PECo to Buy Dayton Facility, Bring 250 Jobs to the City

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

The Process Equipment Co. (“PECo”) has announced plans to purchase a 425,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at 2333 McCall St., near downtown Dayton. The acquisition is part of the Tipp City-based company’s plan to consolidate and expand its local operations.

The building is located on 30 acres in the Westview Industrial Park. The Dayton City Commission approved the sale on April 3. According to 2NEWS, the old factory was sold for only a dollar. Some surrounding land was also sold for $600,000. But the sale is not final. In the next three months, PECo will inspect the building. The company can cancel the deal if it considers repair costs to be too high.

The manufacturer of large precision-machined and fabricated components said the consolidation is contemplated to occur in three phases and could require as much as $10 million to be invested  in relocation renovations, including the installation of power and HVAC systems. It expects the consolidation to be completed by the end of 2014.

Right now, PECo has four facilities in the Tipp City and Huber Heights areas and 181 employees. The new building will allow the company to consolidate all of its employees in one location while doubling its capacity to meet the growing demand for its manufacturing products and services. The contract includes a $750,000 Ohio Job Ready Sites Grant and a commitment by PECo to employ no less than 200 employees at the new building. Over the next five years, the company expects to hire an additional 250 employees. In 2013, PECo was recognized as a “Top Workplace” by the Dayton Daily News and Springfield News-Sun.

Albert Naggar, PECo’s owner, said in a statement for the press that “we are excited to serve as a driver of economic growth in our community. We have confidence in the growth of our business. Dayton’s Westview Industrial Park is the most appealing location for PECo’s consolidation because of the economic partnership that the city of Dayton has fostered with PECo.” Dayton’s mayor, Gary Leitzell, added that he is “thrilled to have PECo bring its world-class engineering and manufacturing to Westview Industrial Park.”

Photo credits: The City of Dayton

Port Authority Starts Demolition at Bond Hill Site to Make Way for $75M Redevelopment

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development started work on Thursday, March 28, on a project that will redevelop the site of Cincinnati’s first multi-store open-air mall. Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, City Manager Milton Dohoney, Jr., Laura Brunner, President, CEO, Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority, and Hamilton County Commission President Chris Monzel were in attendance as construction crews started tearing down a vacant restaurant and the 32-foot billboard-style Swifton Commons shopping center sign.

The 400,000-square-foot Swifton Shopping Center opened in 1956, just six miles north of downtown in the center of the Greater Cincinnati region. It was acquired by the Allen Temple Real Estate in the late 1990s and renamed Jordan Crossing. At that time the property had less than a dozen commercial tenants.

The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority acquired the 25 acres in Cincinnati’s Bond Hill neighborhood from the Allen Temple Real Estate Foundation on Feb. 19. Now the economic development agency will prepare and market the site for private development of office, residential, retail and a future hotel. It will do so with the help of a $6.2 million commitment from the city of Cincinnati and its Focus 52 program.

The massive redevelopment project is expected to cost $75 million. It will be one of the city’s largest redevelopment efforts outside of the Central Business District and Over-the-Rhine in recent years. Construction at the site is expected to begin next year.

Mayor Mark Mallory called it an important day for the Bond Hill neighborhood. “This redevelopment represents the city’s first investment injection from our new Focus 52 program fund, created just for transformational projects such as this one,” he said in a statement for the press.

“Today represents the first step in a several-year process to convert this key intersection back into a vibrant place to work, shop and live,” Laura Brunner said. “The Port Authority is prepared to be creative in how we work with the community to achieve a development that creates jobs and a sense of place.”

Photo credits: Google Maps.

111-Unit Apartment Tower Planned for Downtown Cincinnati

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Developers NorthPointe Group and North American Properties plan to build 111 apartment units above the 7th and Broadway Garage in downtown Cincinnati. BuildingCincinnati.com, a Web site dedicated to promoting awareness of Cincinnati’s built environment, reported that the city’s Urban Design Review Board (UDRB) got its first look at the project on Friday, March 15.

NorthPointe Group and North American Properties want to build a seven-story apartment tower over the eight-story garage, adding more than 120,000 square feet. It would include studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and penthouse units, ranging in size from 600 to 1,700 square feet.

The garage was built in 2003. At that time, it had only five stories but also included structural supports that would have supported a proposed 12-story, 166-unit condominium project. In order to accommodate the parking needs of more than 600 Procter & Gamble employees, the garage was expanded in 2010, when the last three stories were added. As a result, the number of residential floors that could be added was reduced.

