Commercial Real Estate Briefs

By Business Observer Staff
| 6:00 p.m. September 4, 2008
| 2 Free Articles Remaining!

Charlotte–Lee–Collier

Whimsical Arts buys former Buddhist retreat

BUYER: Whimsical Arts LLC (principal: Marietta Lee), Guilford, Conn.

SELLER: Joan McGee

PROPERTY: 2137 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota

PRICE: $1.55 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $1.2 million

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Fergeson Skipper Shaw Keyser Baron & Tirabassi PA, Sarasota

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Marietta Lee of Guilford, Conn. purchased the former Kancha Buddhist Center in Sarasota on about an acre on the west side of Tamiami Trail near Whitaker Bayou for $1.55 million. The property features a 5,391-square-foot commercial building and a much smaller home.

Bruce Ginsberg of Re/Max Alliance Group represented the seller, and Marie Avery also with Re/Max represented the Lee.

"My understanding is its probably going to be an art museum," says Ginsberg. "Mrs. Lee is really very active in the arts and a former graduate of Ringling. [She] is interest in showcasing local artists. It was a very quick sale. Showing once again that properties on the North Trail are great value right now. I think it probably spurred the market."

The Review was unable to reach Lee for comment.

Restaurant chain Mattison's

may close Longboat steakhouse

Mattison's Steakhouse at The Plaza on Longboat Key may not reopen after it's summer hiatus. The Longboat Key restaurant closed its doors July 7, planning to reopen Oct. 21, but instead a new tenant might take over the restaurant's lease this fall, according to local real estate investor Howard Rooks, who owns the building at 525 Bay Isles Parkway.

Paul Mattison, owner and chef of four Mattison's restaurants, along with a catering business and culinary store, confirmed to the Longboat Observer that another party approached him about setting up a restaurant in the 7,500-square-foot Longboat Key building. He didn't identify the possible tenant, but said that the restaurant would not be affiliated with Mattison's and could sign a lease in as little as two-to-three weeks.

The deal isn't final yet, Mattison said, and further discussions are needed before he will make a final decision about whether or not to close steakhouse.

During the summer, Mattison moved his catering operations from the Longboat Key restaurant to Mattison's Forty One in south Sarasota, where he is building a separate kitchen to accommodate that growing sector of his business. Mattison's Riverside in Bradenton and Mattison's City Grille in downtown Sarasota continue to operate as usual.

Mattison said off-season business has declined since he opened his Longboat Key restaurant in 2003, largely due to lower tourism traffic.

"My thought was to go seasonally," Mattison said of his decision to close for the summer.

When the catering services operated out of Longboat Key, sales volumes were highest in that location. But when he considered the four restaurants alone without catering, the sales volume was the lowest for the Longboat Key restaurant.

If he decides to close the Steakhouse at The Plaza, Mattison is unlikely to reopen in a new location, focusing instead on the other restaurants and the catering service. Mattison said that he has no plans at this time to move Mattison's Culinary Outfitters, which is located nearby at 25 Avenue of the Flowers.

Rooks said that he is willing to talk to any potential tenents about the location.

- reporting by Robin Hartill of the Longboat Observer

North Port Storage Zone

adds partner, changes name

BUYER: Secure Holdings North Port LLC (principals: Stephen Garchik and Andrew Czekej) Reston, Vir.

SELLER: Stafford Place North Port LLC

PROPERTY: 12560 S. Tamiami Trail, North Port

PRICE: $4.73 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $4 million

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Snider & Weinstein PLLC, Washington, D.C.

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Storage Zone owner Stephen Garchik of Potomac, Md., has sold the North Port storage facility to another company he owns along with Naples resident Andrew Czekej in a transaction valued at $4.73 million. Operations at the 48,000-square-foot self-storage facility are not set to change, but it will take on the new name of American Stor-All. The complex features 485 storage units half of which are climatized.

County issues DRI

for Lakewood Centre

Lakewood Ranch developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch has received early approval from the Manatee County commissioner to develop a new retail development and 3,600 homes.

The Manatee County Board of County Commissioners approved a comprehen

Adler Group buys two airport-area parks

BUYER: The Adler Group Inc., Miami

SELLER: Lund Capital Group

PROPERTY: 2900 block of South Horseshoe Drive (Horseshoe Drive At Airport Pulling Road) and a portion of the southeast corner of Airport and Radio roads, Naples

PRICE: $31 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: The Adler Group Inc. purchased Collier Park of Commerce and Commerce Center, a flex office on the north side of Naples Municipal Airport from Lund Capital Group for $31 million equal to about $123 a square foot. Collier Park of Commerce is a seven building park with a total of 189,523 square feet of space; the four-building Commerce Center houses 62,899 square feet. The portfolio was 96% occupied at the time of the sale. The acquisition marked the Miami company's first purchase in Naples.

