Real Estate Briefs (Sara/Mana edition)

Real Estate Briefs (Sara/Mana edition)

Sand Pebble owners

buy Alamanda Villa

George, Louis and Joseph Najmy and Court Zoller purchased the eight-unit waterfront condominium complex Alamanda Villa, 102 39th St., Holmes Beach, from Truusje and Gregory Mitchell for $2.6 million. Louis Najmy and Court Zoller plan to operate the condominium as a resort in the short-term with plans to sell individual units.

"We will be adding a pool," Louis Najmy says. "We will also be doing some updating to the units, although they are all very well maintained. The complex was already condominiumized."

The eight-units are all one-bedroom suites and most are 700 square feet. "We plan to ask somewhere in the mid-$400,000 range," Najmy says.

The Najmy brothers and Zoller also own the 24-unit Sand Pebble Apartments and Hotel, located on the 2000 block of Gulf Drive North on Bradenton Beach. In addition, the brothers also own two medium-size apartment complexes and a self-service car wash.

CED-Concord Management

buys land for Rolling Green South

Maitland-based CED-Concord Management Ltd. purchased several acres of residential multifamily land at the intersection of North Tuttle Avenue and Twin Drive in Sarasota County from Rolling Green South Ltd. and Daniel and Ralph Elyachar for $1.4 million. The company is planning to develop a 160-unit affordable apartment complex called Rolling Green South Apartments.

The community will feature eight buildings, most of which will be three stories. It will offer 16 one-bedroom, 80 two-bedroom, 32 three-bedroom apartments and 32 four-bedroom apartment units.

According to Scott Culp, executive vice president of The CED Cos., construction is projected to begin in July. The first building is slated for completion in April of 2005.

Rolling Green South will feature a swimming pool, clubhouse, fitness room, sports court and tot lot, car care area, business center and a free after-school program for children, ages 5 to 11.

The new apartment complex is similar to the 192-unit University Club complex, just south of the intersection of Lockwood Ridge and DeSoto roads, which The CED Cos. opened in March of 2003. The Sarasota Office of Housing and Community Development facilitated the issuance of $7.5 million in tax-exempt bonds and provided $600,000 in State Housing Incentive Partnership Funds to help finance the $17 million development.

Both complexes are only open to renters whose incomes are within federally defined limits.

The CED Cos. is a family of businesses that develop, build and manage affordable multifamily communities. The company, which employs 1,200, operates and manages more than 125 apartment communities in 10 states, including Florida, Georgia, Texas and New York.

Lepore family plans

Blackburn Point Business Center

The Lepore family purchased two parcels, near the corner Old Venice and Blackburn Point roads and U.S. 41 in Osprey, from Sta-Rite Industries LLC for $1.55 million. "For the moment we are looking to develop the front portion ... the first four of about 10 acres," one of the owners Michael Lepore says. "Our plan there is to develop Blackburn Point Business Center, a campus style office complex made up of a number of smaller buildings. Behind that parcel we will probably develop a combination of condominium and rental offices. The entire property was previously a manufacturing facility for Sta-Rite Pumps.

The first phase of the development is slated to offer spaces as small as 1,000 square feet for either purchase or rental.

"We just closed on the property a couple weeks ago," Lepore says. "We are just getting into the engineering now. It should be operational in the next six to eight months. We have no site plan yet, but the design should be similar to Fruitville Business Park. Phase Two is scheduled to follow in 2006. We estimate the total project will include 70,000 square feet of commercial space and possible outparcels with a completed value of $15 to $20 million."

The Leopores recently sold a collection of buildings, near the intersection of Fruitville and Lockwood Ridge roads, which the family developed as Fruitville Business Park Office complex.

Lloyd Robbins, of Harry Robbins Real Estate, will market property in the Osprey area office complex.

The Lepore family mortgaged the Osprey avenue property to Landmark Bank for $1.24 million.

Champ Products buys

larger Bradenton building

Sarasota's Champ Products Inc. purchased a 65,000-square-foot building at 2539 Trailmate Drive, Bradenton, from Harry and Betty Bakker for $2.3 million. This facility will more than double the company's current manufacturing capacity.

