Northbridge Centre Draws Fifth Third Bank and Paul James Salon

WEST PALM BEACH, FL. – Building on the prestige of its asset's location, Gaedeke Group LLC has signed Fifth Third Bank and Paul James Salon to 10-year leases in the class A Northbridge Centre (bottom  left photo) in downtown West Palm Beach.

Fifth Third Bank's South Florida affiliate will open its third branch in the city in mid- to late December in the 288,233-sf office building, backfilling 4,139 sf previously occupied by Colonial Bank.

The tony Paul James Salon is planning to open a six-chair shop in 925 sf in late January or early February, relocating after 16 years from 501 Village Blvd.

"We are excited about future plans to deepen Fifth Third’s presence in this region," said David Call (middle right photo), president and CEO of Fifth Third Bank (South Florida).

"At Fifth Third Bank, our local leadership plays a key role in identifying growth opportunities in our market so we can better serve our communities with convenient branch locations and additional resources closer to home."

 Fifth Third currently operates 62 full-service banking centers throughout Broward, Collier, Charlotte, Lee, Manatee, Palm Beach and Sarasota counties.

"These are services that our tenants need and want," says Kirk Fetter (middle left photo), vice president of Dallas-based Gaedeke Group. "And, we also wanted these amenities in the building – for the convenience of our tenants and West Palm Beach's Central Business District."

Fetter's focus to rebuild the retail base at 515 N. Flagler Dr. has been rewarded with two high-profile signings. He is now working to fill the last retail spot – 2,012 sf adjacent to the entrance of Northbridge Centre's four-level parking garage.

Fifth Third Bank was vying against three competitors for rights to the retail banking space and drive-through lanes for teller and ATM services. "It's a pretty popular spot. We had banks wanting it before Colonial Bank was gone," Fetter says.

Fifth Third Bank's logo will be prominently displayed at the top of the 21-story building, which boasts unobstructed ocean views and overlooks a vibrant business and judiciary core.

Sean McConnell, first vice president in the Orlando office of CB Richard Ellis, represented Fifth Third Bank in the negotiations.

Earlier this summer, Fifth Third also made the decision to expand its lobby and drive-through service in the majority of its South Florida banking centers as another means to bring convenience to its customers.

 In addition to traditional banking, Fifth Third offers online, ATM, telephone and mobile banking services. Fifth Third Bank customers can also take advantage of free ATM transactions at all 731 Publix supermarkets throughout Florida.

After 16 years in the same location, Paul Pontillo, owner of Paul James Salon, was focused on protecting his brand and his clients' needs.

 "I've always envisioned an intimate setting where my passion for style, beauty and superior service could be shared with each and every client," he says. "We wanted to be closer to West Palm Beach's downtown. We were able to achieve that with Northbridge Centre and its ample parking."

Pontillo will lead a team of six to 10 professionals for hair styling, color, correction coloring, Brazilian Keratin treatment and nails.

"My personal goal is to create a luxurious and lively salon where the top hair and beauty experts come together to create exquisite styles and pamper you with exceptional personal care," he says.

Contact:

GAEDEKE GROUP, LLC

CORPORATE:

3710 RAWLINS STREET

SUITE 1000, LB 24

DALLAS, TX 75219

TEL 214.528.8883

FAX 214.528.8058

GAEDEKE.COM

, DC

Integra Realty Resources Orange County helps reduce local Post Office overhead

IRR-Orange County awarded USPS leased sites to appraise

LAGUNA HILLS, CA - Faced with plummeting mail volume traced to the recession and increased use of the Internet, the Postal Service is projecting a deficit of nearly $7 billion for the next fiscal year.

 Despite reducing expenses by more than $1 billion every year since 2001, a budget gap remains. Some local carrier annexes have prepared to fight rising costs by obtaining current market value appraisals on the leases in place.

Aliso Viejo (2 sites), Gardena, and Compton wisely decided to re-evaluate and negotiate their commercial retail site rents. Most of the leases were signed during the height of the market in 2005 & 2006.

"Buena Park USPS site has been on a honey moon for about 40 years paying rent at pennies a sq ft." states Troy Webb, CGA of IRR- Orange County.

