Done Deals: Oct 1, 2013

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Jones Lang LaSalle Brokers $4.73 M Main Street Lofts Sale in Buckeye, AZ to Phoenix Investor

Main Street Lofts at Verrado, 21068 West Main Street, Buckeye, AZ

PHOENIX, AZ – Capital Markets experts in the Phoenix Office of Jones Lang LaSalle have completed the $4.73 million sale of Main Street Lofts at Verrado, a Class A, urban-style, condominium-quality multifamily property located at the center of the Verrado master-planned community in Buckeye, Ariz.

John Cunningham

Jones Lang LaSalle’s Executive Vice President John Cunningham and Vice President Charles Steele represented the property developer and seller, DMB Associates.

The buyer is Waitt Verrado LLC, a newly formed company involving WaittCorp Real Estate LLC of Omaha, Neb. (Norm Waitt, Chairman) and Arcadia Capital Group LLC of Phoenix, Ariz. (Jay Khor, Director of Acquisitions).

As is the case with Main Street Lofts, the companies continue to seek high quality, uniquely positioned real estate opportunities in the Phoenix market.

Charles Steele

They purchased Main Street Lofts because of the prime location within the Main Street District at Verrado, one of the Valley’s fastest growing and highest quality master-planned communities. In the near term, the company will work to improve efficiency, grow rental rates and occupancy.

“This is a truly unique urban-designed property for the West Valley that earned very broad buyer interest,” said Cunningham. “The transaction continues to demonstrate the investment community’s interest in the recovering single-family and multifamily markets, particularly in the West Valley.”

According to Michael Burke, Vice President of Development at DMB, “the Main Street Lofts has helped energize Main Street, and the strong return of the multifamily market signalled the right time for this planned sale.”

Located at 21068 W. Main St., Main Street Lofts is a 44,750-square-foot property that includes 45 apartment homes in nine, two- and three-story buildings.

The structures border the north and south sides of Main Street in Verrado’s town center, and sit above ground floor retail that is 100 percent leased to Bashas’ grocery store, CVS Pharmacy, Bank of America, Ciao, Grazie Pizzeria, Tempo Urban Bistro and Anderson Institute of Music.

Completed in 2004, Main Street Lofts is a collection of townhome, loft and apartment residences averaging 994 square feet.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Stacey Hershauer

focusAZ

Marketing & Public Relations

(480) 600-0195

Carter Developing 590-Bed Student Housing Project in San Antonio, TX

Rendering of planned student housing development, San Antonio, TX

SAN ANTONIO, TX (Oct. 1, 2013) – Carter, one of the nation’s leading real estate development, investment and advisory firms, announced today that the company will develop a 198-unit, 590-bed student housing project located less than half a mile from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Conor McNally

The 16-acre community will include 121 flats and 77 townhomes built around a “town center.” The development will feature a mixture of two-, three- and four-bedroom units. The townhomes will include two-car garages.

“Carter is excited to be developing a unique student housing project in what we consider to be a growing and strong market,” said Conor McNally, chief development officer at Carter. “UTSA’s enrollment has increased by nearly 10 percent since 2006, and this high-quality, amenity-rich project will provide the university with a progressive alternative to traditional student housing developments.”

Scott Taylor

The community will feature abundant green space with a variety of areas for people to congregate. The amenities will also include a resort-style pool, dog park, fitness center with tanning beds, media/game room and volleyball and basketball courts.

“Carter has a rich history of developing mixed-use projects, and we are committed to creating off-campus student housing developments that meet students’ educational and lifestyle needs,” said Scott Taylor, president at Carter.

University of Texas, San Antonio Campus

“Developing student housing that provides robust amenities and walkability, as well as access to public transportation is a priority of ours. With college enrollments continuing to grow, we look forward to developing more projects like the one we have planned at UTSA.”

The community will be located less than a mile from The Shops at La Cantera, an upscale, open-air regional shopping center featuring more than 160 retail, dining and entertainment offerings, as well as The Rim, a retail center that includes a Bass Pro Shop, 19-screen IMAX, Hotel Talavera, Target and Best Buy.

