Tag Archive for: 1 east broward

West Marine Relocates HQ From Cali, Inks 50,000 SF Lease Deal

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NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, the property leasing and management company of 1 East Broward, an iconic 19-story, 350,000-square-foot office building in Fort Lauderdale, welcomed West Marine, the nation’s leading retailer for the sailing, boating, fishing and watersports markets, to its new 50,000-square-foot corporate headquarters at 1 East Broward.

1 East Broward, one of Fort Lauderdale’s leading Class A office buildings, is centrally located on the northeast corner of Broward Boulevard and Andrews Avenue, just a short walk from Fort Lauderdale’s many amenities including the Brightline Train station, the fast-growing Flagler Village residential neighborhood, and Las Olas Boulevard.

West Marine’s relocation of their corporate headquarters from Santa Cruz, California to Fort Lauderdale will create approximately 225 corporate jobs over time and tallied an $800,000 capital investment into the property and community according to the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance. Thursday, October 27th marked the ribbon cutting ceremony at their new 1 East Broward headquarter location. Ribbon cutting attendees included West Marine Chief Executive Officer Eric Kufel and Chief Commercial Officer Stacey Renfro, as well as Broward County Mayor Michael Udine, Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance President and CEO Bob Swindell, Fort Lauderdale Chamber President and CEO Dan Lindblade, and top members of Downtown Fort Lauderdale. Mr. Kufel along with the City of Fort Lauderdale’s Vice Mayor Sorensen, and City Commissioner, District 2 Steven Glassman cut the ribbon at the ceremony.

The city of Fort Lauderdale, which has over 300 miles of inland waterways and is home to about 50,000 yachts, is known as the Yachting Capital of the World. It’s no wonder this South Florida city attracted West Marine.

West Marine CEO, Eric Kufel, recently stated, “Our relocation to Fort Lauderdale means we can better serve the sailing and boating communities. We want to be where the boaters are, not only to support the existing community, but welcome newcomers to the industry.”

 

NAI/Merin Hunter Codman Chief Executive Officer Jordan Paul stated, “We are thrilled that West Marine has chosen 1 East Broward for its corporate headquarters. West Marine is an iconic brand that meshes perfectly with the outdoor lifestyle that makes Fort Lauderdale a unique city to live, work and play. We are honored that West Marine has selected 1 East Broward as its new corporate home and look forward to working with them for many years as they continue to grow their market leading business.”

 

Law Firm Inks 11-Year Lease Deal In Downtown Fort Lauderdale

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NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, Inc. announced that Chairman Neil E. Merin, SIOR, CCIM and Managing Director Adam Starr have finalized an 11-year, 9,285-square-foot lease transaction with Stok Kon + Braverman at 1 East Broward on behalf of the landlord, 1 East Broward Owner, LLC. Stok Kon + Braverman is a full-service law firm with offices in Fort Lauderdale and Boynton Beach.

“We are excited to welcome Stok Kon + Braverman to 1 East Broward. Stok who explored many of downtown’s most exclusive office properties, ultimately chose 1 East Broward due to the landlord’s continuing commitment to an extensive property improvement program as well as the suite’s existing high-end features and efficiency. Creating a welcoming, safe, and convenient office space experience for their employees was of utmost importance, as most of the firm’s employees returned to in-person work post initial lockdowns,” stated Starr.

1 East Broward is a 19-story, 350,000-square-foot, Class-A, office building located at the northeast corner of Broward Boulevard and Andrews Avenue in downtown Fort Lauderdale.

1 East Broward Owner, LLC, who purchased the property in 2018, immediately implemented a multi-million-dollar property improvement program which has included lobby, common area, lighting, and bathroom upgrades. A new security access card and visitor management system as well as a complete state-of-the-art elevator modernization have recently been completed. The property is known for its grand lobby, impressive views, state-of-the-art fitness center including Peloton bikes, manned 24/7 security, and a variety of on-site dining and concierge services. Tenants also enjoy plentiful parking in the garage, connected by an air-conditioned skywalk.

1 East Broward is downtown Fort Lauderdale’s closest office building to the Brightline, and the property offers superb walkability to dining and retail destinations including Flagler Village’s Arts and Technology Village (FATVillage), Music & Arts South of Sunrise District (MASS), the renowned Las Olas Boulevard and The Warf at Riverfront. 1 East Broward additionally offers fantastic access to I-95, I-595 and the Hollywood/Fort Lauderdale International Airport.

Robert A. Stok, Esquire Managing Principal of Stok Kon + Braverman stated, “We surveyed the entire Fort Lauderdale office market and determined that 1 East Broward Boulevard is the ideal office building to establish a permanent home for our for firm. It’s location, convenient to the federal and Broward courthouses in the heart of downtown Fort Lauderdale’s commercial center, with easy access to rail and highway transportation, high end hotels and restaurants, meshes perfectly with the firm’s suite of business services and is appealing to our clientele and employees.”