John Senhauser Architects is designing the project. It will be an L-shape structure, with steel frame construction, glass curtain walls and lightweight ridged metal paneling systems.

According to the Cincinnati Business Courier, the high-end apartments will rent for about $2 per square foot. The project is expected to cost about $20 million.

Marcus & Millichap expects the steady job growth across Cincinnati to sustain demand for apartments this year. Deliveries for the past two years have been the largest since early 2000, and builders are expected to complete 1,000 new units in 2013. As new supply exceeds the demand growth in the metro area, apartment vacancy will increase slightly to 4.5 percent. It will, however, still remain near the lowest point in more than a decade. Asking rents will reach $759 per month and effective rents will rise to $726 per month, increases of 3.4 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively.

Rendering courtesy of NorthPointe Group via BuildingCincinnati.com.

Charts courtesy of Marcus & Millichap.

Capital Investment Group Breaks Ground on The Lofts at Ivy Pointe

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Capital Investment Group Inc. broke ground on Monday, March 11, on a $13 million apartment project in Union Township, a thriving community on the outskirts of Cincinnati. It is the first urban apartment development in Clermont County.

Clermon County Commissioners David Uible and Ed Humphrey, Capital Investment Group co-founder & managing partner Kathleen Bergen, Capital Investment Group partner David Bastos and Union Township Trustees Matthew Beamer, Timothy Donnellon and Robert McGee were among those present at the groundbreaking ceremony.  The Clermont County commissioners approved a tax exemption this month for the project.

The $13 million apartment complex, to be called the Lofts at Ivy Pointe, is being developed on a three-acre site at 4380 Eastgate Blvd., near its intersection with Aicholtz Road. The building will stand four stories high and will bring 133 efficiency and one- and two-bedroom residential rental units to Union Township.

Each apartment will feature granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, vinyl plank flooring, patios or balconies, ceiling fans, nine- or 10-foot ceilings, kitchen islands and a washer and dryer. Tenants will enjoy such community amenities as a club room with wide-screen TV, pool table, card room, cyber café and full kitchen with high-top tables and seating,  a fitness center, a computer room, a swimming pool, an outdoor firepit,  an outdoor kitchen and grill,  an outdoor theater room and landscaped garden areas.

The multifamily community is located about 20 miles east of Cincinnati, in close proximity to the headquarters of Total Quality Logistics, Jungle Jim’s and the planned Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. It was designed to attract young professionals. Since 2000, Clermont County has witnessed a 10 percent population growth that has added 20,000 new residents.

Thompson Thrift Construction is the project’s general contractor. The Lofts at Ivy Pointe is expected to be completed by March or April 2014. Rents will range between $800 and $1,200 per month, according to Clermont County’s official Web site.

Capital Investment Group Inc. built the SouthShore condominium tower in Newport, on which it is currently working on a second phase. The $15.6 million apartment building will be called Vue 180 and will include 93 high-end rental apartments along the Ohio River.

Photo credits: Capital Investment Group Inc.

$400M Horseshoe Casino Opens in Downtown Cincinnati

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Ohio’s fourth and final full-service casino, the Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati, finally opened on Monday evening, March 4. More than 5,000 people witnessed the spectacular fireworks display. Among them were Gary Loveman, chairman, president & CEO of Caesars Entertainment Corp.; Dan Gilbert, chairman of Rock Gaming; Kevin Kline, senior vice president & general manager of Horseshoe Cincinnati; Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory; Celebrity Chef Bobby Flay; Grammy-award winning artist Michael Bolton; and others.

Rock Ohio Caesars L.L.C., a joint venture between Rock Gaming L.L.C. and Caesars Entertainment Corp., started work on the $400 million casino project on Feb. 4, 2011. The 354,000-square-foot complex is located on a 23-acre site, a former surface parking lot, in downtown Cincinnati. It houses approximately 2,000 slot machines, 87 table games, a 31-table World Series of Poker® room, high-limit gaming rooms, an Asian gaming room that pays homage to Cincinnati’s sister city Liuzhou, China, and a VIP players lounge. Horseshoe Cincinnati is also home to Jack Binion’s Steak, Bobby’s Burger Palace, Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville, The Spread buffet, The Rock Bar & Lounge, grab-and-go food and beverage options, a 24-hour Starbucks, a gift shop and 33,000 square feet of meeting space.

The project created more than 2,000 construction jobs, and 1,700 people are now employed at the new casino, 93 percent of them from the greater Cincinnati area. Horseshoe Cincinnati is projected to create $100 million annually in gaming tax revenue and attract six million visitors to downtown Cincinnati each year.

