Real Estate Briefs

Real Estate Briefs

SARASOTA/MANATEE

Chartwell Senior Housing

buys Venice Bella Vita center

BUYER: Csh-ing Bella Vita LP, Mississauga, Ontario

SELLER: Aspen Bella Vita LLC

PROPERTY: 1420 E. Venice Ave., Venice

PRICE: $28 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $8.5 million, October 1999

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Otten Johnson Robinson Neff & Ragonetti PC, Denver, Colo.

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: The Canadian Chartwell Seniors Housing Real Estate Investment Trust purchased Venice's Aspen Bella Vita Retirement Community as part of a large expansion by the REIT.

The 7-year-old company, Canada's largest third-party manager of seniors housing facilities, acquired 25 facilities in Canada and 12 others in Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Colorado, Michigan, Tennessee, Alabama and Oklahoma. The acquisition will add 3,387 suites to the company's portfolio at a cost of $295.3 million.

The Venice assisted-living facility was previously owned by Denver-based Aspen Retirement Corp.

Chartwell Seniors Housing mortgaged the property to Collateral Mortgage Capital LLC for $19.7 million.

Heartland purchases

Venice Hampton Inn

BUYER: Heartland Venice Partners LP, Dallas, Texas

SELLER: Venetia Bay Hotel Associates

PROPERTY: 881 Venetia Bay Blvd., Venice

PRICE: $13 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Heartland Venice Partners LP, a Dallas-based hotel company, purchased Hampton Inn, Venice, from Charter One Hotels for $13 million.

The three-story, 109-room hotel, located at 881 Venetia Bay Blvd., was constructed on three acres in 1997. Charter One will continue to manage the hotel. The property has had a more than 80% occupancy rate for the past two years.

Horizon Mortgage Corp. was both the listing and selling broker for the property. The company has averaged more than $175 million in annual commercial real estate sales for the past 17 years.

The Plumbing Place

plans retail building

BUYER: Petrie Smithman LLC (principals: Walter Petrie and John Smithman), Sarasota

SELLER: John Kennell, trustee

PROPERTY: 5678 Fruitville Road, Sarasota

PRICE: $4.3 million

LAW FIRM ON DEED: MulreninFrances PA, Annapolis, Md.

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: John Smithman, president of The Plumbing Place, and investor partner Walter Petrie purchased the 22,000-square-foot building that currently houses the specialty kitchen and bathroom product retailer. Plumbing Place has shared the space with First Class Kitchens and Baths and Kennell Plumbing Inc.

Smithman plans to expand the building by 6,000 square feet. He's looking for similar home product retailers to occupy space.

"I saw this as an opportunity to not only own the building but to bring more business here," Smithman says. Mike Seery and Associates is the leasing agent for the building.

The addition is slated to start in July with completion planned for year's end. Smithman says he was glad to hear that the home improvement giant Lowe's has purchased land next to the building.

Petrie Smithman LLC mortgaged the property to National City Bank for $4.5 million.

Michigan firm proposes mixed-use project

Michigan-based Burton-Katzman Development Co. plans to build a 10-story, mixed-use building at 200 S. Washington Blvd., between Adams Lane and Golf Street in downtown Sarasota.

To make way for the project, the developer will raze an existing 15,000-square-foot office building. Burton-Katzman is teaming up with local developer Mark Kauffman, who developed the nearby Courthouse Center.

Plans call for 69 residential units above 48,000 square feet of office space on 1.4 acres, with 311 parking spaces.

The as-yet-unnamed project on Washington Boulevard is the company's first in Florida. Chuck DiMaggio, vice president of project management for Burton-Katzman, says the firm has looked at the Florida market for more than a year.

"The growth rates in Sarasota are very strong," DiMaggio says. "There are certainly very strong indications of a demand now and in the future for almost all segments of the market."

The company is one of the largest private real estate development firms in Michigan. Its mixed-use projects incorporate retail, office and residential components. Its residential arm, Abbey Homes, focuses on entry-level and move-up housing markets.

The project is planned because of increased demand for downtown office space, he says. The downtown office space vacancy rate, which has been as high as 8% in recent years, now hovers at about 2%.

-Kevin J. Allen

Lakewood Ranch to create 'urban hub'

Lakewood Ranch Developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch Inc. recently submitted plans for a mixed-use project on about 700 acres off Lakewood Ranch Boulevard that surround the unfinished DVA hockey arena.

"It's going to be like a town center, kind of what you would consider a downtown area, but with a higher density," SMR Spokesperson Sondra Guffey says.

The project, called Lakewood Centre, includes plans for 3.2 million square feet of commercial and office space and 3,675 residential units. The majority, more than 3,000 residences, will be multifamily housing, Guffey says.

