Sunday, April 12, 2009

Marcus & Millichap Posts Listings Valued at $80M

THREE-PROPERTY OFFICE AND INDUSTRIAL PORTFOLIO IN COLORADO LISTED FOR $58.44M

DETROIT, MI – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has retained the exclusive listing for a three-property office and industrial portfolio located in Colorado, Texas and Missouri.


The portfolio’s total square feet is 306,688. The sales price is $58.44 million. The properties are being offered as a portfolio or separately.

Dan Danielak, a senior associate in the firm’s Detroit office, is representing the seller.

“All three properties were build-to-suits for their current tenants,” says Danielak, “Each of the leases feature built-in increases, with significant remaining terms.

"Attractive financing, that has been sourced, can give exceptional first-year returns that range from 7.73 to 7.86 percent.”

The three properties are:


SI International Inc. (top right photo), located at 1050 and1090 North Newport Road, in Colorado Springs, Colo., measuring 121,888 square feet.

· Aker Solutions, (middle left photo) located at 2201 North Sam Houston Parkway, in West, Houston, Texas, encompassing 94,800 square feet.


· Nooter Eriksen Inc. (middle right photo) at 1509 Ocello Drive, in Fenton, Mo., featuring 90,000 square feet.

The SI International Inc. property is located in Newport Business Park alongside other major defense and technology companies.

The offering is comprised of one three-story, 91,088-square foot office building and one single-story, 30,800-square foot office building.

The property has fitness center, employee cafeteria and polished granite floors.

The SI International office buildings were build-to-suit for the tenant in 2006 and the double-net lease has seven years remaining. SI International Inc. was purchased by Serco Inc. in December 2008.

Serco North America is a leading provider of professional, technology and management services to the United States’ military and the federal government.

The Aker Solutions building was built-to-suit for Aker in 2007 and features two built-in water pits for engineering and laboratory testing and four overhead crane systems.

Sellers control adjacent land that gives the tenant the availability to expand the existing facility. The current triple-net lease has eight years remaining; one five-year renewal option and a 2.75 percent rent increase every two years.

Aker Solutions ASA, an international $8.3 billion annual revenue organization, is committed to being the industry leader in oil field operations and has chosen Houston and this facility to invest in their company’s operations

The Nooter Eriksen headquarters building is a Class A three-story office building that sits on a spacious 28-acre site. A BTS for Nooter Eriksen Inc. in 2002, the property is absolute net-leased for another 13 years.

The lease calls for cumulative CPI rental increases every five years that are not to exceed 7.375 percent. Additionally, there are four five-year renewal options in place.

Nooter Eriksen Inc. is the world's leading independent supplier of custom-designed heat recovery systems for power plants.




$11.5M DEVELOPMENT SITE IN PORT ST. LUCIE, FL FOR SALE

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL– Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has retained the exclusive listing for the Port St. Lucie Center Village development, a 37-acre land development site in Port St. Lucie.

Paul Bouldin, (bottom left photo) senior associate and an associate member of the National Land Group in Tampa, is representing the seller.

“This is a unique opportunity to purchase an excellent infill location in the city of Port St. Lucie,” states Bouldin. “The site is zoned for mixed-use development of more than 37 acres with 482,694 square feet of buildable space. The seller is prepared to meet the market to sell the property.”

Port St. Lucie is a rapidly growing city with more than 150,000 residents in what was predominately a bedroom community centrally located in the Treasure Coast of Florida in St. Lucie County, which is now transitioning into a dynamic and diverse city.

“The demand is growing for the development of retail, office and affordable housing in Port St. Lucie,” adds Bouldin.

“The economic model of Port St. Lucie Town Center Village, combined with current construction cost and potential income stream, make this asset an attractive long-term investment.”

As one of the fastest growing areas in the United States, and as the new home of the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, and the Mann Research Center LLC, St Lucie County is emerging as the next center of science and technology excellence.

In addition, new business developments are expanding the area’s economic drivers, for example the Professional Golf Association (PGA), which is now residing in Port St. Lucie.

Located at 1684 Port St. Lucie Blvd., the development is bordered by Vero Beach to the north and Stuart to the south. It is well positioned to expand still further with more affordable housing and growing of new construction.


LA FITNESS IN DALLAS LISTED FOR $10.6M

DALLAS, April 8, 2009 – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has retained the exclusive listing for a 45,000-square foot freestanding fitness center (top right photo) net-leased by LA Fitness in Dallas.

The listing price of $10.6 million represents $236 per square foot.