"Adler has been looking at the Naples market for a long time," says Jason Hochman, managing director of acquisitions for The Adler Group. "This was our first real opportunity there. What we loved about the portfolio was it was sizable with a large number of tenants.... It's easier to sleep at night knowing that no single tenant has a major impact on the portfolio as a whole. Another major factor was that land is constrained in this area, and we were able to go in and buy below replacement cost. That creates a nice barrier to entry."

Hochman says The Adler Group has the advantage from many other real estate investment firms of being able to close transactions even in currently trouble financial markets. He declined to comment on the financing for the purchase.

Mike Davis (Capital Markets/Tampa); Rick Brugge, CCIM (Capital Markets/Tampa); Gary Tasman (C&W Southwest Florida) and Brandon Stoneburner (C&W Southwest Florida) of Cushman & Wakefield negotiated the sale on behalf of the seller, Lund Capital Group.

Davis says the price on a pure square footage was on the higher side, but called it a fair price to both parties considering the uniqueness of the property and the lack of nearby development sites. He estimated the capitalization rate at about 7%.

The Adler Group has developed and acquired more than 14 million square feet of industrial, office, retail and residential real estate and has a large presence in the Tampa market.

Investor group buys Palazzo

Village at Quail Creek

BUYER: Westbury Quail Gardens LLC (principal: David Stevens), Naples

SELLER: Toll FL V Limited Partnership

PROPERTY: tract A Palazzo Village off Immokalee Road east of Interstate 75, Naples

PRICE: $5.85 million

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Toll Brothers Inc., Horsham, Pa.

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: An investment group headed by Naples broker David Stevens, a principal in the real estate firm Investment Properties Corp., purchased 21.74 acres of vacant land in the master planned Quail Creek Plaza development from residential builder Toll Brothers for $5.85 million equal to $269,089 an acre. The parcel is one of the last undeveloped sections of the multi-year residential master-planned community Quail Creek.

The property is approved for a 154-unit townhome-style development called Palazzo Village at Quail Creek and most of the underground utilities are already in place.

"The buyers were compelled to acquire it because it was a very well located project with a great deal of entitlement work and infrastructure work that had already been done," Stevens says. "Plus it was available for 25 to 35% of the price point of two years ago. There was a tax advantage for Toll Brothers to sell under an accelerated time frame, but we think it was a fair deal for Toll Brothers and a good deal for use."

The new ownership is still evaluating the property with an eye to the best future land use. One potential alternative use that is being considered is an assisted living facility. However, most alternatives would require further regulatory approval.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see use go forward with this as approved," Stevens says. "But it's more of a 2010 project more than 2008."

Etc...

• Urgent Care Medical Center leased 3,890 square feet of medical facility space at 5705 Lee Blvd., units 11-13 in Lehigh Acres from Lee Blvd. West LLC. Todd Holman and Honora' Jacobus of Woodyard & Associates LLC handled the transaction.

• French Roast Cafe renewed the lease for 4,713 square feet of restaurant space at 12995 S. Cleveland Ave., suites 117-120A, Fort Myers from Pinebrook Pine LLC. Todd Holman and Steve Wood of Woodyard & Associates LLC handled the transaction.

• The Southwest Florida Workforce Development Board has opened a Cape Coral satellite office in the City Centrum Business Park. The City Council approved the SFWDB's location next door to the Small Business Development Center, which Florida Gulf Coast University operates.

• Gora McGahey Associates in Architecture will provide the architectural design for FineMark National Bank & Trust's Bonita Springs office, and Owen-Ames-Kimball Company will be the general contractor. Construction has already begun on the new office, which is located at 10010 Coconut Road in the Brooks Town Center, near Coconut Point. The office is scheduled to open in January. Gora McGahey Associates in Architecture and Owen-Ames-Kimball Company also designed and built FineMark's flagship office, located in Riverwalk at Whiskey Creek in Fort Myers. The 9,390-square-foot, Mediterranean-style building will feature a two-story banking lobby, two-lane drive thru, conference rooms, a full-service kitchen for catered events and office space for more than 20 people.

• J.L. Wallace Inc. has completed construction of a 4,279-square-foot SunTrust Bank at Gulf Coast Town Center at 17100 Ben Hill Griffin Parkway in Fort Myers.