The Shops at La Cantera, San Antonio, TX

Additionally, the community is less than a mile from the 125-acre UTSA Park West, the school’s athletic facility that will eventually include a 35,000-seat football stadium once construction is complete.

The project design team includes Reese Vanderbilt & Associates as the architect, Pape-Dawson Engineers, Inc. as the civil engineering firm and SpawGlass as the contractor. Cardinal Group Management will provide property management and leasing services for the project.

Construction began in September 2013, with a scheduled completion date of July 2014.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Tony Wilbert

The Wilbert Group

404-965-5022

twilbert@thewilbertgroup.com

www.carterusa.com

Veteran Attorney Diane Lidz Joins Hartman Simons Commercial Real Estate Firm

Diane L. Lidz

ATLANTA, GA (Oct. 1, 2013) – Diane L. Lidz, who has nearly 30 years of experience in representing clients in various types of commercial real estate transactions, has joined the Hartman Simons & Wood law firm as apartner.

Lidz, who previously was a partner in Troutman Sanders’ Atlanta office, has focused in recent years on retail development projects,industrial leasing and loan workouts, and she will continue to do so at Hartman Simons.

Over the years, her practice has included the purchase, sale and development of land and income-producing properties; leasing; lending; construction contracting; and loan workouts.

Summey Orr

“The commercial real estate markets in Atlanta, the Southeast and across the nation are picking up, making this an ideal time to add a lawyer of Diane’s considerable skill and experience to our firm,” said Summey Orr, managing partner of Hartman Simons.

“Diane also has an outstanding rapport with clients, and the time she takes to really dig in and understand their needs and businesses will serve them and us very well.”

A 1984 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, Lidz is a member of the Atlanta Bar Association, the CREW Network and the International Council of Shopping Centers. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Williams College.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Stephen Ursery

The Wilbert Group

404.549.7150 – office

404.405.2354 – cell

sursery@thewilbertgroup.com

http://www.hartmansimons.com

http://hartmansimons.typepad.com.

Startup Atlanta Launches New Website Dedicated to Connecting and Supporting the Entrepreneurial Community

ATLANTA, GA, Oct. 1, 2013 – Today, Startup Atlanta, a non-profit dedicated to making Atlanta nationally and internationally recognized for entrepreneurship, launches a new website, which promises to connect, support and expand the entrepreneurial ecosystem within the greater Atlanta region.

Dr. Eloisa Klementich

Founded in May 2013, Startup Atlanta is backed by the following founding partners: Atlanta Technology Angels, Entrepreneurs’ Organization, Invest Atlanta and the Metro Atlanta Chamber.

"Great ideas come out of Atlanta. We have talented, smart people generating world-changing ideas here, with outstanding resources to support them,” said Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. “Startup Atlanta’s online hub will help us highlight the many opportunities and successes for entrepreneurs and innovators in our region."

Bess Weyandt

The new website features a resource map, interactive events calendar and a blog, which will showcase best practices and ideas from well-known Atlanta entrepreneurs and thought leaders. It also includes Atlanta’s startup deal flow, outlining angel investments and venture capital that support promising area companies.

“Perhaps the most exciting aspect of our website is its ability to showcase the name and logo of every startup in metro Atlanta,” said Bess Weyandt, Startup Atlanta’s executive director. “Through our connection to Angel List, we have the capability to import information about every local startup and feature each company in one central location.”

Mayor Kasim Reed

“Atlanta has a strong - and rapidly growing - set of resources that entrepreneurs can tap into,” said Dr. Eloisa Klementich, director of business development at Invest Atlanta and chair of Startup Atlanta’s board of directors.

“With the launch of this website, Startup Atlanta is becoming a go-to hub for entrepreneurs, connecting them with each other and the tools they need to grow and thrive. We invite the community to contribute content to this project as we help the city’s young, aspiring companies achieve success."