 The good news is current rental rates were obtained at approximately 50% off for all sites. 

 Oddly things won't fare too bad for the Buena Park site with the honeymoon over, while substantially bolstering the cost savings efforts of the United States Postal Service thanks to the diligent and difficult due- diligence & assignment undertaken by Integra Realty Resources- Orange County and Troy Webb, CGA. 

These efforts are part of a fair and balanced approach to insuring mail service for all Americans well into the future. Postmaster General John E. Potter (middle left  photo) said he does not want customers to bear the burden of dramatic price increases.

 Integra Realty Resources - Orange County appreciates helping the USPS and would welcome the opportunity to help you obtain accurate asset valuations of a single site or a portfolio of properties.

 Integra Realty Resources- Orange & Riverside Counties combines the quality and resources of a national firm with market knowledge and superior service delivered from a locally owned office.

Core Services Provided; Appraisal, Consulting, Portfolio Valuation, Partial Interest Valuation, Market & Feasibility Analysis & Due Diligence. Specialty Practice Services; Litigation Support, Advisory Services, Ad Valorem Tax Consulting, Due Diligence, Buyer/Seller Advisory Services, and Market Studies.

  The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations

Contact:  Debi Simon, Integra Realty Resources Orange & Riverside Counties, Phone 949-709-7200 X 234; Email: dsimon@irr.com

Web site: http://www.irr.com/About/Office.asp?Task=Management&RefItem=OrangeCountyCA

Only 4% Of Downtown Fort Lauderdale Condos Remain Unsold

MIAMI, FL--Less than four percent of the 5,100 completed condominiums created during the development boom in Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach are unsold as of Sept. 30, 2010, according to a new report from CondoVultures.com.

The total number of unsold developer units was reduced by 69 condos in the third quarter of 2010, leaving less than 180 units created since 2003 still in developer control, according to the report based on the soon-to-be-published Condo Vultures® Official Condo Buyers Guide To Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach™. 

The Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach total remaining unsold inventory does not include the yet-to-open 298 condo-hotel project on North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard that was to be the Trump International Hotel & Tower (top left photo). The project's namesake, New York developer Donald Trump, ended his affiliation with the project in November 2010, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Mired in foreclosure, the project's co-developers, Stillman Development International and Bayrock Group, have not yet filed the declaration of condominium, which is the last step before presales can be transacted, according to the South Florida Business Journal.

"Fort Lauderdale is a condo market with minimal developer inventory available," said Peter Zalewski (middle  right photo), a principal with the Bal Harbour, Fla.-based real estate consultancy Condo Vultures® LLC.

 "If the former Trump International Hotel & Tower is excluded, there are only a dozen projects with less than 180 unsold units out of 47 condominiums with 5,100 units created since 2003.

“ This is a extremely low ratio for the tricounty South Florida region where most submarkets have at least 15 percent of their boom-time inventory still vacant." 

Peter Zalewski of Condo Vultures® can be reached at 800-750-0517 or by email at peter@condovultures.com

Patrick Braswell Joins Scotland Wright Associates as Partner

ATLANTA, GA -- Scotland Wright Associates today announced that Patrick Braswell (top right photo) has joined the firm as a partner.

Braswell was previously assistant vice president of Colliers Office Services Group, where he specialized in office tenant representation for seven years.

“This is a very exciting day for the present and future of Scotland Wright Associates,” said president Scotland Wright. (lower right photo)

“Patrick is a rising star in our business and is highly respected for his extensive knowledge of the Atlanta office market. He has impeccable integrity and skill, and his future is very bright at our company.”

As a commercial real estate services firm, Scotland Wright Associates is known for helping companies make the best real estate decision possible for their business.

The company, founded in 2001, helps office and industrial tenants make this critical decision with clarity and confidence.

Contact: Bryan Long, Jackson Spalding, (404) 724-2501; blong@jacksonspalding.com

HFF named to market for sale suburban Chicago Class A multi-housing community

CHICAGO, IL – The Chicago office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has been named to market for sale Deer Valley Apartments (top left photo), a 224-unit, Class A multi-housing community in the affluent northern Chicago suburb of Lake Bluff, Illinois.

