Cuhaci & Peterson Architects to Design Renovations of Ale House in West Orlando, New Ale House in New Jersey

ORLANDO, FL --- Cuhaci & Peterson Architects, LLC of Orlando’s Baldwin Park, was recently awarded a contract to design renovations to an Ale House facility at Apopka Vineland Rd. and S.R. 535 in Orlando and a new Ale House facility in Mount Laurel, N.J.

Jed Downs (top right photo), president of Cuhaci & Peterson Architects, said the Ale House, in New Jersey will be 9,350 square feet and seat 314.  The Ale House on Apopka Vineland road will seat 365 in its interior and patio upon completion.   

For more information, contact:  

Jed Downs, President Cuhaci & Peterson Architects, LLC, 407-661-9100;  

Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, Inc. 407-644-4142, lvershelco@aol.com

  

Mattamy Homes U.S. Group Reports Sales of 203 New Homes for $48 Million in Biggest Quarter since 2005

WINTER PARK, FL. --- Mattamy Homes U.S. Group, the U.S. division of Canada’s largest home builder, reports it sold 203 new homes in the Orlando, Jacksonville, Charlotte, Minneapolis / St. Paul and Phoenix markets during its second quarter which ended May 31.

Steve Parker (top right photo), president of Mattamy Homes U.S. Group, said the sales totaled more than $48 million.

“Our second quarter sales were the highest for a single quarter since 2005,” Parker said.

Mattamy Homes U.S. Group sold 80 homes that totaled more than $21 million in May, Parker added.

 The home builder’s Orlando division sold 18 homes during May for a dollar volume of more than $5 million.

Mattamy Homes www.mattamyhomes.com expanded into the U.S. in 2003 and is headquartered in Winter Park, Fla. with divisions in Orlando, Jacksonville Phoenix, Minneapolis and Charlotte.

The homebuilder, the largest and most active in Canada with annual revenues exceeding $1.3 billion was ranked among the highest of all homebuilders in the greater Toronto and Ottawa areas in a nationwide customer satisfaction survey conducted by J.D. Power Associates.  

For more information, contact:

Steve Parker, President Mattamy Homes U.S. Group 407-599-9994

Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications 407-644-4142

  

Crossman & Company’s Richard Crotty Earns Life Group Leadership Legacy Award and James B. Greene Award

 ORLANDO, Fl --- Former Orange County Mayor Richard Crotty (top right photo) who joined Crossman & Company in Orlando as Executive Vice President late last year, recently received the Legacy Award by Lifework Leadership, “for the quiet leadership and lasting legacy of faith that has changed the spiritual contour of our city.”

 John Crossman, president of Crossman & Company said Crotty earned the award for his long history of Christian leadership and service to the community.

Also noted at the ceremony, Whitaker Leonhardt (bottom left photo) leasing associate at Crossman & Company graduated from the 2010-2011 Lifework Leadership class.

 Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission awarded Crotty the James B. Greene Economic Development award for his outstanding contribution to economic opportunity in Central Florida, during his “decade of success” as mayor. 

Governor Rick Scott recently appointed Crotty to the University of Central Florida’s Board of Trustees, where he will serve as chairman of the advancement committee.

 “Rich Crotty has given so much to the Central Florida community, and we are honored he is playing an increasingly important role here at Crossman & Company,” Crossman said.

For more information,  contact:

John Crossman, CCIM, President, Crossman & Company, 407-581-6218, jcrossman@crossmanco.com

Larry Vershel, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142, lvershelco@aol.com

Barbara Bushnell Joins Grubb & Ellis as Vice President, Office Group

 SAN ANTONIO, TX (June 7, 2011) – Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced that Barbara Bushnell, CCIM, (top right photo) has joined the company as vice president, Office Group. 

 “Barbara joins us with a reputation as a top professional who provides the highest level of client service, and I couldn’t be more pleased to have her as part of our team,” said Ernest Brown, CCIM, executive vice president and managing director of Grubb & Ellis’ San Antonio office.  “She has developed many relationships throughout her more than 32 years of experience.” 