Jason Vitorino, associate vice president investments and a director of the firm’s National Retail Group in Dallas, and Philip Levy, a senior associate also in Dallas, are representing the seller, a Dallas-based developer.

“The new 15-year, double-net lease is guaranteed by LA Fitness International LLC, and has rent escalations every five years, starting in year five,” says Vitorino.

“The escalations are equal to the lesser of the five-year cumulative CPI increase, or 10 percent. Additionally, there are three five-year options to extend the lease, all of which have the same scheduled rental escalations.”
Located at 3029 Forest Lane, inside the Interstate 35 loop, just east of Interstate 35 and west of Webb Chapel and Forest Lane, the property has a prime northwest Dallas location, surrounded by major retailers and office developments.

The population within five miles exceeds 240,000.
The Class A building came on line in the third quarter of 2008.

LA Fitness is a full-service health club and fitness facility headquartered in Irvine, Calif. The company was founded in 1984, and has more than 285 locations in 21 states.

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

Magazine Ranks Roger B. Kennedy Inc. 93rd Largest General Contractor in Southeast

ORLANDO, FL – Altamonte Springs-based Roger B. Kennedy, Inc. was prominently ranked as the Southeast’s 93rd largest general contractor in Southeast Construction’s 2009 Southeast’s Top Contractors survey published in its April issue.

Led by Roger B. Kennedy, Jr., (top right photo) president, the company reported 2008 revenues of $82.6 million. The company also ranks among the Orlando area’s largest construction companies and is one of Central Florida’s largest family-owned businesses.

Perennially ranked among Engineering News-Record’s “Top 400 U.S. Contractors,” the Kennedy organization has been in the construction business for over 135 years, and its experience has passed down from generation to generation.

Its headquarters is located at 1105 Kensington Park Drive, Altamonte Springs, FL 32714, telephone (407) 478-4500.


Contact: Kenneth H. Cristol 407-774-2515

Saturday, April 11, 2009

C&W office team of Solik-Owens announces 3 deals for America’s Capital Partners totaling 34,000 sf

ORLANDO, FL–Cushman & Wakefield’s (C&W) Orlando office team of Richard Solik (top right photo) and Betsy Owens announced three lease transactions for America’s Capital Partners last month in the Orlando MSA.

• Sedgwick Claims Management Services renewed and expanded their lease for a total of 30,000 sf in the Primera V building (bottom left photo) in Lake Mary;


• Provident Funding Associates renewed their lease for 2,089 sf at 500 Winderley Place in Maitland;


• Dyne-A-Mark Corporation renewed their 1,242 sf lease at 2400 Maitland Center.

Contact: Brook Hines, Tel: 407-541-4401, brook.hines@cushwake.com,

Liberty Property Trust Receives Two Prestigious Awards from NAIOP Northeast Florida Chapter

Jacksonville Office Receives ‘Developer of the Year’ and ‘Sustainable Project of the Year’ Honors

JACKSONVILLE, FL - Liberty Property Trust (NYSE:LRY), the real estate investment trust that owns and manages nearly 2.5 million square feet of office and industrial properties in Jacksonville, has received two awards from the Northeast Florida Chapter of National Association of Industrial Office Properties (NAIOP).

The awards, presented to Liberty for its Butler Plaza III LEED® registered building, (top left photo) were received for Developer of the Year and Sustainable Project of the Year.

“To receive ‘developer of the year’ and ‘sustainable project of the year’ honors by NAIOP, the leading trade association for developers, owners, investors and other professionals in the commercial real estate arena, is an exceptional honor,” said Mike Heise, (middle right photo) vice president and city manager, Liberty Property Trust.

Located at 4875 Belfort Road, Butler Plaza III is an 80,000 square foot building that was designed to receive LEED Silver certification (certification is expected at anytime).

The building officially opened last year in July, and in October the company announced that it had leased 98% of the building.

Liberty has since moved its Jacksonville headquarters to the brand new state-of-the-art building and the company has built-out its corporate office space to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Gold CI (Commercial Interiors) certification.

Butler Plaza III marks the company’s second sustainable development project in Jacksonville and the company's sixth sustainable building to open in the state.

Contacts:
General Inquiries: Mike Heise, Liberty Property Trust, 904/296-1776
Media Contact: Margo Hunt Winans, a.s.a.p.r., 757/404-8653

LIBERTY PROPERTY TRUST RENEWS TWO TENANTS AT BOCA COLONNADE

BOCA RATON, FL - Liberty Property Trust (NYSE:LRY), the real estate investment trust that owns and manages nearly two million square feet of office and industrial properties in South Florida, has renewed leases with two tenants in its Boca Raton portfolio.

