Jones Lang LaSalle Names Jeffrey Ingham Brokerage Leader in Orange County, CA

IRVINE, CA, Sept. r 21, 2009 – Jones Lang LaSalle has named Jeffrey Ingham Brokerage Leader in its Orange County, Calif. office. Ingham, a top producer in Southern California for the company for the past 14 years, will be responsible for leading the company’s team of 15 leasing brokers.

Ingham replaces Leland Bruce who is returning to full-time brokerage in the company’s Irvine office. He will also be dedicating a large portion of his time to serving the community.

“With an impressive track record in Orange County brokerage for the past several years, Jeff is the perfect fit to lead our team,” said Jan Pope, Southwest Market Director for Jones Lang LaSalle. “Not only will Jeff continue to act as a tenant representation broker, but he’ll also help facilitate new and innovative commercial real estate solutions for our tenant and landlord clients in the market.”

Ingham is Executive Vice President in Jones Lang LaSalle’s Orange County office. He is responsible for assisting clients with their Southern California transactions as well as working with clients on their national and international real estate needs. Mr. Ingham has extensive experience assisting Fortune 500 and local Orange County companies with portfolio strategy, transaction management, site and building acquisitions/dispositions, sublease dispositions and lease transactions.

“For the past six years, Leland has done an exceptional job in leading our team in Orange County,” said John Gates, (middle left photo) President of Brokerage for Jones Lang LaSalle. “We are confident that he will continue to play an integral role in satisfying the needs of our clients.”

Contact: David Ebeling, Ebeling Communications, 949.278.7851, david@ebelingcomm.com

Al Calhoun Rejoins Hodges Ward Elliott as Senior Managing Director, Select Service Division

ATLANTA, September 21, 2009—Hodges Ward Elliott, Inc. (HWE), the nation’s premier hotel brokerage and investment banking firm, today announced that Al Calhoun has rejoined the firm as senior managing director, select service division.

“Our relationship with Al goes back nearly two decades, and it is a delight to welcome him back to our firm after a nine-year sabbatical,” said Mark Elliott, (top right photo) principal of Hodges Ward Elliott. “His experience in the select service segment is unparalleled, and he adds tremendous depth to our 10-person select service team. Combined with our full-service and Europe divisions, we now have the deepest and most experienced hotel transaction team in the industry.”

 In his new role, he will be responsible for leading and growing HWE’s select service division, including brokerage, investment and advisory services. He will work closely with Anthony Falor, who will remain managing director of the select service division. HWE has closed more than $2 billion in select service transactions in the past five years. Select service currently represents approximately 30 percent of HWE’s transaction volume.

Contact:  Jerry Daly or Chris Daly, (703) 435-6293
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Davidson Hotel Company to Manage New Westin Berkeley Heights in New Jersey

BERKELEY HEIGHTS, N.J., Sept. 21, 2009—Davidson Hotel Company, one of the nation’s largest independent hotel management companies, today announced that it will manage the 244-room Westin Berkeley Heights in eastern New Jersey, 22 miles from New York City. The new-build property is situated in the 185-acre Connell Corporate Park. It is the first hotel Davidson will manage for owner, The Connell Company.

“This is a superb location for an upscale lodging project, in a major office park with a large existing corporate tenant base, situated in a high-income area with significant barriers to entry,” said Steve Margol, (top right photo) Davidson’s chief investment officer.

“Our extensive experience with pre-opening/opening and operating upscale hotels and resorts, including three other Westin products, will enable us to quickly establish the Westin Berkeley Heights as a market leader. In addition to the obvious corporate and group meetings business potential, we also plan to focus on the local social market, which our research determined is underserved.



“The addition of the Westin Berkeley Heights to our ever-growing portfolio of premier hotel assets marks the continuation of our very successful third-party management platform,” he noted.

“The property will become our fourth Westin and our tenth Starwood-branded asset. The Connell Company has a sterling reputation in the region, and we are proud to add them to our growing roster of institutional and high net-worth clients.”

“This upscale, full-service hotel marks our entry into the hospitality industry and is a perfect complement to our office park, whose Life Time Fitness Athletic club and five Class A commercial office buildings with more than 30 corporate tenants represent a significant built-in source of demand,” said Shane Connell, executive vice president, The Connell Company.

Contacts:

Cyndi Norwood, Davidson Hotel Company,  (901) 821-4155, cnorwood@davidsonhotels.com
Jerry Daly, Chris Daly (media), Daly Gray Public Relations, (703) 435-6293, jerry@dalygray.com

Thomas D. Wood & Co. Brokers $1.52M Ground Lease Deal in Coconut Creek, FL

Sarasota, Florida—September 21, 2009— Thomas D. Wood and Company, a Strategic Alliance Mortgage LLC member, secured financing on September 17, 2009, in the amount of $1,520,000 for the TD Bank Ground Lease in Coconut Creek, Florida.


Brad Cox (top right photo), CCIM, CPM, Company Vice President, financed the TD Bank Ground Lease through Thomas D. Wood and Company’s correspondent relationship with Summit Investment Advisors.

