Redwood Capital Group Grabs Largo Multifamily Complex for $17M

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Redwood Capital Group has recently added 304 units to its growing multifamily portfolio with the purchase of a 304-unit multifamily complex in the central Pinellas County city of Largo.

Jamie B. May with Institutional Property Advisors—the multifamily brokerage division of Marcus & Millichap—mediated the Landmark at Largo Crossing deal on behalf of the owner, a joint venture between Landmark Residential and Brookfield Real Estate Opportunity Fund. Buyer Redwood Capital Group paid $16,750,000 for the property, or $55,000 per unit.

“Landmark at Largo Crossing is a recently renovated asset that was offered free and clear of debt,” says May. “The new owner is well positioned to reap the benefits provided by the area’s resurgent job market, promising demographic trends and changing housing preferences.”

Located at 305 Glades Circle on the north side of Ulmerton Road in Largo, the property is part of a vibrant commercial corridor featuring office parks, shopping plazas and restaurants. Built in 1974 on approximately 10.7 acres, Landmark at Largo Crossing was renovated in 2011. Composed of 28 two-story concrete buildings with stucco exteriors and pitched asphalt shingle roofs, the community consists of 144 one-bedroom units, 128 two-bedroom apartments and 32 three-bedroom units.

Amenities include a resort-style pool with cabanas and a large brick paver sundeck, a newly constructed fitness center building, a multi-use sport court, a large laundry center, a car care center, an enclosed dog park and a spacious picnic and barbecue area.

Image via Landmark at Largo Crossing’s Facebook Page

Looking to Expand, MIG Real Estate Buys Hilton Garden Inn

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

MIG Real Estate closed on its fourth Florida hotel, adding the Hilton Garden Inn Tampa East/Brandon to its 11-property hotel portfolio.

The Newport Beach, Calif.-based firm is currently pursuing an aggressive expansion strategy, seeking core-plus, value-add and opportunistic investments in select-service hotels, grocery-anchored shopping centers, and office, industrial and multi-family properties.

“We are pleased to add the first Hilton Garden Inn to our hotel portfolio, furthering our relationship with the Hilton family of brands,” said Greg Merage, CEO of MIG Real Estate. “This is a very high-quality product featuring an outstanding location in a mature business park with direct accessibility to other nearby East Tampa employers, amenities and attractions.”

Built in 2002, the Hilton Garden Inn sits on a 3.53-acre property at 10309 Highland Manor Drive and consists of 152 guestrooms. The property features approximately 4,500-square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor meeting space, outdoor swimming pool, exercise room, business center, restaurant and guest laundry.

The location places the Hilton Garden Inn within the Highland Oaks business park, adjacent to an Interstate 75 off-ramp and approximately 18 miles east of the Tampa International Airport. Nearby attractions include Florida State Fairgrounds, 1-800-Ask Gary Amphitheatre, the Bob Thomas Equestrian Center and the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, all within three miles of the hotel.

Hodges Ward Elliot represented the seller in the transaction and MIG Real Estate represented itself. The property is being operated by Raleigh-based Concord Hospitality Enterprises. The financial details of the transaction have been disclosed.

Image: Hilton Garden Inn Official Website

Phillips Edison Purchases 2 Shopping Centers in Tampa Bay Metro Area

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Phillips Edison-ARC Shopping Center REIT has shown a great deal of interest in metro Tampa properties this past week. It recently purchased two Publix-anchored grocery stores in the area.

The two new properties—Lutz Lake Crossing and Publix at Seven Hills—have brought the company’s portfolio to a total of 39 properties, with a portfolio aggregate purchase price of approximately $486.3 million. The company did not disclose the price of the recently-acquired properties.

Lutz Lake Crossing is a 64,986-square-foot shopping center located in Lutz, Fla., approximately 15 miles north of Tampa. The shopping center is anchored by a Publix grocery store, the No. 1 traditional grocer in the Tampa area by market share and is currently 86 percent occupied.

The other shopping center, Publix at Seven Hills, is a 72,590-square-foot shopping center located in Spring Hill, Fla. Anchored by a Publix store, the retail center is currently 91 percent leased.

Lutz Lake Crossing was not the sole Lutz retail property to trade these past days. Van Dyke Commons, a 139,347-square-foot retail center located at the intersection of Van Dyke Road and North Dale Mabry Highway, exchanged hands in a $30 million deal.

