FL-based CLW Real Estate Services Group.)

CLW Health Care Services Group specializes in exclusively representing sellers throughout the United States in the sale of Senior Housing properties. CLW has sold over one billion dollars in Senior Housing assets.

Contact: Allen McMurtry 813.349.8349 amcmurtry@clwrg.com
Company web site: http://www.clwhcsg.com/

Thomas D. Wood & Co. Brokers $3M Loan for NC Shopping Center

MIAMI, FL—Marshall Smith,(top right photo) Executive Vice President for Thomas D. Wood and Company, secured financing in the amount of $3,000,000 for Fairview Crossings Shopping Center in Fairview, North Carolina.

Smith financed the loan through StanCorp Mortgage Investors, one of Thomas D. Wood and Company’s correspondent lenders, at a permanent fixed rate of 6.10%.

The loan term is 25 years with a 25-year amortization, with rate resets every five years, and a loan-to-value of 70%.

The 43,120 square-foot retail center was built in 1997, and is home to major tenant Food Lion. Fairview Crossings is located at 1350 Charlotte Highway, Fairview, North Carolina.

For further information, please contact:
Marshall Smith, (305) 447-7820, msmith@tdwood.com
Jessica Gurtowski, (407) 937-0470, jgurtowski@tdwood.com

Tilt-Con Corp. Completes Dolphin Park Job in Doral, FL and Starts 2 Kohl's Project in Hialeah and Kendall, FL

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FL – Orlando-based Tilt-Con Corporation is under way on the new 2-story, 108,392-square-foot Kohl’s department store at 700 West 49th Street in Hialeah, FL, under its contract with J. Raymond Construction Corporation, Longwood, FL.

Tilt-Con also has started construction on a new Kohl's store at 11800 Mills Drive, Kendall, in Miami-Dade County.

Selected for its unrivaled performance and speed of execution, Tilt-Con utilizes its economical multi-story system for tilt-up concrete walls. Ranked as Florida’s largest tilt-up concrete constructor by Engineering News-Record magazine, Tilt-Con’s scope of work includes foundations, slab-on-grade and tilt-up concrete wall panels. The Hialeah store is lated for completion in September 2008; the Kendall store in July of this year. Both projects were designed by Christopher B. Goble, Tulsa, OK.

In nearby Doral, FL, Tilt-Con completed the new 2-building, 107,362-square-foot Dolphin Park of Commerce, (top right photo) Phase II, located at 11231 and 11251 NW 20th Street, under its contract with Itasca Construction Associates, Boca Raton, FL. The project was designed by Cabrera Ramos Architects, Doral.

CONTACT:

Kenneth H. Cristol, President, Cristol Marketing Company, 237 Hunt Club Blvd., Suite 102, Longwood, FL 32779 USA. PH 407-774-2515. FX 407-774-6647. Strategic Marketing, Brand Management, Publicity and Advertising, and Corporate Communications

khc@crismktg.com

http://www.crismktg.com/

S&P: U.S. Insurers Are Bracing For A Period Of Ups And Downs, Conference Panelists Say

NEW YORK --U.S. insurers, in an industry awash in excess capital, face a stretch of turbulence that won't soon abate, according to a panel of speakers at a Standard & Poor's Ratings Services conference on June 2.

Standard & Poor's has kept its stable outlooks on the life, managed care, property/casualty, and reinsurance sectors--reflecting our opinion that upgrades and downgrades will be almost equal in the next six months.

However, the tables could be turning, especially if we see weakening economic trends and industry-specific factors that depress earnings. In any event, the potential speed and depth of an industry slump should come as no surprise, panelists said.

"We're sitting in an environment where we have way too much capital," said V.J. Dowling, (top right photo) managing partner at Dowling & Partners Securities LLC.

Predicting that the industry might see as many as three bad calendar years, Dowling added that because of the excess cash floating around, "we're going to see more and more price competition."

Speaking during the panel session titled "The Insurance Industry: Varying Perspectives from the Street," Robert Glanville, (top left photo) managing director at Pine Brook Road Partners LLC, suggested that the industry slowdown could be slightly shorter than Dowling predicts. Nonetheless, companies face a rocky road ahead and will have to be more careful.

"What we're looking for now is management teams to be a lot more disciplined to reduce their exposures," Mr. Glanville said.

Edward Spehar, managing director at Merrill Lynch & Co., said enterprise risk management has become increasingly important, and that companies "have certainly made great strides in hedging." At the same time, he said it might be "naive to assume companies are doing as well as they say they are doing hedging exposures."

