May Recap – Downtown Fort Lauderdale Riding Wave of New Development

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Special thanks to Laurel Oswald, Jon Blunk and Joody Andre at Tower Commercial Real Estate for a great lunch, some amazing views and a super presentation by Jenni Morejon of the Downtown Development Authority. Tower hosted our May 11 meeting at the Tower Club at One Financial Plaza.

If you missed the presentation, shame on you. The good news is that we have Jenni’s presentation here on the blog.  The bad news is that I wasn’t able to save you a piece of cheesecake.

Some of the highlights:

Over $2 Billion in post-recession investment is either planned, completed or under construction in the CBD. This includes the new 750,000 sf County Courthouse, 11,200 residential units, 1.5 million sf of office, 433,000 sf of retail and 1,200 hotel rooms. In addition, the new wave streetcar project is in the works with service to start in 2020.

While supply will be increasing with the new development, strong demand has driven residential rental rates up by 40% over the past five years and Class-A office rental rates are up by $4 over the past 12 months.

We are looking forward to more on the CBD market next month when Stiles presents details on their new downtown mixed use project.

 

Seasoned Commercial Real Estate Duo Joins Colliers International South Florida

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With a continued focus on expanding across all disciplines and growing its South Florida capabilities, Colliers International South Florida announced the addition of commercial real estate brokers Russell Bornstein and Michael Wilson.

With nearly 60 years of combined industry experience, the team will specialize in retail and office brokerage, respectively, and bring additional value by collaborating to service clients with mixed requirements in South Florida.

“Russell and Michael have both earned a reputation for service excellence,” said Ken Krasnow, Executive Managing Director & Market Leader of Colliers International South Florida. “Bringing them on board highlights our commitment to wholistic real estate solutions. As the real estate markets in South Florida continue to develop and mature, we are continually seeing occupiers with mixed-use requirements and we are stepping up to provide market solutions and expertise as diverse as the clients and requirements we work with.”

As long-time exclusive representatives for Wells Fargo and its approximate 250 branches in Southeast Florida, Bornstein and Wilson have provided steady and strategic commercial real estate advisory to the financial services company through various mergers over their 20 year relationship, including their real estate needs after they acquired Wachovia in the largest financial institution merger on record. Additionally, they have represented clients such as Brandsmart, Regions Bank, and Chase.

Both industry veterans have been with CBRE since 2012.

Industry veteran Bornstein has been involved in the ground-floor launch of numerous national retail tenants such as Blockbuster Video, Einstein’s Bagels and Boston Chicken. His experience comes from brokering notable transactions such as the 44,000 sq. ft. Coral Gables headquarters and branch of the original BankUnited as well as the sale of Plantation Crossing Shopping Center to an entity affiliated with Beth Azor of Azor Advisory Services. Additionally, he is an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers and a Board Member for the Wayne Barton Study Center in Boca Raton.

On the office side, Wilson has represented major players across Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade Counties throughout his career. He provides brokerage services to owners, landlords and occupiers of office properties, and has represented clients such as TIAA, Ernst & Young, Invesco and Morgan Stanley, among others. He is an active member within the local chapter of NAIOP, the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties.

“I’m excited to again work with Ken Krasnow and the professionals at Colliers. I have had the opportunity to work with several of them over the course of my career and I look forward to collaborating with them again in our shared pursuit,” added Russell Bornstein.

Bornstein holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from St. Bonaventure University and Wilson earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Pennsylvania State Unversity.

 

 

JLL Closes Leases With Two Tenants Totaling 22,000 SF

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JLL announced the closing of a lease renewal with long-time tenant TD Bank and a new lease with Allied Integrated Marketing totaling 22,000 square feet of office space at Cypress Financial Center, a 198,528-square-foot class A office building in Fort Lauderdale.

The property, located at 5900 N. Andrews Ave., is owned by Steelbridge Capital, a privately held, value-focused real estate investment company based in Miami and Chicago.

Sandra Andersen, Senior Vice President at JLL, represented Steelbridge Capital in both transactions.

Existing tenant TD Bank renewed its 16,675-square-foot lease and was represented by CBRE Senior Vice President Mathew J. Saker, CBRE Vice President John Jaspert and CBRE Transaction Manager Caroline C. Barone.

Allied Integrated Marketing signed a new lease consisting of 5,325 square feet and will occupy the eighth floor of the building. Allied Integrated Marketing is a full-service agency with 22 offices working with the world’s largest entertainment, culture and lifestyle brands. The tenant was represented by Bob Orban, Senior Vice President, and Tyler Wyant, Associate, at Savills Studley.

“Cypress Financial Center is situated at the geographic center of South Florida, making it the most accessible location to the region’s six million residents, an attractive factor for companies seeking office space,” said JLL’s Sandra Andersen. “The property underwent extensive renovations last year, which has contributed to attracting and retaining top-quality tenants who are seeking an office location with high-end finishes and downtown prestige in a convenient uptown location.”

Cypress Financial Center is the only office complex in South Florida with a direct on-ramp to I-95. Recently completed renovations include upgrades to the lobby and select common areas, complete tower and garage elevator modernization, exterior painting and sealing, replacement of monument and directional signage, new landscaping and exterior lighting.

