D & A Building Services Spins off Waterproofing Division

LONGWOOD, FL — D & A Building Services Inc., one of the nation’s largest Hispanic owned facility maintenance companies, has incorporated its waterproofing division now known as D & A Waterproofing Services Inc.

According to D & A founder and President Al Sarabasa, Jr. (lower left photo), the division was established in 2005 to meet client needs following the unprecedented building damage left by the 2004 hurricane season.

Heather Sarabasa (top right photo), who managed the waterproofing division since 2005, has been named president/COO of the new entity.

She has 13 years of industry experience and an Associate of Arts from Valencia Community College. Heather is a member of the Sealant Waterproofing and Restoration Institute and serves on the Ambassador Committee of Associated Builders & Contractors. 

For additional information, please visit http://www.dabuildingservices.com/

PR Contact: Elaine Ingra, (407) 384-1344 elainei@pr-works.com

Grubb & Ellis|Thomas Linderman Graham Brokers Sale of 240-Unit Patriot’s Pointe Apartments in Hillsborough, NC

 RALEIGH, N.C. (Jan. 21, 2011) – Grubb & Ellis|Thomas Linderman Graham, a leading North Carolina real estate services firm, announced today that it represented an undisclosed seller in the disposition of Patriot’s Pointe Apartments, (top left photo) located at 100 Patriot’s Pointe Drive in Hillsborough. The property sold for $16.0 million, or $66,667 per unit.

 Completed in 2005, Patriot’s Pointe Apartments is a 240-unit apartment complex totaling 284,082 square feet on 27.55 acres of land.  The complex was approximately 90 percent occupied at the time of sale.

Curteis Calhoun (lower right photo) of Grubb & Ellis|Thomas Linderman Graham represented the seller in the transaction.  Brantley Properties, based in Greensboro, N.C., purchased the apartment complex.

 Contact: Elizabeth Raiford, Phone: 919.420.1563,

Email:  elizabeth.raiford@tlgcre.com

Cambridge Realty Capital Reports Processing 267 Loan Origination Requests Totaling $3.72 Billion in 2010

  

CHICAGO, IL--Cambridge Realty Capital Companies processed 267 loan origination requests in 2010 totaling $3.72 billion, or slightly fewer than last year when the company reviewed 298 loan requests totaling $4.0 billion, Chairman Jeffrey A. Davis (top right photo) reports.

“Loan origination request volume remained strong but Cambridge was forced by reality to be more selective in the type of loans logged into the company’s internal processing system,” he noted.

Cambridge is one of the nation’s leading senior housing/healthcare lenders, with more than $3 billion since the mid-1990s. The company is consistently ranked among the leading HUD 232 healthcare lenders in the country.

Davis said demand for HUD 232 financing was strong throughout the year and in recent months the company “has been seeing more and more conventional debt and finance activities. Also, acquisition activity continues to be active and moving forward,” he said.

“But general conditions in the capital markets have made it more difficult to obtain funding for new construction except on a selective basis. Our strategy has been to be upfront with borrowers who request our help. Some loan requests that may have logged into our system in the past are not making it into the mix at this time,” he said.

Davis points out that lenders close a relatively small percentage of loan requests received. However, he believes it’s useful to track this information as an indication of market directions.

“Although down slightly, when technical adjustments are taken into account, our numbers do, in fact, confirm reports that lending activity is increasing. But deals are being completed at very low loan-to-value ratios with more conservative underwriting guidelines,” he said, adding:

“In general, the more typical acquisition loans continue to be challenged and, for some borrowers, relationships with capital sources have been strained.”

Contact:  Evan Washington, Phone: (312) 521-7604, Fax: (312) 357-1611, E-Mail:  ew@cambridgecap.com

NAI Realvest Negotiates Two New Office Leases in Orlando and Lake Mary, FL

 MAITLAND, FL. --- NAI Realvest recently negotiated two new lease agreements for office space in Orlando and Lake Mary.   NAI Realvest Principal Tom R. Kelley II (top right photo) CCIM negotiated both transactions. 

