HFF arranges $15.7M in financing for Boca Raton industrial facilities

MIAMI, FL – The Miami office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has arranged a $15.7 million refinancing for eight industrial/warehouse facilities totaling 203,578 square feet in Boca Raton, Florida.

Working exclusively on behalf of Lewis Rental Properties, HFF managing director Fred Welker (top right photo) placed two fixed-rate loans with Wells Fargo Commercial Mortgage Originations.

An $8.2 million loan was secured for the South Congress Warehouses (bottom right photo) and a $7.5 million loan was arranged for the Boca Design Center Phase I (photo at left) .

Both financings are replacing existing loans with Wells Fargo that were to terminate in 2008. Lewis Rental Properties, with a home office in Boca Raton, has been providing rental warehouse space for the small industrial storage user in the Boca Raton and Deerfield Beach markets for over 30 years.

The South Congress Warehouses consist of three fully leased warehouse buildings totaling 118,800 square feet. The properties are located at 1101, 1121 and 1141 Holland Drive in Boca Raton.

The Boca Design Center Phase I includes five warehouse/flex buildings totaling 84,778 square feet with a 269-unit self-storage facility. The warehouse buildings are 100% occupied and the self-storage units are 90% leased.

Located at 3100 Boca Raton Boulevard, the properties are the first phase of a two-phase existing development in Boca Raton.

“South Congress and Boca Design Center Warehouses have enjoyed high occupancies for over a decade. This is attributable to a very experienced leasing and management team at Lewis Rental Properties combined with the excellent locations close to Interstate 95 in Boca Raton,” said Welker.

HFF (NYSE: HF) operates out of 18 offices nationwide and is a leading provider of commercial real estate and capital markets services to the U.S. commercial real estate industry. HFF offers clients a fully integrated national capital markets platform including debt placement, investment sales, structured finance, private equity, note sales and note sale advisory services and commercial loan servicing.

CONTACTS:

FRED E. WELKER III, HFF Managing Director, (305) 448-1333, fwelker@hfflp.com

LAURIE FISH MCDOWELL, HFF Associate Director, Marketing (617) 338-0990 lmcdowell@hfflp.com

50% Pre-Leased at Park Plaza Professional Center in Pembroke Pines

PEMBROKE PINES, FL/PRNewswire/ -- Sky Development Inc. announces that it has already received commitments to lease approximately 50% of the first of two Class A medical office buildings and garage facility for Park Plaza Professional Center at 2201 North University Drive, Pembroke Pines, Florida 33024, adjacent to Memorial Hospital in Pembroke Pines.

Yizhak Toledano (top right photo) is chief executive officer of Sky Development.

The medical/professional office complex, with smart building technology and other attractive features such as impact glass, is adjacent to Memorial Hospital Pembroke Pines, (bottom left photo) which has been designed for LEED, environmentally green certification.

The medical office complex will be the first LEED building for the City of Pembroke Pines, Florida.

Sky Development COO Gavin Susman indicated that tenants secured for the project could not be specifically named but include leading medical professionals from the area. Leasing of the project began in June.

"There has not been any new and advanced medical office buildings constructed in the area since the 1960s, and the area doctors have had to make due with old infrastructures to house their practices," Susman says, "Some of these local medical practitioners have expressed interest in moving to a newer medical facility."

The project, on 9.77 acres, is being developed by locally based Sky Development Inc., and will consist of two four story, 80,000 SF buildings with retail on the first floor.

The parking facility is a four-story building with 538 parking spaces to be accompanied by an additional 288 surface parking spaces.

The efficient floor plans will range from 1,500 to 20,000 SF and will offer attractive tenant improvement allowance.

Equity Inc. headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, is the exclusive leasing agent for the project and Coral Gables based Edward Lewis Architects is the project architect.The project will be constructed in two phases with construction of the first building to begin late 2008, and the second building mid 2009 along with the garage.

For Leasing information, please email info@parkplazaprofessional.com or call 305-933-4646. www.parkplazaprofessional.com

CONTACT:

Yizhak Toledano of Sky Development Inc., +1-305-933-4646

Web site: http://www.skydevelopmentinc.com/

http://www.parkplazaprofessional.com/

Florida Division of Clancy & Theys Construction Co. ranked 57th largest contractor, according to Building Design + Construction magazine

ORLANDO, FL – The Florida Division of Clancy & Theys Construction Company, Orlando, announced the Raleigh, NC-based company is now ranked as the nation’s 57th largest contractor according to Building Design + Construction magazine’s Giants 300 survey published July 2008.

The company reported 2007 revenues of $563.5 million, a 15% increase over the prior year when it ranked 59th based on 2006 revenues of $491.8 million.

