Mesirow’s Ben Blakney Named to Savoy 2022 List of Most Influential Black Executives

 

Ben Blakney

CHICAGO, IL – Mesirow, an independent, employee-owned financial services firm,  announced Ben Blakney, President of Mesirow Institutional Real Estate Direct Investments (“IRED”), was named one of Savoy Magazine’s 2022 Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America.  Savoy, one of the leading African American business and lifestyle magazines, published its definitive list of African American executives, influencers and achievers impacting corporate America in its summer issue.                              LP Green II “Savoy is proud to present the 2022 Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America. In this issue, we assembled an elite representation of African American men and women who have been recognized for their executive and business leadership in national and global-leading corporations,” said L.P. Green, II, Publisher of Savoy Magazine.  “These innovative trailblazers have led efforts to foster growth for some of the country’s highest-performing companies throughout and beyond the US market.” Ben has more than 30 years of investment industry experience as a senior executive in both the public and private sectors. He joined Mesirow in 2014 and today serves as a member of the Mesirow Board of Directors as well as the IRED Investment Committee. He also plays a key role as co-chair of the Mesirow Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council.                              Natalie Brown “Our talented people are our greatest strength,” said Mesirow CEO Natalie Brown. “Ben exemplifies our firm’s commitment to serving clients through differentiated financial products, acting as a force for social good and sustaining our people-centric culture.  "We congratulate Ben on this well-deserved recognition as we celebrate his leadership and accomplishments." Ben is an active member of the Pension Real Estate Association, the National Association of Securities Professionals and the Real Estate Executive Council and serves as a mentor with LINK Unlimited Scholars.  Ben earned a Bachelor of Arts from Williams College and a Master in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. CONTACT: Mesirow  mediainquiries@mesirow.com

CHICAGO, IL – Mesirow, an independent, employee-owned financial services firm,  announced Ben Blakney, President of Mesirow Institutional Real Estate Direct Investments (“IRED”), was named one of Savoy Magazine’s 2022 Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America. 

Savoy, one of the leading African American business and lifestyle magazines, published its definitive list of African American executives, influencers and achievers impacting corporate America in its summer issue.

                             LP Green II

“Savoy is proud to present the 2022 Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America. In this issue, we assembled an elite representation of African American men and women who have been recognized for their executive and business leadership in national and global-leading corporations,” said L.P. Green, II, Publisher of Savoy Magazine. 

“These innovative trailblazers have led efforts to foster growth for some of the country’s highest-performing companies throughout and beyond the US market.”

Ben has more than 30 years of investment industry experience as a senior executive in both the public and private sectors. He joined Mesirow in 2014 and today serves as a member of the Mesirow Board of Directors as well as the IRED Investment Committee. He also plays a key role as co-chair of the Mesirow Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council.

                             Natalie Brown

“Our talented people are our greatest strength,” said Mesirow CEO Natalie Brown. “Ben exemplifies our firm’s commitment to serving clients through differentiated financial products, acting as a force for social good and sustaining our people-centric culture. 

"We congratulate Ben on this well-deserved recognition as we celebrate his leadership and accomplishments."

Ben is an active member of the Pension Real Estate Association, the National Association of Securities Professionals and the Real Estate Executive Council and serves as a mentor with LINK Unlimited Scholars.

 Ben earned a Bachelor of Arts from Williams College and a Master in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

CONTACT:

Mesirow 

mediainquiries@mesirow.com

North Raleigh, NC 212-acre master-planned development site sells for $12 million

Sarah Godwin

RALEIGH, NC – JLL Capital Markets has closed the $12 million sale of Buffaloe Reserve, an approximately 212-acre, master-planned development opportunity with residential and commercial zoning in the North Raleigh area of the Triangle region.

 JLL represented the seller. The purchaser is a joint venture between Suncrest Real Estate & Land, a national residential master developer, and TriGate Capital, a leading real estate investment manager.

 Sean Cooney

  The JLL Capital Markets Sales and Advisory team representing the seller was led by Senior Director Sarah Godwin.

 “This is an exciting addition to our portfolio in Raleigh, which now totals almost 2,500 lots,” said Sean Cooney, Managing Partner at Suncrest.

 “Buffaloe Reserve will bring a diverse mix of residential and multi-family product to an area of the city that is severely undersupplied and is growing rapidly.” 

Buffaloe Reserve offers approximately 2,000 feet of frontage along the Neuse River and nearly 3,000 feet of frontage along I-540, serving as one of the largest undeveloped single-ownership parcels remaining in Wake County. 

The rezoning of the site was finalized in December 2021 with approval for 1,110 residential units, including single-family, townhome and apartments, as well as a commercial component.

 Located at 6515 Buffaloe Rd., the property is within a 20-minute drive of the market’s largest employment nodes, including downtown Raleigh, North Hills and Research Triangle Park.