 In Lake Mary Kelley represented the landlord in a lease agreement for 1,275 square feet of office space at 153 Parliament Loop in Regency Pointe.  

 Jonathan Fitzgerald of KW Commercial represented the tenant, JD Insurance & Financial Group of Lake Mary.

 Kelley brokered a lease transaction in Orlando for 750 square feet of office space at 2212 Hillcrest St. where Brian Adams Photographics is the new tenant and Whirly Properties, LLC is the landlord.   

For more information, contact:  

Tom R. Kelley II, CCIM, Principal, NAI Realvest, 407-875-9989, tkelley@realvest.com

Patrick Mahoney, President NAI Realvest, 407-875-9989 pmahoney@realvest.com

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

Urgo Hotels Acquires Ocean Point Hotel in Pompano Beach, FL

  

POMPANO BEACH, FL./BETHESDA, MD—Urgo Hotels, a major operator, developer and owner of upscale hotels, has acquired for an undisclosed amount the Ocean Point Hotel, a beachfront property in Pompano Beach, Fla.

 It is the ninth hotel the company has added to its owned and managed portfolio in the past 13 months.  The company now owns or operates 26 hotels in the U.S. and Canada.

“This property has outstanding potential and will benefit from our total planned makeover,” said Kevin Urgo, senior vice president of Urgo Hotels. 

“We have enjoyed substantial growth during the recent difficult economy, adding nine hotels to our portfolio through both acquisitions and third-party management contracts, aggregating 1,426 rooms. 

“We continue to have an aggressive appetite for expansion and have the infrastructure in place to continue comfortably at this pace for at least the next several years.  We have the resources and flexibility to invest as a joint-venture partner or in wholly owned projects, as well as provide third-party management.”

The Ocean Point Hotel is situated on approximately two-and–-half acres of oceanfront property with more than 500 linear feet of beachfront at 1208 and 1200 North Ocean Boulevard, as well as a half acre overflow parking lot across the street. 

Contact: Jerry Daly or Chris Daly(703),  435-6293

Hodges Ward Closes $2.4 Billion in Hotel Transactions in 2010

ATLANTA, GA—Hodges Ward Elliott, Inc. (HWE), the nation’s premier hotel brokerage and investment banking firm, today announced that it closed on $2.4 billion in transactions in 2010, led by a strong fourth quarter.

 The company predicted a solid increase in transactions in 2011 due to pent-up buyer demand, an increase in available financing and a positive outlook for the hotel industry over the next few years.

“We saw a marked increase in properties being brought to market beginning in the second quarter of 2010,” said Mark Elliott (top right photo), principal of Hodges Ward Elliott.

  “The mix ranges from luxury to premium-branded, select-service properties and includes both cash flowing and distressed hotels.  We enter 2011 with more properties being brought to market than anytime in the last three years.  Since the beginning of 2011, HWE already has transacted seven hotels, including the Renaissance in downtown Pittsburgh.  The hotel real estate market is definitely on the upswing.

“As a result of rapidly improving fundamentals and increasing liquidity in the capital markets the gap between buyer and seller has narrowed.  Consequently, we expect the 2011 transaction activity to be greater than 2010,” he said.

Bill Hodges (middle left photo), founding partner of HWE, said the company will actively expand its staff in the U.S. and Europe in 2011.

 “We currently have 30 professionals in the United States and six in our affiliate firm HVS Hodges Ward Elliott in London.  We intend to add top quality talent on a highly selective basis to assist us in achieving optimum returns for our clients.”  He noted that long-time associate, Bob Webster, recently left the company.  “We wish him well in his new endeavors.

“We anticipate an increase in mixed-use development transactions over the next several years and are looking at adding executive talent that also has expertise in other real estate classes,” he commented.  “We also expect to handle more portfolios and financing transactions.”