• Fort Myers-based Glory Homes has completed site improvements for Daniels Commons, a 66,150-square-foot office park planned for 13550 Appaloosa Lane off Daniels Parkway. So far utilities, a parking lot and landscaping have been put in place. The site is now complete and ready for building construction. Designed by architect Greg Goertler, the Mediterranean-style office park will consist of four office condominium buildings on a five-acre parcel. The single- and two-story buildings will range in size from 11,025 to 22,050 square feet with up to 10 units per floor. One of the buildings will be designated for health care offices.

• Westbury Quail Gardens LLC purchased 21.74 acres of vacant land known as tract A, Palazzo Village, Naples from Toll FL V Limited Partnership. David Stevens of Investment Properties Corp. handled the transaction.

Vine Ripe specialties buys Canal Street buildings

BUYER: Vine Ripe Specialties Inc. (principal: Donald Griffin), Fort Myers

SELLER: American Builders Contractors Supply Co. Inc.

PROPERTY: 3540 and 3534 Canal St., Fort Myers

PRICE: $1.6 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $670,000, June 2007

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Don Jeziorski, Beloit, Wis.

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Local produce wholesaler Vine Ripe Specialties Inc. purchased two adjacent manufacturing buildings on Canal Street between Colonial and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. boulevards for $1.6 million. The two buildings, which were formerly used and owned by roofing, siding and windows wholesale firm ABC Supply Co. Inc. will serve as a packing supply house to replace Vine Ripe Specialties' existing Immokalee facility.

The first building, 3540 Canal St., is 25,292 square feet on an acre lot with 1,200 square feet office space and the 3534 Canal Street building is 22,089 square feet.

Chase Mayhugh of Mayhugh Realty Inc., who handled both sides of the most recent sale, is marketing the Immokalee packinghouse for Vine Ripe Specialties. The half-acre 5,000-square-foot packinghouse is being marketed for $999,000.

Vine Ripe Specialties mortgaged the Canal Street properties to M&I Marshall & Ilsley Bank for $1.44 million.

Marcobay buys Kuehne & Nagel warehouse

BUYER: 4350 Amberjack LLC (principal: Howard Bayless), Lakeland

SELLER: Kuehne + Nagel Inc.

PROPERTY: 4350 Amberjack Blvd., Plant City

PRICE: $5.5 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $4.6 million, December 2000

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Akerman Senterfitt, Orlando

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Lakeland-based Marcobay Construction purchased the former Kuehne & Nagel 101,000-square-foot warehouse on Amberjack Boulevard near South Country Line Road for $5.5 million equal to $54 a square foot. The property also features land for a future 56,000-square-foot expansion. The property was purchased as an investment, according to B.J. Miller, property manager for Marcobay Properties Inc., and the new ownership is looking for a new tenant to occupy the space.

"The property has some expansion capabilities," Miller says. "We also have other properties that we owned in that vicinity which made for a good mix. On Pipkin Road we own a 96,200-square-foot single-tenant building, a 70,000-square-foot single-tenant building, our 20,000-square-foot corporate headquarters and next door we're planning to build another 60,000-square-foot [warehouse/flex] building. We're looking for a tenant to do a build to suite [on the 60,000-square-foot building]."

Along with location, all of the properties, including the most recent purchase, were built using of tilt-wall construction.

Kuehne + Nagel, an international transportation and logistics firm, has moved to a 140,000-square-foot building on U.S. 27 in Davenport.

Illinois investor buys building

for Goodard School

BUYER: BP Center LLC (principal: Steven Wiercioch), Bloomingdale, Ill.

SELLER: JS Investments Tampa Oaks LLC

PROPERTY: 13401 Tampa Oaks Blvd., Temple Terrace

PRICE: $2.98 million

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Morris Manning & Martin LLP, Atlanta

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: BP Center LLC, an investment group headed by Steven Wiercioch, owner of the Bloomingdale, Ill.-based real estate investment, construction and property management firms Wiercioch Group and WXR & Associates Ltd., purchased a newly built 8,000-square-foot building from developer MDJ Development LLC for $2.98 million. The new ownership purchased the property as an investment and has already agreed to lease it to the child daycare service known as the Goddard School.

"We own and manage office buildings and build commercial buildings," Wiercioch says. "There you get some 30 tenants and they're highly management intensive. I was looking for an industry that can weather the bad economy, and that's daycare I believe. Plus we can get into a project like this with virtually no management needed. "

Wiercioch says the purchase was his first in Florida, and that he's looking for other daycare properties nationwide.