“Horseshoe Cincinnati represents the urban casino concept we have developed and has been quite successful for us in Cleveland, where we opened a little less than a year ago,” said Loveman. “To date, that property has attracted more than four million visitors and has injected millions of dollars into the local economy. We expect no less from Horseshoe Cincinnati.”

Caesars and Rock Gaming are also developing a Horseshoe casino in Maryland. Called Horseshoe Baltimore, the $350 million casino is expected to open in 2014.

Photo credits: www.horseshoe.com

The Christ Hospital to Open New Outpatient Center in Montgomery

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

The Christ Hospital Health Network officially announced on Thursday, Feb. 28, that  it is expanding in Montgomery with a new, three-story outpatient center. Construction will begin this spring, with completion expected in late 2014.

Called The Christ Hospital Outpatient Center in Montgomery, the facility will be located north of I-275 on Montgomery Road at Vintage Club Drive. It will be Christ Hospital Health Network’s first non-hospital location to provide external-beam radiation therapy and chemotherapy services for cancer patients.

“We are thrilled to bring our outpatient services and physicians to the city of Montgomery,” said Vic DiPilla, chief business development officer at The Christ Hospital Health Network, in a statement for the press. “Our physicians have provided leading care in Montgomery for many years and look forward to providing an even broader array of convenient, accessible healthcare services in this outstanding new facility.”

The 78,000-square-foot facility will include three floors of clinical and medical office space. Parking for patients and visitors will consist of both an attached parking garage and surface lots.

Bellevue, Ky.-based Brandicorp is the project’s developer. Duke Realty serves as contractor, and McGill Smith Punshun Inc. is the project’s architect. GBBN Architects is designing the interiors. The Christ Hospital Outpatient Center will be designed to be LEED-eligible for Core & Shell and Interiors.

“With these treatments often requiring multiple visits over the course of several weeks, a second location will add much more flexibility in scheduling and convenience for our patients,” said Michael Quaranta, executive director of oncology services for The Christ Hospital Health Network. “Advanced, complex cases will continue to be treated at the hospital in Mount Auburn, but many patients with cancers such as breast, lung, colorectal and prostate will be able to select a Christ Hospital treatment location closer to their homes or places of work.”

Rendering courtesy of McGill Smith Punshon Inc.

Carespring Breaks Ground on $24M Transitional Care Center in Northern Kentucky

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Carespring Health Care Management broke ground on Monday, Feb. 18, on a new transitional care facility in Cold Spring, Ky. Governor Steve Beshear, State Representative Dennis Keene and Judge-Executive Steve Pendery attended the groundbreaking ceremony at 300 Plaza Drive, along with other elected officials and business representatives.

The $24 million project will deliver a 143-bed facility, the Coldspring Transitional Care Center, on seven acres just off the AA Highway and U.S. 27. The Coldspring Transitional Care Center will specialize in short-term rehabilitation and long-term nursing care, and will include both private rooms and shared suites.

The state-of-the-art complex will also house activity, dining and exercise facilities, as well as a Starbucks Coffee Shop. It is expected to open in the fall of 2014.

“We are very excited about this new facility. Carespring is recognized for providing excellent communities and care to our residents, and we will provide our Coldspring residents with an exemplary experience, “ said Barry Bortz, CEO of Carespring Health Care Management.

Carespring Health Care Management has been planning the project since 2008. Construction was delayed, however, due to the recession. When completed, the facility will employ 200 full-time workers.

With the opening of the Coldspring Transitional Care Center, Carespring, an independent, locally run assisted and independent living organization, will have 11 facilities in southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky. It already has two operating facilities in the Northern Kentucky area, in Erlanger and Fort Thomas. Both of them employ more than 400 people. The company also plans to develop a facility in Boone County in the near future.

Photo credits: Coldspring Transitional Care Center – Facebook.

Ryan Homes Launches Two New Model Homes in Cincinnati Communities

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

NVR Inc. (NYSE: NVR), one of the nation’s largest homebuilding and mortgage banking companies, has recently announced the grand opening of two new model homes at two of its communities in the Cincinnati area. Both communities have been developed by NVR’s Ryan Homes division.

The Pisa Torre, a new ranch-style model home, will now be available at Fairfield Falls in Fairfield, Ohio. It provides as much as 2,445 square feet of living space, with as many as four bedrooms and four baths. The Pisa Torre includes a brick façade, full basement, morning room, hardwood floors, a spacious vaulted great room with gas fireplace, gourmet kitchen with island, granite kitchen counters, as well as an attached two-car garage, accessible through a mud room off the entrance foyer.