Standard & Poor's believes the insurance sector is well-positioned to navigate through the accounting volatility inherent in investment portfolios, given the generally manageable levels of exposure to the more volatile asset classes, healthy liquidity, and strong capitalization levels.

And with limited prospects for organic growth, we expect to see prudent debt-financed share-repurchasing programs as an integral part of capital management, as raising new capital has been difficult until recently.

(For a complete copy of S&P's news release, please contact

Jeff Sexton, New York, (1) 212-4383448jeff_sexton@standardandpoors.com

Analyst Contacts:
Grace Osborne, New York (1) 212-438-7227
Mark Puccia, New York (1) 212-438-7233

Marcus & Millichap Sells Key West, FL Office Building for $10.7M

KEY WEST, FL– Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has arranged the sale of an 11,305-square foot office leased to the Department of Homeland Security and the United States Immigration and Custom Enforcement Facility in Key West.

The sales price of $10.7 million represents $969 per square foot.
Alex Zylberglait, associate vice president investments, in the Miami office of Marcus & Millichap, and Ryan Shaw, an investment specialist, also in the firm’s Miami office, represented the seller, KEY West GSA LLC (Kiely Commercial Inc.).

Donald MacLaren Jr., vice president investments; Tom Gorman, a senior associate; and investment specialists Matt Gorman and Andrew Janick, all in the firm’s Philadelphia office, represented the buyers, Craig and Kurt Hoffman.

“The new owner has acquired a recently developed Class A office property with a government tenant in a strategic Key West market, which has high barriers of entry,” says Zylberglait.

“Key West has a limited supply of investment real estate that rarely comes to market. Further adding it its appeal is the creditworthiness of the Federal government,” adds Tom Gorman.

Located at 2000 North Roosevelt Blvd., the two-story office building is situated on a 50,094-square foot lot. Built in 2006, the office building was constructed to withstand a category 5 hurricane. The building also has a diesel powered backup generator and is elevated with 23 covered parking spaces and 10 surface spaces.

Press Contact: Stacey Corso
Communications Department
(925) 953-1716

Embassy Suites Philadelphia Completes $10M Renovation

All Guestrooms, Meetings Space and Public Areas Receive Upgrades


PHILADELPHIA, PA– The Embassy Suites Philadelphia Center City (top left photo) has completed a $10 million renovation. The project included upgrades to all guestrooms, public areas and meeting space.

“The entire property experience has been enhanced, from our spacious suites to our inviting lobby,” said Bob Krol, general manager. “With our prime Center City location, our guests can experience panoramic views of the city from the comfort of their completely refreshed guestrooms, featuring the latest designs from the leading all-suite brand in the world.”

The hotel’s 288 guest suites, each with 500 square feet of living space, were completely re-designed with new desks and wireless, high-speed Internet access. New marble-topped wet bars featuring built-in refrigerators and microwaves also were added, as well as flat-screen TVs to the rooms’ parlor and bedroom.

Additionally, the Embassy Suites updated its fitness center, added a completely new business center and created a 24-hour gift shop at the front desk. The complimentary lobby bar area also was entirely redone, and new furniture and carpeting were added to the lobby itself.

The renovation also included upgrades to its 4,000 square feet of meeting space. The hotel’s meeting rooms feature panoramic views of the city from the top floor. The hotel plans to add a new landscaping package this July.

The Embassy Suites Philadelphia is located in the heart of the Philadelphia, towering over famed Center City. With 288 two-room suites and more than 4,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, the hotel is the ideal venue to enjoy one of the nation’s most historic and vibrant cities.

(Jewelers' Row in downtown Center City at left below)

Owners and operators of the Embassy Suites Philadelphia, HEI Hotels & Resorts, headquartered in Norwalk, Conn., is a leading hospitality investment firm that acquires, develops, owns and operates full-service, upper upscale and luxury hotels and resorts throughout the United States under such well-known brand names as Marriott, Sheraton, Westin, Embassy Suites, Le Meridien and Hilton. Properties include the Westin Philadelphia, and the under-development Le Meridien Philadelphia.

For more information about HEI, visit the company’s website, http://www.heihotels.com/. Learn more about the hotel at http://www.philadelphiacentercity.embassysuites.com/.

CONTACTS:

Julie Tullbane, Daly Gray Public Relations , T 703-435-6293, F 703-435-6297
julie@dalygray.com
Al Palubinsky, Director of Sales, 215 561 8816

Jess Petit, HEI Hotels & Resorts, 203 849 2228