 

Buffaloe Reserve, 6515 Buffaloe Road,
 North Raleigh, NC aerial photo

The property is well-located near key east-west regional connector I-540 and offers north-south connectivity from both U.S. Highway 401/Louisburg Road and U.S. Highway 1/Capital Boulevard. 

The site is also proximate to the 1.2-million-square-foot Triangle Town Center Mall.

Contact:

 Jenna Sharp

JLL Associate

 Public Relations

Phone: +1 214 394 3356

Email:  Jenna.Sharp@am.jll.com

 

Daniel Digerness joins JLL’s Phoenix Capital Markets team

Daniel Digerness 

PHOENIX, AZ – JLL Capital Markets announced 
Daniel Digerness has joined the firm as a Director in its Phoenix office. Digerness will focus on debt and equity advisory across all product types in Phoenix and the Southwestern U.S.

 With more than 20 years of industry experience, Digerness has advised on more than $3 billion of debt and equity transactions over his career. 

He comes to JLL after 12 years with another commercial real estate services firm, most recently serving as a vice president.

Digerness is an active member of the Urban Land Institute and previously served on the Board of Directors for the Association of Commercial Real Estate.

 

Brad Miner

“We are excited to welcome Daniel to our capital markets team,” said Brad Miner, Senior Managing Director and co-head of JLL’s Phoenix Capital Markets team. “His broad experience across product and lender types, deep capital markets knowledge and excellent track record strengthen our office and reinforce our commitment to client success.”

 Digerness is a graduate of Arizona State University and originally began his career in Phoenix.

Contacts:

Kimberly Steele

PR, Capital Markets, Agency Leasing

and Valuation Advisory 

JLL

T +1 713 852 3420

M +1 832 244 9994

JLL.com

 

Stos Partners marks entrance to Southeast region with acquisition of industrial property totaling 276,081 SF in Nashville, TN

276,081-SF industrial building
 at 3555 Cleburne Road,
Spring Hill, TN

 NASHVILLE, TN – Stos Partners, one of the most active commercial real estate investment and management firms in Southern California, has acquired a 276,081 square-foot industrial asset in the Nashville submarket of Spring Hill, Tennessee for $52 million. 

 CJ Stos

The property, at 3555 Cleburne Road, marks the company’s entrance into the Southeast U.S. region, according to CJ Stos, Principal of Stos Partners.

“Our firm’s deep industrial sector expertise was key to identifying Nashville as an area offering powerful growth potential,” says Tanner Jansen, Vice President of Acquisitions at Stos Partners.

 “One of our newest strategic initiatives is to expand our presence outside of the Western United States. With ongoing demand for well-located manufacturing and distribution buildings and a forecasted population growth of more than 500,000 people within the next two decades, Nashville is an extremely attractive market for our firm to target.”

Tanner Jansen

In recent years, Nashville has become a magnet for industrial users as its location meets companies’ needs for high distribution and available labor. Industrial demand continues to outweigh available supply in this market as developers struggle to complete projects delayed by supply chain issues and rising material costs, notes Jay Boyle, Executive Vice President at Stos Partners.

“The call for new, well-located spaces has created strong competition among buyers in Nashville, particularly for buildings offering 200,000 square feet or more in usage area,” says CJ Stos.

 “This demand has driven Nashville’s already low vacancy rate into an all-time low of 3.2%, making now the perfect time to add this asset to our industrial portfolio.”

Jay Boyle

National industrial vacancy rates continue to experience all-time lows, with the most recent update reporting a tighten rate of 3.7% nationwide—a historical low from Q1.

Originally constructed in 2019 and recently expanded in 2021, Stos Partners’ recently acquired Spring Hill asset is occupied by a long-term tenant, a manufacturer of automobile door panels. 

The state-of-the-art manufacturing building features a spacious parking lot, multiple sit entrances, excess yard/truck parking, 14 dock-high and drive-in doors, and 45’ high ceilings for storage and distribution, and provides nearby access to highways 247 and 31.

Jason Richards

“Our company views this acquisition as an opportunity to invest in new or brand-new industrial assets that are conveniently located close to transportation routes,” says Jason Richards, Partner at Stos Partners.

In addition to this latest acquisition, Stos Partners recently hired Morgan Hill as Vice President of Acquisitions. Hill will be spearheading the firm’s acquisitions in Arizona, Colorado, and other West Coast markets.

Morgan Hill 

Brett Wallach and William Sisk, SIOR, of Lee & Associates represented Stos Partners as the buyer in the transaction.

CONTACTS:

Arleeny Escarcega / Katie Haga

The Smart Agency, Inc.

(949) 438-6262

aescarcega@thesmartagency.com