Its Florida Division is led by Pete Pace, (top right photo) a 24-year Florida construction veteran who serves as CEO for statewide operations as well as vice president of the corporation.

“At Clancy & Theys,” said Pace, “we are exceptionally client-focused and measure success by the level of service we provide our clients.”

Under Pace’s leadership, the local division received the Associated General Contractors’ Project of the Year Award and an Associated Builders and Contractors’ Eagle Award for its work at the new $25 million, 190,000-square-foot NASA Operations Support II office building at Kennedy Space Center. (photo at left)

Clancy & Theys Construction Company, founded in 1949, operates five divisions in the Southeast including Orlando, FL, Charlotte, NC, Raleigh, NC, Wilmington, NC, and Newport News, VA.

The Florida division has been in operation since 1991, specializing in construction management, design/build, and general contracting for the commercial, municipal, distribution, education and resort markets. The division is located at 7308 Greenbriar Parkway, Orlando, FL 32819, telephone 407-578-1449. The company’s website is http://www.clancytheys.com/.

Contact: Kenneth H. Cristol 407-774-2515

Baltimore Hotel Corp.'s 'BBB-' Rating On $247.5M Bond Issue Placed On Watch Negative

NEW YORK, NY--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has placed its 'BBB-' underlying rating on the Baltimore Mayor and City Council, Md.'s $247.5 million convention center hotel (Hilton Baltimore top right photo) senior revenue series 2006A bonds on CreditWatch with negative implications.

The CreditWatch reflects the bonds' ties to the ratings on XL Capital Assurance Inc. (BBB-/Watch Neg/--), which provides the surety for the series 2006A bonds and the debt service reserve fund (SR DSRF).

At the same time, we affirmed our 'BB' rating on the council's $53.44 million convention center hotel subordinate revenue series 2006B bonds, which have a stable outlook.

The council issued both series of bonds for the Baltimore Hotel Corp.

For a complete copy of the S&P release, please contact Mimi Barker, New York (1) 212-438-5054, mimi_barker@standardandpoors.com

Analyst Contacts:
Jodi E Hecht, New York (1) 212-438-2019
Matthew Hobby, New York (1) 212-438-6441

Office Completions and Absorption Decelerate in Atlanta

ATLANTA, GA — Atlanta office fundamentals are expected to soften this year as modest deliveries are met with conservative leasing activity and a less robust economy, according to a second-quarter Office Research Report by Marcus & Millichap, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm.

The first quarter of 2008 marked the first time in three years that the local office market recorded negative absorption, and vacancy edged higher in the second quarter as well.

“Institutional investors will continue to exercise caution when making acquisitions, although activity could pick up if the national economy steadies later this year,” says John Leonard,(top right photo) regional manager of the Atlanta office of Marcus & Millichap.

Following are some of the most significant aspects of the Atlanta Office Research Report:

· Employers will add 1,000 new jobs in 2008.
· Developers are forecast to bring 1.9 million square feet of new office space to Atlanta this year.
· Vacancy is projected to finish the year at 16 percent.
· Asking rents are forecast to increase 2.4 percent to $21.70 per square foot.
· Effective rents will climb 2.2 percent to $18.18 per square foot.

For a copy of the complete Atlanta Office Research Report, as well as reports on other markets nationwide, visit our website at http://www.marcusmillichap.com/.
Press Contact: Stacey Corso
Communications Department
(925) 953-1716

Strong Employment growth Bolsters Austin, TX Office Market

AUSTIN, TX — The Austin office market will record mixed fundamentals throughout the rest of this year as speculative construction outpaces demand; however, the metro’s long-term outlook remains favorable, according to a second-quarter Office Research Report by Marcus & Millichap, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm.

(Austin City Hall, top right photo)

Despite the recent uptick in vacancy, 2008 has already marked a significant milestone for office owners, with the metro’s average rents surpassing peaks attained during the tech boom earlier this decade.

“Unlike the national trend, sales velocity in Austin has accelerated in recent months, indicating a vibrant investment climate through the end of the year,” says Bradley H. Bailey, regional manager of the Austin office of Marcus & Millichap.

Following are some of the most significant aspects of the Austin Office Research Report:

· Employers in Austin are projected to add 10,000 positions this year to expand payrolls by 1.3 percent, one of the highest rates in the country.
· Building activity in Austin will peak in 2008 with the completion of 1.9 million square feet of mostly speculative space, representing an increase to office inventory of approximately 5 percent.
· Vacancy is forecast to end the year at 17.3 percent. · Asking rents are expected to rise 5.6 percent to $26.66 per square foot.
· Effective rents will increase 4.1 percent to $22.76 per square foot.

For a copy of the complete Austin Office Research Report, as well as reports on other markets nationwide, visit our website at http://www.marcusmillichap/

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