Click here to visit the new Startup Atlanta website.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Anna Ruth Williams, AR|PR

annaruth@annaruthpr.com

855.300.8209

startupatlanta.org

@StartupAtlanta on Twitter.

Beech Street Capital Provides $5 Million Freddie Mac Loan to Acquire Mississippi Apartments

The Royal Gulf Apartments, Biloxi, MS

Chad Thomas Hagwood

OCTOBER 1, 2013, BETHESDA, MD –Beech Street Capital, LLC announced today that it has provided a $5 million Freddie Mac CME loan for the acquisition of The Royal Gulf Apartments, a 144-unit garden-style apartment complex located in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Chad Thomas Hagwood, executive vice president of loan originations in Beech Street’s Birmingham, Alabama office, originated the loan. This is the borrower’s third transaction with Beech Street.

Bill Butler

Beech Street was able to underwrite around the newly created entity, and together with Freddie Mac, turned the deal around very quickly to meet the timeline of the borrower. “We once again put our trust into Beech Street’s ability, and they came through for us,” states Bill Butler, Engel Realty Company.

Built in 1996, The Royal Gulf Apartments is considered a Class B asset and is located along the Gulf of Mexico with close proximity to the beach and within 12 minutes from Downtown Biloxi, Keesler Air Force Base, and Gulfport.

The fixed-rate loan has a 10-year term with 30 years of amortization.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Courtney Lewis or

240-507-1948

Jenifer Bernardi

240-507-1946.

www.beechstcap.com

Cousins Properties Announces Retail Dispositions

PetSmart at Tiffany Springs MarketCenter
Kansas City, MO

ATLANTA -- Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE: CUZ) announced today the unwinding of two retail joint ventures and the sale of a retail power center as it continues to implement its strategy to exit non-core holdings and focus on Class-A office properties and opportunistic mixed-use developments.

The two joint ventures consisted of eight retail centers, totaling 2.1 million square feet, in four markets.

The Prudential Insurance Company of America, which previously held an approximately 89 percent interest in the ventures, purchased Cousins’ interests to become sole owner of the portfolio.

The transaction valued Cousins’ interests at approximately $57 million prior to allocation of property level debt.

Cousins also completed the sale of Tiffany Springs MarketCenter, a retail power center in Kansas City, Missouri, for approximately $54 million to an unrelated third party.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Cousins Properties Incorporated

Cameron Golden, 404-407-1984

Vice President of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications

camerongolden@cousinsproperties.com

www.cousinsproperties.com

Industry Icon Blaine Strickland Joins Crossman & Company

Blaine Strickland

ORLANDO, FL -- Crossman & Company announced today that Blaine Strickland, one of the most respected leaders and educators in the real estate industry has joined the company as Senior Vice President. Strickland will lead Crossman & Company’s leasing division for the Southeast US.

Strickland, a 30-year veteran of the commercial real estate industry, has worked with some of the country’s largest developers and undertaken a variety of projects across Florida.

Prior to joining Crossman & Company, Strickland was an adjunct professor at the University of Florida in the Master of Science in Real Estate (MSRE) program and is currently an adjunct professor at the University of North Carolina.

John Crossman

In 2003, Strickland formed his own company, Remora Partners and actively syndicated several projects, assembling more than $300-million in debt and equity. In 2007, he became a CCIM instructor and has worked as a coach for numerous brokerage firms nationally.

“Blaine is one of the most respected coaches, mentors and leaders in the industry. We are thrilled to have him on our team,” stated John Crossman, President of Crossman & Company. “Blaine embodies what we are about – service, education, and community”.

“The Crossman platform is unique in the industry, and has proven to be very effective for our clients. I look forward to working with the Crossman team as we strive for an even higher level of service,” Strickland remarked.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Claire Pagán

Marketing Specialist | Crossman & Company

3333 S. Orange Ave. Suite 201 | Orlando, Florida 32806

407.423.5400 main | 407.581.6223 direct | 352.348.3066 cell

cpagan@crossmanco.com | Web | Facebook