The Lakewood Centre property starts at State Road 70 and continues north to Malachite Drive, between the YMCA and Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Plans require Lakewood Centre to be built by 2019. The project is considered a development of regional impact, which means the governmental approval process will take about 18 months. About 7,000 of SMR's 30,000 acres have been developed and about 6,000 homes have been built.

-Pam McTeer

Etc...

• Chicago-based MCZ/CENTRUM Development started closings for the 240-unit Serenata-Sarasota, 8307 38th Street Circle E., Sarasota. Felberbaum and Associates PA of Miami Beach is the closing agent. Closings are expected to completed by January 2007. Units, which range in size from 731 to 1,372 square feet, start in the $200,000s.

LEE/COLLIER/CHARLOTTE

Investment group buys Burnt Store land

BUYER: Burnt Store 63 LLC (principal: Frank D'Allesandro), Fort Myers

SELLER: Green Hope LLC

PROPERTY: 48 acres on Burnt Store Road, Punta Gorda

PRICE: $6 million

SELLER: Mary Alice Grothe

PROPERTY: 15 acres on Burnt Store Road, Punta Gorda

PRICE: $1.95 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Commercial real estate firm D'Alessandro & Woodyard Inc. owners Frank D'Alessandro and Tom Woodyard and several other investors purchased 63 acres south of the Burnt Store Marina along with about 500 feet of Burnt Store Road frontage.

Woodyard says the goal is to take the land through the necessary entitlements, an 18-month process, before eventually selling it to a national home builder at a profit.

"We think we will be able to get a land use for up to 6 units an acre," Woodyard says. "It will probably be in a mixture of single-family and coach homes along with some type of a clubhouse. It works very well because the home builder doesn't have to carry the property on their balance sheet. They can put the land under contract and start building right away."

The location was selected because of its proximity to Burnt Store and Charlotte County, he says.

JB Novelli International Century 21 and E. W. Shultz Co. represented Green Hope, E. W. Shultz Co represented Mary Alice Grothe and D'Alessandro & Woodyard represented the buyers.

The investment group, Burnt Store 63 LLC, obtained a mortgage from Florida Community Bank for $6.29 million.

Divosta Homes buys

Verona Walk property

BUYER: Divosta Homes LP, Tampa

SELLER: Barron Collier Co. Ltd. and Gable Lamar Partnership

PROPERTY: 8353 Rimini Way, Naples

PRICE: $15.4 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $6.2 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Divosta Homes purchased 80 acres for its fourth and final phase in the Verona Walk development. The gated lakefront development is north of Tamiami Trail off Collier Boulevard in Naples. The Collier County Property Appraiser's office shows the property, zoned as non-agricultural acreage, has a value of $5.58 million.

Bonita Springs Lodge

buys AmericInn

BUYER: Bonita Springs Lodge & Suites LLC (principal John Seibert), Dayton, Minn.

SELLER: First Gulf Hospitality Group LP

PROPERTY: 28600 Trails Edge Blvd., Bonita Springs

PRICE: $5.8 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: John Seibert's Bonita Springs Lodge & Suites LLC purchased the 87-unit AmericInn of Bonita Springs. The new owner could not be reached for comment. Bonita Springs Lodge & Suites mortgaged the property to Stearns Bank for $4.07 million.

Woolbright Development

buys Murdock Carousel

BUYER: Woolbright Development, Boca Raton

SELLER: TCW Asset Management Co.

PROPERTY: 1900 Tamiami Trail, Port Charlotte

PRICE: $19.25 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Real estate investment firm Woolbright Development Inc. purchased the 136,271-square-foot Murdock Carousel retail center, south of Toledo Blade Boulevard in Port Charlotte. In October, the former owner, TCW Asset Management Co., sold a 10.5-acre piece of the center to Lowe's for a new 60,983-square-foot home improvement store. In addition, Woolbright plans to construct a 15,000-square-foot freestanding building, renovate the façade of the center, improve the landscape and upgrade the parking lot.

Woolbright Development specializes in the redevelopment of shopping centers, says company Vice President Mike Fimiani. "When we're done there, it's going to look like a brand new center," he says. "Our intent is to bring in a number of new tenants that will increases traffic for all of our tenants."

Construction on the new Lowe's is underway; renovations are slated to start in about 60 days and should be completed around October.

The commercial center is Woolbright's first retail center in Charlotte County. Its closest developments are in Naples in Collier County and Palm Harbor in Pinellas County.

Asking rental rates for the vacant spaces are $25 per square foot.

Other center tenants include Office Depot, Haverty's Furniture, Blockbuster, Subway, Papa John's Pizza and Golf USA.

Since 1999, Woolbright Development has developed and redeveloped more than 7.5 million square feet of retail space statewide and has 24 shopping centers/developments in its portfolio.

Tampa's Plaza Advisors represented the former owners in the transaction.