Campus Management Corporation has renewed a long-term lease for 53,619 square feet in the Boca Colonnade building, (bottom right photo) located at 777 Yamato Road.

The company has been a Liberty tenant since 2002. Greg Katz with Studley represented Campus Management Corporation in the transaction.

Also renewing in the Boca Colonnade building is Verizon Wireless Personal Communications LP. The company has renewed its lease for 25,262 square feet and has been a long-time tenant with Liberty since 1995. Keith Edelman and Scott Goldstein with Jones Lang LaSalle represented Verizon Wireless in the transaction.

Contacts:
General Inquiries: Andy Petry, Liberty Property Trust, 561/999-0310
Media Contact: Margo Hunt Winans, a.s.a.p.r., 757/404-8653

Schlage Lock Site Named Best Land Deal of the Year in San Francisco

San Francisco Land Use Lawyer, David Cincotta of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP, Plays Key Role in Transfer of 12.3 Acres of Brownfield

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Business Wire))--Demolition and remediation activities began this week on the long dormant brownfield in San Francisco known as the Schlage Lock industrial site.

Land use lawyer David Cincotta (middle left photo) of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP, represented Universal Paragon Corp. (UPC) in the real estate transaction, obtaining approvals that cleared the way for development.

The San Francisco Business Times recently named the Schlage Lock site -- part of UPC's 20-acre, $500 million Brisbane Baylands development project -- the Best Land Deal of the Year for 2008.

Ingersoll-Rand, the longtime owner of the Schlage Lock Co. factory that existed on the site, transferred the property to UPC and, in exchange, UPC dropped its decade-old $100 million lawsuit alleging that the Schlage operations had polluted the groundwater at UPC’s adjacent parcel.

UPC also agreed to pay a portion of the $25 million cleanup of the site.

During the transaction, Cincotta worked closely with UPC to pull the numerous parties and the various legal components together.

The complex deal involved settling the lawsuit, indemnifying parties from claims of future environmental liability, obtaining fixed cost contracts for remediation and securing environmental liability insurance.

On the drawing board for Brisbane Baylands are 1,250 housing units (with 25% set aside as affordable); 100,000 square feet of retail, including a supermarket; and 3 parks.

UPC also plans to convert the existing historic Schlage Lock Co. office building, which is currently boarded up, into community space and offices.

San Francisco Business Times reporter J.K. Dineen quoted UPC's General Manager Steven Hanson as saying, “It's a fantastic opportunity for the property, which has been standing unused for ten years, to get a new lease on life."

About JMBM

Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP is a full-service law firm committed to providing clients with outstanding results.

The Firm's Government, Land Use, Environment and Energy (GLUEE) Department comprises more than 25 lawyers. Many of them, including Cincotta, are former city planners and administrators of public agencies.

The GLUEE team regularly represents developers and property owners in land use and environmental issues before the full range of local and California government and legislative bodies, as well as in the courts.
From offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Orange County, JMBM serves clients' needs worldwide.

About Universal Paragon Corp.

Universal Paragon Corporation is a leading real estate design and development firm based in San Francisco, creating sustainable, livable and thriving projects that balance economic value and environmental sensitivity.
UPC partners with local communities to build a range of residential, commercial, hotel and mixed-use projects that reflect local values and serve local needs.

Contact: Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP, David Cincotta, 415-984-9687. dcincotta@jmbm.com

NAI Realvest Negotiates lease agreements totaling more than 12,000 SF at CommerCenters in Orlando, Winter Garden, Sanford

ORLANDO, FL- Michael Heidrich, (top right photo) principal at NAI Realvest, recentlynegotiated four lease agreements for a total of 12,200 square feet of industrial space at CommerCenters in Orlando, Winter Garden and Sanford.

In Orlando, Heidrich negotiated the sublease of suites 310 and 315 with 4,382 square feet at Goldenrod CommerCenter, 1476 N. Goldenrod Rd. representing Small Bay Partners, the sublessor. The sublessee/tenant is Issac Vasquez of Winter Park.

At the same location, Heidrich negotiated a lease for 2,191 square feet representing the landlord, COP-Goldenrod, LLC. The new tenant is Islamic Society of Central Florida, Inc. of Orlando.