HFF executive managing director Matthew Lawton (middle right photo) and managing directors Sean Fogarty (middle left photo)  and Marty O’Connell (lower right photo) are marketing the property on behalf of the seller, Stockbridge Capital Group, LLC. 

The property is listed for sale without a formal asking price. 

Deer Valley Apartments is located at 30011 North Waukegan Road close to Interstate 94 about 32 miles north of downtown Chicago. 

The 13.5-acre site has 13 residential buildings plus a clubhouse.
 

Apartment homes average 847 square feet each and community amenities include garages, a clubhouse, swimming pool, fitness center and business center.

“Deer Valley’s size and location directly adjacent to the world headquarters of Abbott Laboratories will attract a tremendous amount of interest in the offering,” says Lawton.

Contacts:  

Matthew D. Lawton, HFF Executive Managing Director, (312) 528-3650,

 mlawton@hfflp.com

 Kristen M. Murphy, HFF Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500,

krmurphy@hfflp.com

Edward J. Blum Joins Interstate Hotels & Resorts as EVP Development & Acquisitions

  ARLINGTON, VA—Interstate Hotels & Resorts, the United States’ largest independent hotel management company,  announced the appointment of Edward J. Blum to the position of executive vice president, development & acquisitions.

 In his new position, he will be responsible for identifying management contract opportunities and hotel acquisition candidates, as well as overseeing the company’s relationships with hotel owners and hotel franchise companies.

  Blum will report to Leslie Ng, Interstate’s chief investment officer.

He joins Interstate from Molinaro Koger, an international hotel real estate advisory firm, where he served as global head of capital markets.  Under his leadership, the group originated more than $1 billion in debt and equity financing for hospitality transactions throughout the U.S, Europe, and Asia. 

For more information about Interstate Hotels & Resorts, visit the company’s Web site: http://www.ihrco.com/.

 

Contact:

Jerry Daly, Carol McCune, Media, Daly Gray, (703) 435-6293,

jerry@dalygray.com

Carrie McIntyre, SVP, Treasurer, Interstate Hotels & Resorts, (703) 387-3320

carrie.mcintyre@ihrco.com

             

                                                                                                                                                    

Charles 'Chuck' Marshall Named Distinguished Alumnus at Oklahoma State University’s 2010 Homecoming Celebration

 SALISBURY, MD–Officials of Marshall Hotels & Resorts, Inc., a leading, Maryland-based hotel management and services company,  announced that Charles “Chuck” Marshall (top right photo) received the Distinguished Alumnus award at Oklahoma State University’s 2010 Homecoming Celebration. 

The award, presented by the College of Human Environmental Sciences, recognizes alumni with outstanding career accomplishments inside a specific profession.

“Having my alma mater recognize my efforts in the hospitality industry is one of my proudest moments,” said Chuck Marshall, chairman emeritus of the company, Marshall Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

“The main key to my success has been applying the lessons I learned in undergrad programs to real life situations. 

"The education I received at Oklahoma State University was invaluable, and I thank the many professors and educators that guided me during my time there.”

After earning a bachelor’s degree in hotel and restaurant administration, he began his 46-year hospitality management career as an assistant general manager of the Golden Ox restaurant in Kansas City.

 He entered the hotel industry as a general manager of a Ramada Inn in Wichita Falls, Texas at age 24.

 Over his 40-plus-year career, he received numerous awards for operating excellence, including Sheraton’s “Manager of the Year” and the “Distinguished Achievement Award from the International Franchise Association.”

 He became a certified hotel administrator through the American Hotel & Motel Association in 1986.

In 1980, Marshall founded Marshall Management, Inc., to operate three Holiday Inn hotels in Maryland and Delaware.  Since then, his company has operated more than 200 hotels across the country and also provided asset management and consulting services.

 Marshall’s company was ranked as the 21st largest management company in the U.S. in 2010.  The company’s current portfolio of over 40 hotels comprising 6,000 rooms generates more than $110 million in gross annual revenue.

 Additional information about Marshall Management may be found at the company’s Web site: http://www.marshallhotels.com/

.