Fairfield Falls offers its residents three- and four-bedroom single-family and ranch-style homes. It is located in Fairfield Township, close to entertainment, restaurants and shopping destinations, and within minutes of routes  4, 747, 129 and I-75. Homes at Fairfield Falls start from the high $170,000s.

The Naples single-family model home is available at Stone Ridge Estates in Cincinnati. Priced in the low $210,000s, it offers 2,760 square feet of luxurious living, with four-plus bedrooms and two-plus baths. Just like the Pisa Tore, the Naples includes an attached two-car garage. The home is 100 percent Energy Star certified.

Stone Ridge Estates is located minutes away from the Northgate Mall and White Water Park, close to downtown Cincinnati. It offers six luxurious home models, including the brand new Naples. The community provides easy access to I-74, I-275 and Ronald Reagan Cross County Highway. Both Stone Ridge Estates and Fairfield Falls are fully Energy Star certified.

Photo credits: Ryan Homes

Anderson Birkla Buys 580 Building in Downtown Cincinnati, Plans Apartments

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

With downtown Cincinnati’s apartment vacancy rate far below office vacancies, some investors are purchasing office buildings and converting them into apartments. One such investor is Indianapolis-based Anderson Birkla Investment Partners. It acquired the 580 Building on Feb. 5 for $13.7 million. The company now intends to redevelop the property into a mix of residential, office and entertainment space.

The 580 Building is located at 580 Walnut St. It occupies half a city block in one of the most desirable areas in Cincinnati’s central business district. The 17-story building has more than 500,000 square feet of office space, 30,000 square feet of retail space and a 400-car underground parking garage.

The two-tower complex was completed in 1973. Hamilton County records show the building sold for $30.1 million in 2003, but it fell onto hard times after the Great American Insurance Co., its largest tenant, moved out in 2011. It now joins three other buildings that recently sold for less than $30 per square foot: the Ingalls building, the Holiday Office Park and Centennial Plaza.

Cassidy Turley was involved in the transaction and will retain property management and leasing assignments. Cassidy Turley’s Don Murphy represented Anderson Birkla in the deal, while James O’Connell, also of Cassidy Turley, represented the seller, an institutional advisory firm, which acquired the property in a Sheriff’s Sale after the previous owner defaulted on a $24.7 million mortgage.

Anderson Birkla said it will invest $40 million in the project. The purchase price is included in the sum. The Indianapolis-based company will release more details about the project in 60 to 90 days.

“The $40 million investment to redevelop the 580 Building will revitalize and bring a resurgence to a prime downtown asset, creating a quality place of work, a unique opportunity for residents to live, and an exceptional place to be entertained,” said Anthony Birkla, a principal in the company, in a press release.

Photo Credits: Cassidy Turley

Charts courtesy of Marcus&Millichap

DunnhumbyUSA Breaks Ground on New Downtown Cincinnati HQ

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

DunhumbyUSA broke ground on Jan. 31 on its new headquarters building at Fifth and Race streets in downtown Cincinnati. Hundreds of people were present at the groundbreaking ceremony, among them Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory and other city, state and company officials.

Dubbed the ”Dunnhumby Centre,” the new building will cost $122 million to build. It will sit in the heart of downtown and will have 280,000 square feet of office space, 30,000 square feet of street-level retail space and an above- and below-ground parking garage with 1,000 spaces.

The Dunnhumby Centre will have nine floors and will cover half a city block. Its garage will feature three above-ground floors and three below ground. The above-ground garage floors are taller than usual, making the structure the same height as a 14-story building. This feature will give dunhumbyUSA the possibility to expand in the future.

The city of Cincinnati, the state of Ohio, the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (known as the 3CDC) and dunhumbyUSA are all working together on the project. The city owns the site. Turner Construction Co. is the construction manager, with Gensler Architects as the project designer.

The project will be funded through new market tax credits, state and conventional loans, private capital and corporate loan funds managed by the 3CDC. Construction is expected to be finished in December 2014.

Mayor Mallory called it ”a truly great day for the city of Cincinnati” as he expressed his happiness that a long-vacant lot in the heart of the city’s downtown will soon be turned into a world headquarters and that dunnhumbyUSA, one of the fastest-growing businesses in the region, will not be leaving the city. DunnhumbyUSA now has 650 employees in Cincinnati and plans to grow to 1,100  by 2018. The project is also expected to spur further development and lead to the revitalization of Race Street.

Charts courtesy of Marcus & Millichap.