Heidrich negotiated a new lease for 1,875 square feet in suite 290 at CarterCommerCenter, 902 Carter Rd. in Winter Garden representing landlord COP-Carter LLC of Maitland. Liberty Diagnostics LLC of Winter Garden is the tenant.

At Monroe CommerCenter South (bottom left photo) in Sanford, Heidrich negotiated renewal of thesublease of 3,750 square feet at 4153 Flex Court representing The Girard Companies, LLC, sublessor.
Sanford-based Total Medical Solutions is the sublessee.
For more information, please contact:

Michael Heidrich, Principal, NAI Realvest 407-875-9989, mheidrich@realvest.com
Janice Paiano, Director of Marketing, NAI Realvest, 407-875-9989, jpaiano@realvest.com
Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142, lvershelco@aol.com

Industry Veteran Janine Watson Returns to Grubb & Ellis’ San Francisco Office


SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced that industry veteran Janine Watson, (top right photo) SIOR, has returned to the company’s San Francisco office, where she began her commercial real estate career in the mid-1980s.

Watson will serve as vice president and specialize in tenant representation and office leasing.

“Janine is a highly qualified individual who has extensive experience in all sectors of the commercial real estate market,” said Mark Geisreiter, executive vice president and regional managing director of Grubb & Ellis’ San Francisco Bay Area operations.

“She has represented clients in leasing, buying, developing and selling buildings, as well as partnered with brokers in other states to arrange new facilities for local clients.

"She is a very knowledgeable individual and we are fortunate to have her on board.”

Watson joins Grubb & Ellis from Pacific Union/GMAC Commercial Brokerage in San Francisco, where she served as director, responsible for tenant representation. She also served as a leasing agent for Cushman & Wakefield.

Watson is LEED™ accredited and a member of SIOR. She holds an M.A. from University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Contact: Julia McCartney, Phone: 714.975.2230. Email: julia.mccartney@grubb-ellis.com

Grubb & Ellis Promotes Mark Kowal to Vice President, Project Management Group

SOUTHFIELD, MI– Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, announced today that Mark Kowal (bottom left photo) has been promoted to vice president, Project Management Group, from senior project manager.

“With his commitment to providing value and contributing to our clients’ bottom line, Mark has been a driving force behind expanding the services we can provide,” said Fred Liesveld, executive vice president and managing director of Grubb & Ellis’ Southfield office.

“As more and more companies seek to benefit from ‘one-stop shopping’ for real estate services, the benefits of having one of the best project management teams in town supporting our brokerage professionals is immeasurable.”

An 18-year veteran of the commercial real estate business, Kowal’s, expertise includes large corporate turn-key projects, tenant improvement and specialty construction.

Since joining Grubb & Ellis in 2007, he has overseen the construction of ITC’s 188,000-square-foot corporate headquarters building in Novi, and he is currently managing the retail rebranding for more than 40 locations nationally for AAA.

Contact: Erin Mays, 312.698.6735, erin.mays@grubb-ellis.com

Former Merchant Returns to Pinecrest in S. FLorida With Original Restaurant Concept

MIAMI BEACH, FL– Terranova Corporation is adding unique local flavor to the tenant lineup at Suniland Shopping Center, (top right photo) bringing a former merchant with a new restaurant concept back to the Pinecrest area.

Cine-It Burger and Grill, an independently owned, casual restaurant serving homemade burgers and other favorites, opened a new 2,517-square foot restaurant at 11421 South Dixie Highway, at the Suniland Shopping Center on April 9.

Meals at Cine-It will be served in a fun setting in which big-screen TVs will play memorable scenes from movie favorites, such as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “I’ll be back” scene in The Terminator and Clint Eastwood’s “Go ahead, make my day” scene in Sudden Impact.

“We are particularly delighted with this new tenant because he brings a fun, original and personal touch to the all-American burger meal, and I think the center’s customers are going to love it,” said Terranova executive vice president Mindy McIlroy, who represented the landlord in the lease.

“This is an experienced merchant who has served this market before and knows well what people like and need when they come to eat at Suniland.”

Cine-It Burger and Grill is owned by Jesse Vazquez, a veteran of the fast food industry in South Florida.

Vazquez worked for years in the McDonald’s chain, before owning the Chicken Kitchen franchise at Suniland.

The Chicken Kitchen still operates at Suniland, while Vazquez moved on to conceive and launch his own venture, resulting in the creation of Cine-It Burger & Grill.

He chose to open it in his former stumping ground.

“I couldn’t think of a better place to open my restaurant,” Vazquez said. “This is a great center and a great market, and I look forward to serving the many people who come to Suniland for lunch and dinner.”