Etc..

• Miami-based Manhattan Condominium Development Inc. purchased a 22,050-square foot parcel across from the Duval County courthouse in Jacksonville from St. Petersburg-based Raabe Family Property LLC for $1.4 million or $63.49 per square foot. Monte Merritt, senior director for GVA Advantis, represented the seller

• CommGenix leased 8,000-square-feet at 401 S. Florida Ave., Tampa from The Fuel Group. T. Sean Lance and Mike Myers, both of NAI Tampa Bay, handled the transaction.

• Clearwater-based commercial real estate investment firm Meridian Development Group announced a new acquisitions initiative to grow the firm's portfolio by five million square feet. Meridian cites the current economic conditions as the driving force behind the initiative.

"It is a phenomenal time to capitalize on new opportunities resulting from the current economic conditions," Steven Kossoff, managing director of Meridian, said in a press release. "We are not simply waiting for opportunities to find us. We are actively and strategically selecting markets and opportunities within those markets."

To lead this initiative, Kossoff has hired a director of acquisitions, Telly Fathaly.

In 2006, Meridian Development Group purchased the vacant one-million square-foot former Winn Dixie warehouse in Sarasota. Two years later, it now provides space to United Natural Foods Inc., Beall's Inc. and Rilon Management LLC.

Meridian owns and manages a portfolio of two million square feet.

• Compass Construction Inc. of Cape Coral and the Apostles Lutheran Church of Brandon have closed with the State of Florida Department HUD on property in Brandon for Apostles Village. This project has been in the works for about four years, and construction is scheduled to start immediately. The project is a new HUD Section 202 affordable senior housing facility at 525 E. Sadie St. in Brandon. The planned 27,875-square-foot, multi-story 55-unit development is adjacent to Apostles Lutheran Church.

• The Rockefeller Group Development Corp. acquired 113 acres near Interstate 4 in Lakeland. The site is at the former USA International Speedway, midway between Tampa and Orlando.

RGDC plans to build an industrial park with more than one million square feet of distribution space. The park will be targeted to large-scale tenants. RGDC has a large portfolio of industrial properties in New Jersey and California and hopes to duplicate that success in Florida. RGDC expects to begin development by first quarter 2009.

"Central Florida is quickly becoming a prime distribution center for the state, replacing traditional regional distribution hubs such as Atlanta," Edgar Jones, vice president and regional development officer Florida for Rockefeller Group Development Corp. said in a press release. "We are confident in the long-term potential of central Florida and will continue looking for other development opportunities in the area."

Edward Miller and Dolores Seymour of Colliers Arnold in Tampa represented The Rockefeller Group in the transaction.

• Mortgage Contracting Services, a preservation and inspection services provider, has significantly increased its office space in Dallas and Tampa. MCS doubled its office space and moved the corporate headquarters to the Bank of America tower in downtown Tampa. The company's Dallas operations also doubled its square footage. Thus far in 2008, MCS has hired about 92 employees. In addition, MCS has broadened its array of services to include additional REO activity and asset disposition services.

• Trakfit Enterprises d/b/a Access Fitness agreed to lease 5,600 square feet in Highland City Town Center at 5245 SR 98 in Lakeland from Orlando-based Highland City Town Center LLC. Michelle Seifert in Grubb & Ellis|Commercial Florida's Retail Services Group in Tampa represented the tenant.

• BLB Restaurants LLC - Zaxby's bought about an acre at James Redman Parkway and Charlie Griffin Road in Plant City from Buckley Properties. Ben McLeish of Colliers Arnold represented the seller. Nobel Real Estate Services represented the buyer.

Boston investment firm buys

Ulmerton industrial building

BUYER: Cabot II - FL4W01 LLC, Boston

SELLER: Continental Business Development Inc.

PROPERTY: 5300 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater

PRICE: $3.57 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $40,000, 1972

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Richard Pearse Jr. PA, Clearwater

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Boston-based private equity real estate investment firm Cabot Properties Inc. purchased a 42,250-square-foot industrial building on Ulmerton Road for $3.57 million.

Mike Davis (Capital Markets), Rick Brugge (Private Client Group), Rian Smith (Industrial Brokerage) all of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, Continental Business Development Inc.

"There aren't any improvements planned at this point," says Brugge. "They're in it for the long term. It has good cash flow, and it's in a good location."

Brugge says because of the high density in Pinellas County, income-producing properties - such as the Ulmerton Road building - should remain strong.