Contact: Jerry Daly or Chris Daly, (703) 435-6293

Pyramid Hotel Group Adds 3,300 Rooms

  

 BOSTON,  MA, Jan. 21, 2011—Officials of Pyramid Hotel Group, a Boston-based hotel management, asset management and project management firm, today announced that the company added 11 hotels and resorts aggregating more than 3,300 rooms to its managed and asset managed portfolio in 2010. 

These ranged from city center commercial hotels to large destination resorts in multiple markets across the U.S.

In addition, Pyramid Hotel Group provided receivership services and its highly regarded “Comprehensive Asset Performance Study” (CAPS) for a significant number of hotels and resorts representing over 23,000 rooms during 2010. 

These properties were located in such diverse markets as Ft. Lauderdale, Las Vegas, and San Diego and ranged from four-star hotels and destination resorts to limited-service properties.

“We enjoy very close relationships with a sizable number of lenders and investment groups,” said John Hamilton, senior vice president-business development for Pyramid Hotel Group.

  “The market today is coming out of a down cycle.  Clients who may be restructuring or considering their alternatives look to Pyramid to help them get a better sense of the value of their assets and, most importantly, get our studied view of how the asset may perform in the near future. The diversity of the collection of hotels we’ve worked on speaks to Pyramid’s uncommon depth and breadth of experiences of our professional staff.”

“Our goal with any management or asset management assignment is to immediately create value for the owner accomplished by implementing a series of revenue enhancement opportunities and diligent expense management,” said Jim Dina, chief operating officer for Pyramid.

“Pyramid brings extensive sales and marketing expertise, highly effective revenue management practices and the ability to benchmark performance across multiple brands and independent properties. When the opportunity exists, we also provide owners with a highly creative project management team and purchasing services, creating a platform for executing renovations and strategic repositionings to enhance the property’s value and performance.”

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

Richfield Hospitality to Manage Sheraton Bloomington in Minnesota

BLOOMINGTON, MN./DENVER, CO, Jan. 21, 2011—Richfield Hospitality, a leading hotel management company, today announced that it will partner with Platinum Equity, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm, to operate the 564-room Sheraton Bloomington (top left photo). 

Platinum Equity acquired the Bloomington Sheraton from LaSalle Hotel Properties earlier this month. 

“We are thrilled to kick off the year by entering the Twin Cities market alongside Platinum Equity with such an outstanding institutional quality asset,” said Greg Mount (middle right photo), President of Richfield Hospitality.  “The plan is to reposition this hotel as the premier business and events destination in the Twin Cities.” 

Platinum Equity expects to immediately launch a $12.5 million renovation of the hotel’s public and event spaces, as well as all guest rooms.  The renovation is expected to be finished by mid-year 2012. 

“This is a business in a prime location with a lot of potential, and it will benefit greatly from a high-quality makeover and other operational restructuring initiatives,” said Mark Wiesenthal, Principal at Platinum Equity.

As part of a complete overhaul, the hotel will be converted from the Sheraton to the DoubleTree Hotel brand during the third quarter of 2011.  Platinum Equity also owns and is renovating the DoubleTree Carson Hotel (lower right photo) in Carson, Calif.

Located in the heart of Bloomington at 7800 Normandale, the Sheraton Bloomington is just 10 minutes from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and the Mall of America. 

The hotel offers one of the Twin Cities’ largest hotel meeting spaces with 38 meeting rooms aggregating 70,000 square feet of space, capable of accommodating groups of from five to 1,000 people. 

“The hotel is well designed for meetings and can comfortably handle a mix of small and large groups without losing the personal attention required to make an event successful,” Mount said.  “With the renovation, we will have the city’s ‘newest’ hotel with cutting-edge technology and a central location.”

Wiesenthal added that Platinum is excited about working with Richfield and is eager to get started on the renovation.

“Richfield’s hospitality expertise and impressive track record fits perfectly with Platinum’s unique M&A&O® approach to creating value,” added Wiesenthal

Contact:  Jerry Daly or Chris Daly, (703) 435-6293