 Bushnell joins Grubb & Ellis from Corporate Realty Associates, where she served as an executive vice president of corporate services and client development. 

She previously owned and managed Bushnell Realty for two years, until merging the firm with Corporate Realty Associates in 2008.  Bushnell spent the majority of her career with Johnson-Rast & Hays Company Inc., now RealtySouth, where she began her career in 1979 and spent nearly 24 years and was consistently one of the top producers of the company. 

 Bushnell holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Birmingham-Southern College.  She serves on the board of directors of the CCIM Institute, where she is an instructor and was recognized as the Robert L. Ward Center for Real Estate Studies “Instructor of the Year” for 2010. 

Bushnell is a member of Commercial Real Estate Women and NAIOP and is an advisor on the board of Birmingham-Southern College, as well as fund-raising co-chair of the American Heart Association. 

 Contact: Julia McCartney,  Phone: 714.975.2230                                     

Email: julia.mccartney@grubb-ellis.com

          

Marcus & Millichap Names Brent Smith National Director of National Hospitality Group

HOUSTON, TX June 7, 2011 – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has named Brent Smith (top right photo) national director of the firm’s National Hospitality Group (NHG), according to John J. Kerin (middle left photo), president and chief executive officer. Smith is also regional manager of the firm’s Houston office.

 “Brent’s extensive knowledge of the national hospitality market will make him a valuable asset to our clients and hospitality investment specialists,” comments Kerin. “Under his leadership, the NHG will continue to provide unparalleled service to its clients.”

“The Houston office has dominated the mid-market hotel investment sales market in Texas,” says Smith. “As the new head of the NHG, I plan to expand upon our success and deliver the same dynamic and effective services for the acquisition and disposition of hospitality properties to our clients nationwide.”

Smith joined Marcus & Millichap in 2003 as an investment specialist focusing on shopping centers in southern Texas. During his first year as a broker, he generated marketing assignments in excess of $28 million and closed more than $17 million in transactions.

Also in 2003, Smith opened the firm’s San Antonio office. In 2004, he achieved associate status and in 2005, he was promoted to sales manager of the Houston office. Smith has been the regional manager of the Houston office since June 2009.

Prior to joining the firm, Smith spent eight years in marketing. He co-founded the Yehti Corp., a software company for which he helped raise more than $2 million in private startup capital. He also managed product marketing for Dell Computer Corp.’s $4.5 billion Dimension product line and served as an operations manager for United Parcel Service.

Smith received a bachelor’s degree in finance and an MBA from the University of Texas.

Bryn Merrey Promoted to Vice President

 TAMPA, FL, June 7, 2011 – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has promoted Bryn D. Merrey (middle right photo) to vice president, according to John J. Kerin, president and chief executive officer. Merrey currently serves as the regional manager of the Tampa office, a position he will continue to hold.

“Bryn’s superior management skills, brokerage expertise and excellent knowledge of the investment sales market make him a tremendous asset to our clients and investment specialists in Tampa and throughout Florida,” says Kerin. “Bryn also provides tremendous value to clients and to the firm as an authority on whole loan sale transactions.”

Merrey joined Marcus & Millichap in June 2004 as an office and retail investment specialist in the firm’s Miami office. He was promoted to associate in April 2005. During his sales career, he closed more than $125 million in real estate transactions.

Merrey became sales manager of the Miami office in 2007 and in June 2008, he was promoted to regional manager of the Orlando office, a position he held until December 2009. Merrey has been in his current role as regional manager of the Tampa office since January 2009. Prior to joining the firm, he operated his own company providing various mortgage services.

 Contact: Stacey Corso, Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716    

Bainbridge to Renovate, Manage Alexandria, VA Apartment Community

 $9.5 Million Renovation to Improve Quality of Life at CITYSIDE Huntington Metro

Wellington, FL/Alexandria, VA (June 7, 2011) – Bainbridge Companies has begun managing CITYSIDE Huntington Metro (top left photo), a 570-unit apartment community in Alexandria, Virginia.