 

Tower Commercial RE Names Scott Allen To Head Tenant Representation Division

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Tower Commercial Real Estate named Scott Allen as Managing Director to lead the growing firm’s tenant representation division.  Allen has focused exclusively on tenant representation  throughout his 23-year career, serving clients nationally and in South Florida.

The new executive is experienced in all aspects of transactions, from leasing, sales and build-to-suits to acquisition and disposition of assets. Allen has represented clients including mid-to-large cap corporations, law firms, financial service firms, healthcare, municipalities, banks and technology companies.

Before joining Tower, Allen was associated with CBRE since 1996, and represented clients including Spherion Staffing, VITAS Healthcare, City of Fort Lauderdale, Citibank and AutoNation.

“As Tower continues to expand its team and service lines, we are thrilled to have someone of Scott’s caliber and experience to lead and grow our Florida tenant representation platform,” said Jon Blunk, president and founder of Tower Commercial Real Estate.

Headquartered in Miami, with offices in Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and West Palm Beach, Tower Commercial Real Estate is a full service commercial real estate brokerage firm active throughout Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.  The firm has a current leasing portfolio of more than 3 million square feet, including many of the region’s most prominent Class A office and mixed-use properties.

 

Butters Picks Up Boca Office Complex For $21 Million

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Butters just paid $21 million for a three-building office complex in Boca Raton, marking the real estate firm’s third acquisition in the Palm Beach County office market in the past year.

A Butters affiliate, BREF 1900 LLC, bought the 120,000-square-foot office complex at 1900-2000 Northwest Corporate Boulevard, off Glades Road and I-95, the company said. The price equates to $175 per square foot.

Records show the seller is New York-based DRA Advisors, which had paid $19 million for the property in 2008.

CBRE brokered the deal.

“There was no asking price,” said Adam Vaisman, director of acquisitions for Coconut Creek-based Butter. “Bids came in and we ended up being selected.”

Vaisman said the three buildings are currently 78 percent occupied, with tenants including Garda World; Rogers & Cowan; Milber Makris, Plousadis & Seiden; Katz & Associates and Pinkerton. The buildings have covered parking.

He said Butters plans to invest $3 million in the complex, with a goal of bringing it up from Class C to Class B, and allowing the company to raise rents by a few dollars to the low $20s per square foot. Vaisman declined to provide the buildings’ exact current lease terms. Planned capital improvements include modernizing the exterior, entrance and corridors with new carpeting, tile, paint and fixtures, as well as enhancing the landscaping.

“In the Class A market, the asking rents are upper $20s, $30s net, and we feel there is a gap between that class’s rents and the Class B rents, and we can take advantage of that,” Vaisman said. “We can raise the rents by investing some money in the buildings.”

During the past 10 months, Butters also purchased 851 Broken Sound for $6.125 million in May and 3010 Military Trail for $4.6 million in October, bringing its total office acquisition in Boca Raton to 210,000 square feet and $31.7 million.

“We just like office product in this market,” he said. “No one is building it and you can buy it below replacement cost.”

Overall in Palm Beach County, demand for office space is high, according to an Avison Young report released early this year. New construction is expected in West Palm Beach this year, such as the Gardens Innovation Center, which incorporates green building features.

 

Source:  The Real Deal

CBRE’s Genet, O’Loughlin Negotiate Record Price In Sale Of Former Post Office Building

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CBRE Senior Vice President Tom O’Loughlin and Vice President Larry Genet negotiated the sale the Former Post Office Building located at 4350 North Andrews Avenue in Oakland Park, to a new-to-market company.

Andrews Ave. Estate LLC, dba Panda Kitchen & Bath, a kitchen and bathroom supply store, purchased the property for $2,500,000, or approximately $123.00 per square foot.

CBRE's Tom O'Loughlin & Larry GenetO’Loughlin and Genet represented the seller, RLC LTD, in the transaction, which closed March 2.

The one-story, 20,368-square-foot Class C building, which is situated on 2.34 acres, was built in 1965 and has been used as a post office facility since 1996. The building offers direct frontage on Andrews Ave., with 20,500 cars passing per day. The single tenant, freestanding property features 14′ -16′ ceiling heights and a parking lot that can accommodate 106 parking spaces.

 

“The building was in poor condition with all kinds of specialized build-out by the prior tenant, the United States Post Office,” explained Genet. “It took some serious vision and strategic planning to develop a custom marketing program that relied heavily on digital renderings.  Ultimately, that plan generated multiple offers for sale and lease.”

 

“This is the third residential construction-related deal our team has done in the past two months,” added O’Loughlin. “Stone & marble, cabinet, fixture and furniture companies are all experiencing tremendous growth with the addition of thousands of apartment and condo units being built this cycle.”

According to its website, Panda Kitchen & Bath’s philosophy is to save the customer money by owning the quarry and manufacturing plant, thereby providing the best quality product and the best service at the fairest price, allowing customers to afford quality kitchens and bathrooms that they couldn’t afford before.

 

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