Contact: Karen LaFleur, klafleur@terranovacorp.com

Arbor Closes $4.25M Fannie Mae DUS® Loan on University Apartments in East Lansing, MI

UNIONDALE, NY– Arbor Commercial Funding, LLC (“Arbor”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arbor Commercial Mortgage, LLC, announced the recent funding of a $4,250,000 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS® product line for the 122-unit complex known as University Apartments in East Lansing, MI.

The 10-year loan amortizes on a 30-year schedule and carries a note rate of 6.10 percent.


The loan was originated by Michael Jehle, (top right photo) Midwest Regional Director, in Arbor’s full-service Bloomfield Hills, MI lending office.

“The subject loan is secured by three non-contiguous properties all owned by the same borrowing entity,” said Jehle. “Arbor was successful in paying off the existing indebtedness and providing cash out for this repeat client.



Contact: Ingrid Principe, Iprincipe@arbor.com

GVA Advantis Closes 2 Industrial Leases Totaling 270,000 SF in NC and VA


U.S. COAST GUARD MOVES INTO 102,000 SF AT FORMER WAL-MART LOCATION
IN ELIZABETH CITY, NC


NORFOLK, VA – GVA Advantis announces the lease of 102,000 SF to the U.S. Coast Guard at the Port Elizabeth Shopping Center (top right photo) in Elizabeth City, NC.

John Wessling, associate and Bill Overman, CCIM, senior director with GVA Advantis, represented the landlord, BH Properties.

“It is gratifying working with a company whose representatives consistently practice integrity and reliability. GVA Advantis is professional, honest, fair, and very responsive.” says Laurette Tulley of the U.S. Coast Guard Civil Engineering Unit.The space was formerly occupied by Wal-Mart and will now be used for storage of aircraft parts.

DIAMOND HILL PLYWOOD TAKES 150,000 SF IN DOSWELL, VA

NORFOLK, VA – (April 2009) – GVA Advantis announces Diamond Hill Plywood Company, Inc. has leased 150,000 SF of warehouse/distribution space at 17320 Washington Highway in Doswell, Virginia. (bottom left photo)

Stephanie Sanker, CCIM, SIOR, senior director and Clay Culbreth, CCIM, SIOR, senior director, with GVA Advantis-Norfolk, represented the tenant and Porter Realty represented the landlord.

Diamond Hill Plywood was established over 60 years ago, establishing itself as a major wholesale distributor of building material and construction products to the retail and industrial market segments.

The company, with a network of 9 sales and distribution centers in Georgia, Virginia, Tennessee and the Carolinas (and a reload center), serves a customer base throughout the Southeastern states.The tenant has consolidated their Richmond and Chesapeake, VA operations into this location.

Contact: Susan Childress, Regional Director of Marketing, Advantis Real Estate Services Co.,
757.213.8217. schildress@gvaadvantis.com

Friday, April 10, 2009

StepStone Hospitality Formed to Provide Third-party Management to Upscale Independent Boutique and Branded Hotels

Experienced Team Brings Strong Asset Management Support and Restaurant Expertise to Optimize Returns

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—An elite group of senior hotel and restaurant officials with more than 90 combined years of operating and asset management experience announced the formation of a new third-party management company to operate upscale boutique and branded hotels and resorts.

Called StepStone Hospitality, the company is a sister organization to Hotel Asset Value Enhancement, Inc. (hotelAVE), one of the nation’s largest hotel real estate advisory firms specializing in hospitality asset management and due diligence.

StepStone will focus on hotels of up to 400 rooms, with an emphasis on urban and premium suburban boutique and branded properties located in the eastern half of the United States.

StepStone currently operates The Hotel Providence, (bottom left photo) a luxury, Four Diamond, boutique hotel in the heart of Rhode Island’s state capital and has had management oversight of luxury to three-star properties in Boston and New York.

The company distinguishes itself from other third-party management companies with a strong emphasis on strategy and asset management and unparalleled, in-depth restaurant expertise.

The company’s three principals are:

Thomas Russo, (top right photo) CEO and president, a 45-year hospitality veteran with extensive experience in hotel, resort and restaurant operations, including boutique hotels, major hotel chains and leading restaurants. He has developed and operated numerous award-winning restaurant concepts and is widely regarded as one of the industry’s most creative and strongest operators.