 In addition, Bainbridge Construction will soon begin a $9.5 million renovation project on the property.

The Carlyle Group and AION Partners recently acquired the community, formerly known as Belle Haven Towers, and named Bainbridge to manage the property and do the renovation. The renovation will include upgraded interiors and exteriors, amenities and landscaping tailored to improve the quality of life at CITYSIDE.

“This is a great opportunity for Bainbridge to show its management and marketing skills to increase occupancy and resident satisfaction,” said Seth Kalinsky (middle right photo), Bainbridge’s Regional Vice President for the Washington, DC metro area. “We are very pleased to add this community to our portfolio and expect to generate great returns for the owners over the next few years.”

“CITYSIDE Huntington Metro has an excellent location near Old Town Alexandria,” said Jared Miller (lower left photo), Vice President of Marketing for The Bainbridge Companies. “The community will soon be enhanced with new amenities, as well as apartment interiors and exterior upgrades that will offer an elevated lifestyle and level of convenience.”

The community includes high-rise and mid-rise buildings at 6034 Richmond Highway near Old Town Alexandria with easy access to Washington, DC, Crystal City, Pentagon City and Maryland. The controlled access community has studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments with fully-equipped kitchens, patios or balconies, ceiling fans and walk-in closets. Amenities include an Olympic size pool, playground and tennis courts.

Contact:

Terri Thornton

404-932-4347 (Cell)

http://www.territhornton.com/

CBRE Orlando Chalks up $216 Million in 2011 Multifamily Sales to Date

ORLANDO, FL--CB Richard Ellis is pleased to announce the sale of Berkshires at Winter Haven (top left photo).

Built in 1973, this rental community features 460 units in the Winter Haven area of Central Florida. The property was 90% occupied at closing, and features two swimming pools, a fitness center, and tennis courts.

Shelton Granade and Luke Wickham of CBRE’s Central Florida Multi-Housing Group exclusively represented the seller, and have closed over $216,000,000 in Orlando thus far in 2011 – more than the next three competitors combined.

Buyer interest in multi-housing assets in Central Florida has increased significantly.

 For further information, please contact the Central Florida Multi-Housing Group of CB Richard Ellis:

Shelton Granade,T 407.839.3103, shelton.granade@cbre.com

Luke Wickham, T 407.839.3130, luke.wickham@cbre.com

Oil Prices and Lodging Risk

When Will Oil Prices Impact The Lodging Industry?

ATLANTA,, GA, June 7, 2011 – Based on a recent analysis conducted by PKF Hospitality Research (PKF-HR), the U.S. lodging industry will see minimal disruption if oil prices reach $125 per barrel price in 2011.

 However, if prices surge to $150 a barrel, the recovery that U.S. hotels are currently enjoying could be severely curtailed.

 The results of the analysis have been published in a special report entitled Oil Prices and Lodging Risk.  John B. (Jack) Corgel (top right photo), the Robert C. Baker Professor of Real Estate at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration and senior advisor to PKF-HR, and Jamie Lane, Research Associate, are the authors of the report.

 “As the price of oil has shot up, and then down, over the past few months, many U.S. hoteliers have worried about the impact that oil prices could have on their business,” said R. Mark Woodworth (middle left photo), president of PKF-HR.

 ”Our analysis found that when oil prices increase beyond normal levels, individual consumer and business spending power is reduced, which in turn has a negative multiplier effect throughout the economy in general and the lodging industry specifically. 

“Based on our study, oil prices above $125 a barrel exceed ‘normal’ levels and would have an increasingly negative effect on hotel operating performance.”

 

The PKF-HR Hotel Horizons® econometric forecasting model relies on economic data from Moody’s Analytics (Moody’s) to project future hotel demand levels.

 In April of 2011 Moody’s Analytics created two “oil spike” economic forecasts around a hypothetical future where prices increase to either a high of $125 or $150 a barrel by the fourth quarter 2011.  PKF-HR used these hypothetical economic scenarios to forecast RevPAR for the U.S. lodging industry through 2013.