Contact:

Patrick Daly, Account Executive, Daly Gray Public Relations, 703-435-6293, patrick@dalygray.com

Jerry Daly, jerry@dalygray.com

http://twitter.com/dalygray

Latino Hotel Association to Host First Hotel Franchising Forum in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico

 HOUSTON, TX—Officials of the Latino Hotel Association (LHA), the global organization dedicated to expanding Latino ownership, leadership and commerce in the hotel industry,  announced the group would host its first hotel franchising forum November 30 to December 3, 2010, in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. 

The forum, entitled “Hotel Franchising,” will provide attendees with in-depth, practical information about hotel ownership/development, franchising, marketing, management, specifically geared to the needs of Latinos. 

Sponsors of the event include Hilton Hotels & Resorts; Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, LLC; Hyatt Hotels and Resorts; Accor; HVS International; JMBM; Carl Ross Design Group; LLW Architects; Smith Travel Research; and Hotel and Motel Management Magazine.

“This is the first forum of its kind outside of the United States,” said Angela Gonzalez-Rowe, (top right photo) president and founder of LHA.

 “This upcoming event takes an in-depth look at hotel ownership/investment, management, branding and franchising.  Among other topics we will discuss are keys to planning hotel investments, including determining economic feasibility.  In addition, we will review rules and regulations required of a typical franchisee.

 “Hotel branding is becoming a global phenomenon, with Mexico emerging as a major market,” Gonzalez-Rowe added.  “Hotel brands help attract guests on a worldwide basis, establish standards that instill guest confidence and support and bolster pricing power.  Also, franchisors provide training, operating and IT systems and purchasing power that hotel owners otherwise could not get on their own.”

Guest speakers at the event include:

 Jericó Abramo Masso, mayor, Saltillo;George Massa, senior director – franchise development, Mexico Hilton Hotels; Armando de la Garza Gaytan, president, Convention & Visitors Bureaus Association; president, Hispanic Meeting Professionals’ Robert Braun, PC of JMBM; Michael Register, principal of Desires Hotels;

 Jorge E. Hernandez Gonzalez, banca empresariao, Banco Multiva; Manuel Hernandez, Horwath Costillo Miranda; Isaac Bishop, project manager, LLW Architects; Carl Ross, president, Design Group Carl Ross  Parris Jordon, managing director, HVS Global Hospitality Services;  Lic. José Luis Moreno Aguirre, secretary of tourism, Coahuila; Fatima Thompson, sales executive – Mexico, Smith Travel Research;

 Lic.;Jorge Dávila Rodríguez, president, Chamber of Commerce; David J. Schwartz MS/MBA, managing principal, The Management Consortium, Inc.; Dr. Armando Uribe, president, Mexican Hotel Association; Karim Saade Charur, president & CEO, American Hotel Group;

Lic. Braulio Cardenas Cantu, president, Restaurant Association;  Walter Barrela, executive vice president and COO, Peak Hospitality; Marco A. Roca, senior vice president of development, Wyndham Worldwide;

David Schwartz, principal, The Management Consortium;  Edward Xanders, president, Interim Hospitality Consultants; Javier Sanchez, Franchise Development, LATAM Region Wyndham Hotel Group; Luis Alicea, director of development, Wyndham Hotel Group; John McCarthy, principal, Leisure Partners.

Registration fees are $150.  Attendees and prospective participants will find details of the program, including registration procedures and hotel room discounts, at the LHA website, http://www.latinohotelassociation.org/

 For additional information, contact Angela Gonzalez-Rowe, LHA president and founder, at (281) 668-9165; by fax (281) 668-9199; and by e-mail at Angela@latinohotelassociation.com

Additional information is available at the association’s website, http://www.latinohotelassociation.org/

Contact: Jerry Daly, Chris Daly, Daly Gray Public Relations, (703) 435-6293

jerry@dalygray.com

Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. Arranges $9.3 Million Cash-Out Refinancing Loan

                             

  SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (MMCC) has arranged a $9,375,000 cash-out refinancing loan for a New York State multifamily property portfolio.

