Tag Archive for: adam vaisman

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

Butters, Bristol Group Buy Landmark Coral Springs Office Building

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A co-development by veteran South Florida developer Butters Construction & Development and San Francisco-based Bristol Group has acquired one of Northwest Broward County’s largest and most prominent office buildings.

In an all-cash transaction, the partnership purchased the 205,000-square-foot building at 3111 N. University Drive with plans to reposition the 10-story building as Broward County’s premier suburban corporate center.  The tower, which anchors Coral Springs’ main business district on University Drive just south of Sample Road, has been renamed University Place at City Center.

The name change is the first step in Butters’ and Bristol’s multi-prong strategy to reposition the property as a best-in-class office center.  A multi-million dollar renovation and capital improvement project is being rolled out with renovations starting as early as March on upgrades and modernization of the building’s lobby atrium and new main entry.  The newly rebranded University Place at City Center will also undergo full refurbishment of its front retail façade, which has immense street presence spanning nearly a half block along University Drive.   A full upgrade of the building’s passenger elevator system, which includes two all-glass cabs that offer riders dramatic views of the lobby atrium, will be completed in February.

“This building was 90 percent leased five years ago, and was always regarded as one of the best office buildings in west Broward,” said Malcolm Butters, president of Butters. “We are confident that within a few years this building will regain its stature.”

Prior to the Butters and Bristol acquisition, the 10-story building, formerly known as Preferred Exchange Tower, had been controlled by a commercial mortgaged-back securities trust, which foreclosed on its previous ownership in 2012.

A servicer for the CMBS trust put the property on the market late last year with the Butters and Bristol team emerging as the winning party following a competitive bidding process.

“We saw an opportunity to acquire an irreplaceable asset in the Coral Springs market at a very competitive price,” said Rob Banovac, project manager with Bristol. “We knew this would give us a competitive advantage in the marketplace and allow us to quickly turn it around with well-capitalized, institutional ownership and an experienced leasing team.”

Adam Vaisman, director of acquisitions for Butters, worked with Bristol to craft the economic structure of the deal to capture the winning bid.

Darcie Lunsford and Molly McDonough, both senior vice presidents at Butters, will oversee leasing.

University Place at Center Center’s current tenant roster includes Scarborough Research, Community Bank of Broward and IPS Worldwide.