"We will be moving in July 5," says Ritchie Griffin, executive vice president of Champ, "but we will operate from both locations until August 1. We are reviewing our production requirements and doing everything possible to ensure there is no impact to our customers' delivery schedules." The company, which employs about 110 people, has been at the 2002 Limbus Ave. location since about 1988.

Champ Products produces custom heat exchangers for industrial, marine and mobile equipment users. Champ Products officials mortgaged the property to RBC Centura Bank for $2 million.

Anchor Builders to

relocate to Orange

Roy Dupuis, owner and president of the Sarasota-based Anchor Builders, purchased the bottom floor of an office building at 235 Orange Ave., N., in Sarasota, from OFCO LLLP for $1.46 million.

"This is going to be the new home for our offices," Dupuis says. "Right now we are leasing (about 2,000 square feet) space at 403 Interstate Blvd. We are really excited about moving to downtown. It's a brand new building. It worked out really nice. The bottom floor was just a shell so we will be doing the interior completion ourselves."

The bottom floor of the building, which is near the intersection of Fruitville Road and Orange Avenue, is 6,000 square feet.

"We may lease out some of the space," Dupuis says. "It will also give us the room to bring our interior selection process into the new office. ... We hope to be in there in the next three months. This is going to be really good for business."

The custom-home builder is set to construct homes in Lakewood Ranch, University Park, The Concession and several waterfront communities.

Dupuis, who used the Dupuis Family LLC for the transaction, mortgaged the property to Bank of Commerce for $1.22 million.

Arthritis Foundation buys

Hardin, Palmer buildings

The Florida Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation purchased the Palmer and Hardin buildings, at 402-412 Old Main Street, in downtown Bradenton along with a 32-space parking lot from Ulla Hardin for $1.4 million. The two buildings, a total of about 12,500 square feet, were bought to house both the local southwest regional chapter office and the main Florida office. "The Florida chapter used to operate out of West Palm Beach," says Anne Fair Forrest, president of the Florida chapter, "but when I took over I moved the chapter to Bradenton."

The Florida chapter joined the local regional office in Village Green Plaza, near 75th Street and Manatee Avenue, in 2002.

"We thought a more visible location would be good for the foundation," she says. "It will also give us space for meetings and fundraisers. Before we were at the mercy of other people as to whether a meeting room would be available or what the cost would be to rent it. Also, if you have been looking at the stock market lately, we felt it was a good idea to invest some of the funds in real estate."

As currently envisioned, the Florida chapter office will occupy 2,500 square feet, the southwest region will take about 2,000 square feet and the arthritis information center with meeting space will take up about 1,500 square feet. The remaining about 6,500 square feet is available for lease.

"We already have a beauty salon in the back of the Hardin building," Forrest says. "I could envision turning the bottom of the Hardin building into a series of little shops. So far, we are trying to lease it out ourselves. We have heard from a lot of different people including cigar importers and pizza restaurants. I think the Bradenton downtown area goes for about $15 a square foot. We are already putting in an elevator and a sprinkler system. This is pretty exciting; we are just thrilled."

Investment group buys

165 acres of grazing land

M.L.D. Properties LLC, a real estate investment group in Cincinnati, purchased about 165 acres of vacant land near Manasota Beach Road East in Sarasota County from The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago for $1.7 million. A representative for the group said that for the moment the property would continue to be used as grazing land. He says the owners, who have homes in the area, wanted to buy property in Sarasota County because of the attractive real estate market.

Etc...

× Real estate developers Sarasota Main Street LLC announced plans to open the sales center for its $55-million luxury condominium project, 1350 Main at 1310 Main St. on May 20. The 17-story condominium will offer 134 residential units. Groundbreaking is set for late 2004 with occupancy scheduled for the second quarter of 2006. The architect on the project is Cohen, Freedman & Ensinosa, Miami, and the contractor is Kraft Construction. Units will range in size from 725 square feet to over 3,000 square feet with prices from $280,000 to more than $1 million.