Buyer Prestige Properties & Development purchased the unencumbered property from seller iStar Financial Inc., which was represented in the transaction by Holliday Fenoglio Fowler’s Senior Managing Director Brad Peterson and Director Analyst Kim Flores.

 “Van Dyke Commons was highly sought after by investors because it was located in a primarily institutionally-owned submarket. The population growth and income demographics in the surrounding area significantly outpace the Tampa metro-wide averages. However, what really captivated investors was the strong performance by each of the anchors, shop occupancy, retention rate and the huge volume of daily traffic to the property driven by LA Fitness,” commented Peterson.

Van Dyke Commons, located 15 miles northwest of downtown Tampa, is anchored by LA Fitness, HomeGoods, and GolfSmith. Built in 2007, the 100 percent-occupied retail center also includes a 0.88-acre undeveloped land parcel.

Image via Van Dyke Commons property brochure

35K SF Nordstrom Rack Coming to Shoppes at University Town Center

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Nordstrom, Inc. will soon be attending to its customers in the Sarasota-Bradenton metro area. The fashion specialty retailer opened a 35,000-square-foot Nordstrom Rack shop at the Shoppes at University Town Center.

The central location, set across the street from the future Mall at University Town Center, is the site of a former Circuit City space, and it has direct access from University Parkway. Located at the intersection of I-75 and University Parkway, the center is also home to tenants such as Marshalls, Ross, and Pier 1 Imports, among others.

The Shoppes at University Town Center is adjacent to the University Park Country Club—a private community featuring 31 neighborhoods—and Lakewood Ranch. The densely populated Sarasota/Bradenton corridor offers the metro area’s largest concentrations of retail stores, restaurants and Class A office space.

“We’re excited to have found this terrific location that will enable us to bring the Rack treasure hunt experience to our customers in the Sarasota-Bradenton metro area and throughout Sarasota County,” said Geevy Thomas, president of Nordstrom Rack. “We look forward to getting our doors open and serving customers at the Shoppes at University Town Center.”

Nordstrom Rack—the off-price retail division of Nordstrom, Inc.—will be offering on-trend merchandise from Nordstrom stores and Nordstrom.com at 50 to 60 percent off original Nordstrom prices. The retailer currently operates nine full-line stores and eight Rack stores in Florida, having recently announced two additional new Rack stores in Jacksonville and Naples scheduled to open this fall in addition to the full-line store slated to open in Jacksonville next year. The Sarasota store will be opening in fall 2013.

Image: Shoppes at University Town Center via Benderson Development

JLL Signs 16K Sq. Ft. of Office Space at One Urban Centre for Regus

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Global office space provider Regus will soon be tapping into office space at Tampa’s premium Urban Centre.

Jones Lang LaSalle, the exclusive manager and leasing broker for the building, secured a long-term lease for 16,072 square feet of office space on behalf Regus at One Urban Centre. JLL Vice President Deana Beer represented One Urban Centre, while Brent Miller, also vice president for JLL, represented the tenant in the transaction.

Regus, the world’s largest provider of flexible workplaces, will use the space as its fifth Tampa Bay area business center; it will offer executive suite offices, meeting space and virtual offices, starting this spring.

The Class A mid-rise building, located at 4830 W Kennedy Blvd. in Tampa’s Westshore submarket, has undergone extensive renovations valued at more than $10 million to the atrium lobby, common area corridors and restrooms, elevators, roof replacement and courtyards. The property is 92 percent leased and houses elite tenants such as American Momentum Bank, UNUM Life Insurance, Ideal Image and MassMutual. It boasts a nine-story atrium, four-star hotel, private membership club, restaurants, dry cleaners, auto detailing, fitness center, state of the art conference center and more.

Along with its twin Two Urban Centre, the building has recently received NAIOP’s 2012 Best Office Building Award and BOMA of Greater Tampa Bay’s 2012 Outstanding Building of the Year (TOBY) Award in the Suburban Office Park, Mid-Rise category.

“It is wonderful to have Regus as a tenant, as it will fulfill the needs of single and small office space users, startups and traveling executives,” said Beer. “Urban Centre is truly a city within a city. Regus and its tenants will benefit from its high-profile location, unmatched amenities and unique personal and business offerings.”

Image Courtesy of Schwartz Media Strategies