James McGrath, (middle left photo) chief operating officer and partner, with a 25-plus year career as an hotelier overseeing the operations of more than 250 hotels, both branded and independent. He most recently headed up hotel operations for Lodgian, Inc.’s 40-property portfolio.

Michelle Russo, (middle right photo) partner, brings a strong background in asset management and strategy with experience in hotels valued at more than $2 billion. She is president of hotelAVE and previously managed a $500 million hotel portfolio for John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance. Russo is a former hospitality and real estate financial analyst at Deutsche Bank.

“We created StepStone to respond to specific requests from a number of institutional and private investors who wanted strong, hands-on operations by senior leadership, world-class strategic asset management and food and beverage expertise to generate the highest possible hotel investment returns in all phases of the economy,” said Thomas Russo.

“The missing ingredient in most third-party management is a strategic mind-set.

"In addition to on-site management, which focuses solely on day-to-day operations, every StepStone-managed property has a highly experienced regional support team that focuses on strategy.

"That team oversees only a limited number of hotels, and each team has an asset manager who is a true owner’s representative. That person is responsible for benchmarking and constantly seeking new ways to further enhance the operation and returns.”
The company has the ability to co-invest with owners, as well as bring multiple tranches of equity to projects.

StepStone Hospitality is located at:333 Westminster St. Suite 3Providence, R.I. 02903. PH (401) 865-6901.
Additional information about the company may be found at http://www.stepstonehospitality.com/.

Contact: Jerry Daly or Chris Daly, Daly Gray Public Relations, (703) 435-6293, jerry@dalygray.com

Innkeepers USA Trust Suspends Payment of First Quarter Dividend on 8% Bond Series

PALM BEACH, FL – Innkeepers USA Trust (OTC: INKPP) has suspended payment of its 2009 first quarter dividend on its 8% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares.

Decisions regarding future quarterly dividends on the 8% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares will be made by Innkeepers’ board of trustees based on financial and economic conditions and other factors that the board deems appropriate.

A description of the 8% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, is available in the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Innkeepers USA Trust and the Articles Supplementary to the Declaration of Trust.

Certain information regarding the 8% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares may be found on the company’s website at http://www.innkeepersusa.com/.

Innkeepers USA Trust is a real estate investment trust (REIT) and a leading owner of upscale and extended-stay hotel properties throughout the United States. The company currently owns interests in 74 hotels with approximately 10,100 rooms in 20 states and the District of Columbia.
Contacts:
Patrick Daly,Daly Gray Public Relations, Tel (703) 435-6293. Fax (703) 435-6297. patrick@dalygray.com
Dennis Craven, Innkeepers USA Trust, (561) 227-1302.

Ending Insanity on Madison Avenue


By Christopher DeCrosta, (top right photo) Vice President of Madison Retail Group, Chicago.

CHICAGO, IL--USA Today’s article about Madison Avenue vacancies is more than five years in the making.

The vacancy rate on Madison Avenue is certainly among the highest and most noticeable in the city, but it does not come as much of a surprise to those familiar with this market.

Rents over the past 5 years have grown at an alarming rate. Other than Fifth Avenue, Madison was the first retail strip in New York to break the $1,000 per square foot barrier.

Once it did, it quickly became $1500 per square foot and until the recent downturn asking rents exceeded $2,000 per square foot.

The fact that space did not sit on the market for very long emboldened landlords to continue to charge such astronomical rents. International luxury brands or jewelry retailers quickly snatched up the space and in many cases the high rent numbers were absorbed in part by their large marketing budgets.

Years ago, Madison Avenue was the only destination for luxury shopping in Manhattan. Much of the rest of Manhattan has changed while the Madison rents skyrocketed.

Neighborhoods like SoHo and The Meatpacking District became viable alternatives for high-end retail. Retailers like Moschino, who only require one Manhattan location, opted to move to West 14th Street for a fraction of the cost that would have been required to renew on Madison.
These newer neighborhoods offer brands the ability to appeal to a younger, hipper crowd – one that might reject Madison Avenue’s perceived stodginess.

The real victims of the Madison Avenue collapse have been the smaller and local brands.

Forced to renew at rents 3-4 times what they had been historically paying, many tenants have found themselves underwater and unable to stay afloat. There is a positive side of all this turmoil, however.

Once rents correct and stabilize at a lower number, it will allow these smaller retailers to return to the market.
Not only will this relief be good for the retailers, it will add diversity and charm to Madison Avenue and once again make it one of the world’s most unique shopping destinations.

Contact: Kurt Ivey, kurt.ivey@madisonmarquette.com