The borrower acquired the parcel of land to lease to TD Bank to build a branch office. The loan term is 10 years, based on a 25-year amortization and a loan-to-value of 60%. The TD Bank branch will be built on 0.9 acres, located at 6700 State Road 7, Coconut Creek, Florida.

For further information, please contact:


Brad Cox, CCIM, CPM,  (941) 552-9731, bcox@tdwood.com
Jessica Gurtowski,  (407) 937-0470, jgurtowski@tdwood.com

HFF secures $4.08M financing for White Plains industrial

NEW YORK, NY – The New York office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that it has secured $4.08 million in financing for a 79,532-square-foot industrial facility at 535 Old Tarrytown Road in White Plains, New York.

HFF senior managing director Al Epstein (top right photo)  worked exclusively on behalf of the borrower, Phoenix White Plains, LLC, in arranging the financing through Valley Bank. New financing was needed as the former loan on the property was expiring and the mortgage lender no longer had an active loan program. Phoenix White Plains is affiliated with Phoenix Realty Management, a Connecticut-based commercial real estate operating company.

“The lender was comfortable with the tenant, New Castle, which had a long history and a proven track record even in more difficult times. It also liked the property’s location, close to an entrance of Interstate 287,” said Epstein.

535 Old Tarrytown Road is situated one quarter mile from exit four of the Cross Westchester Expressway (Interstate 287) and one exit from the Sprain Brook Parkway.

The property has been the long-term home of New Castle Building Supply and features offices, a distribution-warehouse and a retail store. New Castle has additional facilities in The Bronx, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

“The property is not only a convenient distribution point to the center section of Westchester County, but it is less than 10 minutes from the Tappan Zee Bridge and the Rockland County marketplace,” added Epstein.

Contacts:

Alvin J. Epstein, HFF Senior Managing Director, (212) 245-2425, aepstein@hfflp.com

Kristen M. Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com

Interstate Hotels & Resorts/JHM Hotels’ JV Management Co. to Open Four Points® by Sheraton in Jaipur, India

ARLINGTON, VA, Sept.r 21, 2009—Interstate Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: IHR), a leading hotel real estate investor and the nation’s largest independent hotel management company, today announced that its India-based joint venture management company, JHM Interstate Hotels India, will open its first managed hotel in India, the 115-room Four Points® by Sheraton Jaipur, (top right photo)  City Square, in October.

 It will be the second Four Points hotel to open in the country and the first project developed by Duet India Hotels Limited, a U.K.-based, real estate investment group dedicated solely to hotel investment and development in India. Interstate and JHM Hotels, its JV partner, have an equity interest in Duet, which provides JHM Interstate Hotels India the first opportunity to manage the hotels developed or acquired by Duet.

“With the opening of this hotel, we will add a sixth country outside of the United States, our first in the Asia Pacific region, to our management portfolio as we continue to extend our reach internationally,” said Thomas F. Hewitt, chairman and chief executive officer. “India remains one of the world’s fastest growing economies, with projected growth of 5 to 6 percent this year despite the global economic downturn.”

Jaipur (center photo)  is part of India’s Golden Triangle, along with Delhi and Agra, site of the Taj Mahal, and has long been a major tourist mecca. More recently, the city, which is the capital of the state Rajasthan, has become a hotbed of economic development activity, which is decreasing its reliance on leisure business alone and attracting growing numbers of business travelers with a need for lodging.

 In June, Jaipur opened a new international airport, dramatically improving domestic and international access to the city. “We believe the Four Points brand will appeal to both travel groups, with its exceptional amenities, comfortable and stylish decor and value pricing,” he added.

Contact:  Carrie McIntyre, SVP, Treasurer, (703) 387-3320

HFF Los Angeles hires Christopher Vittetoe as director in debt placement group

LOS ANGELES, CA – HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that it has hired Christopher Vittetoe (top right photo)  as a director in its debt placement group in its Los Angeles office.

Mr. Vittetoe will focus on debt and structured finance transactions with a particular emphasis on multi-housing properties in Southern California and throughout the Western United States.

“Chris is a wonderful complement to HFF’s existing debt placement team and brings with him extensive knowledge and relationships in the multi-housing/agency lending sector,” said Scott McMullin,  (bottom left photo) an executive managing director of HFF Los Angeles.

He has more than five years of experience in the commercial real estate industry and throughout the course of his career has been personally involved in more than $750 million in commercial real estate transactions including numerous agency financings.

Prior to joining HFF, Mr. Vittetoe was a mortgage banker at CapMark Finance, Inc. (formerly known as GMAC Commercial Mortgage) in San Francisco where he closed more than $189 million in loans in 2007 and 2008 and underwrote more than $500 million in loan requests on multi-housing, industrial, office, retail, self storage and warehouse properties.

Mr. Vittetoe began his commercial real estate career as an associate at Butler Burgher Group Real Estate Services (formerly known as Land America Valuation) in Dallas. He is a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin, a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and a licensed California real estate salesperson (Ca. Lic. # 01807651).

Contacts:

Scott F. McMullin, Ca. Lic. # 01278290, HFF Executive Managing Director, (310) 407-2100, smcmullin@hfflp.com 
Kristen M. Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing(713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com