The loan amounts and locations are:

$4,070,000, Lafayette, N.Y.;  $2,550,000, Tully, N.Y.: $2,755,000, Lafayette, N.Y.

 Brian Ursino, an associate director in the firm’s Manhattan office, arranged the loan.

 “The borrower had existing recourse financing from a local lender at rates above 6 percent with 25-year amortizations,” says Ursino.

 “I leveraged my relationship with the lender and used critical local market knowledge to secure an opinion of value that was in accordance with the targeted value needed to maximize the loan proceeds for a cash-out refinancing.

“In this market, strong lender relationships and market knowledge are critical when closing transactions,” adds Ursino.

“Additionally, I was able to negotiate a nonrecourse loan, secure $1.3 million in cash-out proceeds and increase the borrower’s cash-flow by $44,000 per year,” Ursino concludes.

The loan has a 75 percent LTV, a 5.05 percent interest rate fixed for 10 years and a 30-year amortization.

Press Contact: Stacey Corso,  Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation,

(925) 953-1716

Stan Johnson Co. Sells 2 Freestanding Buildings to Monmouth Real Estate Corp. for $20.3 Million

 TULSA, OK, Nov. 16, 2010 –Stan Johnson Company, one of the nation’s premier net lease brokerage firms, has completed the sale of two free-standing industrial buildings to New Jersey-based Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corporation for $20.3 million.

 Monmouth acquired a freestanding, 381,240-square-footbulk distribution center 100 percent leased to Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores, Inc. located in Lebanon, Tenn. for $14.5 million. 

Brad Pepin (top right photo) of Stan Johnson Company represented Monmouth (buyer) as well as the seller, Miami-based United Trust Fund.

Monmouth also acquired a freestanding, 66,387-square-footmanufacturing & warehouse facility 100 percent leased to Sherwin-Williams Company in Rockford, IL for $5.8 million. 

Pepin represented Monmouth in the acquisition.  Gill Warner (middle left photo)  of Stan Johnson Company represented the seller, Rockford, IL-based Cord Construction.

  

Contact:  David Ebeling, Ebeling Communications,  (949) 278-7851 david@ebelingcomm.com

Arbor Closes $24 Million Fannie Mae DUS® Loan for Stagg Bronx Portfolio in Bronx, NY

Uniondale, NY – Arbor Commercial Funding, LLC (“Arbor”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arbor Commercial Mortgage, LLC, announced the recent funding of a $24,000,000 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS^® Loan product line for the multiple-building, 157-unit portfolio known as the Stagg Bronx Portfolio (top left photo)  in Bronx, NY. The 10-year loan amortizes on a 30-year schedule.

The 100%-occupied portfolio consists of predominantly three- to six-year old apartment buildings across New York City’s borough of the Bronx, and specifically the Northeast Bronx.

One of the buildings was originally built in 1930 and two others were built in 1970, but all three were gut-renovated within the past six years. The outlook for the middle-income neighborhood is for relatively stable growth during the next several years with household incomes expected to rise.

The loan was originated by Edward Petti, Vice President, in Arbor’s full-service New York, NY, lending office.

 “This was a refinancing of 13 townhome clusters in the Northeast Bronx,” Petti said. “We have closed many deals in this high-demand, stable neighborhood and the transactions have been beneficial for all parties involved.”

Contact:  Christopher Ostrowski, costrowski@arbor.com

 

Arbor Closes $2,000,000 Fannie Mae DUS® Small Loan for 150 Haven Avenue in New York, NY

Uniondale, NY (Nov. 16, 2010) – Arbor Commercial Funding, LLC (“Arbor”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arbor Commercial Mortgage, LLC, announced the recent funding of a $2,000,000 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS^® Small Loan product line for the 53-unit complex known as 150 Haven Avenue (top left photo) in New York, NY. The five-year loan amortizes on a 30-year schedule.

The loan was originated by Edward Petti (bottom right photo), Vice President, in Arbor’s full-service New York, NY, lending office.

“This was one of three refinancings for this client that we closed recently,” Petti said. “We were able to deliver a five-year, interest-only loan in this transaction.”

Contact:  Christopher Ostrowski, costrowski@arbor.com