 

NAI/Merin Hunter Codman’s Chairman Neil Merin stated, “Stok Kon + Braverman has a long history as one of Broward County’s premier boutique law firms and we are proud that they have made a long-term commitment to make 1 East Broward their home. Ownership has recently invested significant capital upgrading and modernizing the building’s elevators, security systems, common areas and amenities, and are committed to continuing to improve the property to attract high quality tenants like Stok, Kon and Braverman.”

 

Downtown Fort Lauderdale Office Tower Trades For $108.5 Million

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1 East Broward Owner, LLC, a joint venture between affiliates of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman and PCCP, LLC, has acquired 1 East Broward, a Class A office tower in downtown Fort Lauderdale for $108,500,000.

The CBRE Capital Markets team facilitated the sale of the 19-story, 351,705 square foot, institutional-quality office building on behalf of the seller, Ivy Realty.

Additionally, the CBRE Debt & Structured Finance team arranged acquisition financing of $77,465,500 with SunTrust Bank on behalf of the buyer. Vice Chairman, Christian Lee and Senior Vice President, José Lobón of CBRE oversaw the transaction on the sale effort, and First Vice President Amy Julian oversaw the financing for CBRE, working with Chief Financial Officer Dung Lam and Acquisitions Director Corey Winsett on behalf of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman. The CBRE team also included Senior Financial Analyst Andrew Chilgren. Rebecca M. Cox, SunTrust Senior Vice President, provided the financing. Kapp Morrison LLP provided legal counsel to the seller and Shutts and Bowen provided legal counsel to the buyer.

The property is located on the northeast corner of Broward Boulevard and Andrews Avenue, in the heart of Fort Lauderdale’s rapidly expanding downtown, across from the new Brightline Rail Station. The 91% leased property includes a 19-story building and a 5-story building that are connected by a covered sky bridge to a 4-story parking structure that provides the office tenants with 772 covered parking spaces. The property recently received an extensive renovation with over $4.9 million invested since the beginning of 2013 and serves as the new U.S. headquarters for KEMET Corporation, a leading publicly-traded global supplier of electronic components. KEMET recently relocated its corporate headquarters from Greenville, SC to 1 East Broward bringing 150 additional jobs to the Fort Lauderdale CBD. KEMET joins several leading law firms who have corporate and regional headquarters at 1 East Broward including Becker & Poliakoff, Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A., McGlinchey Stafford and Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP.

The purchaser of the property, 1 East Broward Owner, LLC is a joint venture between affiliates of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, Inc. and PCCP, a real estate finance and investment management firm, based in New York and San Francisco that has over $6.5 billion in assets under management on behalf of institutional investors.

Jordan Paul, CEO of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman stated, “We are excited to form this venture with PCCP. Fort Lauderdale is transforming into one of the great live, work, play environments in the United States and 1 East Broward enjoys a unique position within the marketplace. NAI/Merin Hunter Codman and PCCP plan to continue improving the property to solidify its position as one of downtown Fort Lauderdale’s premier corporate addresses and we appreciate that SunTrust was able to provide us with a loan that allows for flexibility in achieving this goal.”

NAI/Merin Hunter Codman will take over property management and leasing at 1 East Broward.

NAI/Merin Hunter Codman Chairman, Neil Merin who will oversee the leasing team with NAI/Merin Hunter Codman Commercial Associate Max Pawk stated, “With its strategic location adjacent to the Brightline Rail Station, the Federal Courthouse and within walking distance of both Las Olas Boulevard and all of the exciting new residential and cultural development taking place in Flagler Village, 1 East Broward offers its tenants an ideal corporate home with easy access to everything that is happening in Fort Lauderdale and South Florida.”

Christian Lee, Vice Chairman of CBRE Capital Markets stated, “Ivy did an outstanding job executing its business plan and creating value at 1 East Broward. By virtue of the 20% rent growth we have witnessed in Downtown Fort Lauderdale since 2014, every building in the CBD affords significant upside potential as leases expire and we expect that the new ownership group will be able to continue to enhance the building and benefit from the exciting growth taking place in Fort Lauderdale.”

Jose Lobon, Senior Vice President, CBRE Capital Markets added, “1 East Broward has benefited tremendously from its location in the burgeoning Flagler Village neighborhood of Downtown Fort Lauderdale. Not only is it the closest office tower to the recently opened Brightline train station, but it is also at the gateway to the CBD’s youngest and hippest enclave which has seen a generational transformation over the last decade, including 6,415 new multifamily units, as well as numerous art galleries, restaurants, and amenities.”