 For comparison purposes, the March 2011 Hotel Horizons® forecast served as the baseline lodging forecast for the analysis.  This baseline forecast reflects Moody’s modeled fundamental price of oil ($93.53) coupled with a premium of around $5.00 to account for the supply uncertainty created by ongoing unrest in the Middle East.

 To download a complimentary copy of the Oil Prices and Lodging Risk report, please visit www.pkfc.com/oilpricesandlodgingrisk

.

For further information,  please contact:

Mark Woodworth, President, PKF Hospitality Research, Tel: 404 842 1150, ext 222   Email: mark.woodworth@pkfc.com  

www.pkfc.com

                                                      

Chris Daly, Daly Gray Public Relations, Tel: 703 435 6293,                            

Email: chris@dalygray.com

www.dalygray.com

Burns & McDonnell Signs Lease for New England Regional Office

New building will support worldwide firm’s steady Northeast growth 

WALLINGFORD, CT, June 7, 2011 – Burns & McDonnell, a full-service engineering, architecture, construction, environmental and consulting solutions firm, announced the signing of a seven-and-a-half year (90 month) lease at a new building in Wallingford, CT.

As a result of the deal, Burns & McDonnell will become the second tenant in the newly constructed 305,000 square-foot Campus at Greenhill (top centered photo) located at 108 Leigus Road. Burns & McDonnell will occupy 27,635 square-feet of the building, and anticipate moving into the new location in September of this year.

The site will serve as the new home to the growing New England Regional office.  Currently the New England team occupies nearly half the amount of space at their existing Wallingford facility on Thorpe Avenue.

“The new building provides a central location for our New England office, and is also designed to support our firm’s continued growth,” said Burns & McDonnell New England office Vice President Brett Williams (middle right photo).

 “We are very confident that there are great opportunities throughout the Northeast for our firm moving forward, and we are really excited to continue to call Wallingford home.”

The new office space features an expansive floor plan that provides lots of natural light, and a green architecture focus that fits the firm’s image well.

The space will include a training room, auditorium, conference rooms, a library, and areas for Engineering, Project Management and Operations staff. Employee-owners will also have access to a fitness center and cafeteria inside the building.

Burns & McDonnell first opened a project office in Connecticut in 2004 with three employee-owners.  After continued growth, in 2009 the project office expanded to become their New England Regional office, now home to 130 employee-owners.

They have been involved in some of the industry’s largest electric infrastructure improvement projects throughout the Northeast, and as a result have consistently recruited the industry’s best and brightest talent.

“No doubt it is the hard work and dedication of our employee-owners, as well as the support from our client base that has allowed for this expansion,” Williams said.

The new location also keeps the firm in Wallingford, CT, a place where their roots run deep.  Burns & McDonnell just recently discovered through research that the firm provided engineering support for a municipal power plant in Wallingford back in the 1940’s.

In addition to the business accomplishments and steady growth of the firm, Burns & McDonnell takes pride in having become a vibrant part of the Connecticut and neighboring communities.  The employee-owners have generously donated time and funds to support worthy causes and charities including The Jimmy Fund, The United Way, Special Olympics and the American Cancer Society.

With multibillion dollars of experience planning, designing, and building the diverse infrastructure that serves the Northeast, the Burns & McDonnell New England office has become a center for excellence in program management.

Burns & McDonnell, founded in 1898, provides engineering, architecture, construction, environmental and consulting services to clients throughout North America and abroad.

 More than 3,000 engineers, architects, scientists, planners, estimators, economists, technicians and other professionals work in 20 offices throughout the United States.

 The firm is currently celebrating a 25-year milestone of being employee owned.  For more information about Burns & McDonnell, visit www.burnsmcd.com

 For more information, contact:

Matt Watkins

Watkins Strategies

617-571-4582

Elise Holder

Burns & McDonnell

203-284-8590