Etc...

• Fort Myers-based general contractor J.L. Wallace Inc. completed construction of the clubhouse at Heritage Isles in Viera. The architectural firm Titsch & Associates designed the single-story building.

• Magshore LLC purchased 1.5 acres on Daniel's Parkway, just west of Apaloosa Lane in Fort Myers, from Salrose Dreams II LLP for $1.2 million. Tom Pepitone of D'Alessandro & Woodyard Inc Commercial Realtors represented the seller. Kevin Fitzgerald of NAI Southwest Florida Inc. represented the buyer.

• Averitt Express Inc. purchased 12.5 acres at 9210 and 9230 Laredo Ave., Fort Myers, from Lee Roush for $2.28 million. Katie Ives of Greco & Miller assisted the seller, and Stan Stouder of CB Richard Ellis, Fort Myers-Naples, negotiated for the buyer.

TAMPA

Bethany Group buys Cooper's Pond apartments

BUYER: Gulfstream Apartment Portfolio LLC (The Bethany Group LLC), Irvine, Calif.

SELLER: Century Property Fund XVII

PROPERTY: 6221 N. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa

PRICE: $23.8 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: The Bethany Group LLC, an Irvine, Calif.-based real estate investment trust, purchased the 463-unit Cooper's Pond Apartments, Tampa, from Century Property Fund XVII. The sale was part of an acquisition of 12 apartment complexes and one land parcel completed from 11 partnership groups affiliated with AIMCO Properties LP.

The total purchase price for the properties was $161.3 million. GE Real Estate provided $151.6 million in financing for the 12 purchases.

Pulte Homes acquires land

for Lakeside community

BUYER: Pulte Home Corp., Tampa

SELLER: Lakeside Land Holdings LLC

PROPERTY: 450-480 acres in western Pasco County

PRICE: $39.6 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Pulte Home paid $39.6 million for about 450 acres north of State Road 52 and three miles west of the Suncoast Parkway.

"We were excited about it because of its location and accessibility to the Parkway and the nearby business district," says Scott Campbell, Pulte Home Tampa division president.

The planned home community, which might be called Lakeside, will feature about 840 home lots along with a 180-acre network of lakes. If built at current construction prices, homes in the community will range from the mid-$200,000s to low $500,000s.

Infrastructure work has already started and vertical construction is scheduled to start in the first quarter of 2007.

Hearthstone buys

Tampa's Citrus Falls

BUYER: Citrus Falls Tampa Limited Partner, Encino, Calif.

SELLER: City National Bank FL, trustee

PROPERTY: 12011 Citrus Falls Circle, Tampa

PRICE: $37.5 million

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Fresh off its recent purchase of 116 lots in River Hall Country Club in Alva, the real estate investment trust Hearthstone Inc. purchased the 3-year-old, 273-unit Citrus Falls apartment complex in Tampa.

Hearthstone invests institutional funds, including a number of public and private pension plans, endowments, company funds and large private trusts funds in residential projects nationwide. With nearly $1 billion in annual revenues, the company has closed more than 65,000 homes and lots in more than 400 residential developments.

Hearthstone did not respond to requests for information prior to the Review's deadline.

Etc...

• Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. signed a lease to occupy 60,794 square feet in Highwoods Preserve, at 18216 Crane Nest Drive, Tampa. Cushman & Wakefield negotiated the lease on behalf of the landlord, 581 Highwoods LP.

• Crescent Resources LLC acquired a 5.6-acre site at International Plaza, located between Boy Scout Boulevard and Lois Avenue, Tampa. Ron Ruffner, vice president and director of development for Crescent Resources in Tampa, says Crescent is in the planning stages of a 247,000-square-foot, Class-A office building.

• Clearwater-based Colliers Arnold Commercial Real Estate Services, which closed on commercial property transactions worth more than $1.3 billion last year, says it handled 36 sales and lease transactions worth $41.7 million in the three-week period ended May 24. J. Patrick Duffy, president of Colliers Arnold, said the single largest transaction during the period was a $10 million agreement for the ground lease of 16.8 acres of retail land in the Turkey Lake Road area in Orlando. It was negotiated by Trevor Hall Jr. of the firm's Orlando office and Jim Roberts of Colliers Arnold's Tampa office.

• Cortex Resort Living announced plans to develop Blue Meridian at Rocky Point in Tampa Bay. The development is set to start next month. The project is being developed in a strategic alliance with Tampa developer HighPoint Development. Features in the condominium include panoramic views of the city and Tampa Bay, an elevated pool deck with infinity edge, balconies, a waterfront clubhouse, dock access and resort-style amenities. Blue Meridian's sales center will open later this month.

• The Tower Division of Taylor Woodrow and Lindell Properties Ltd. of Tampa formed a joint venture to develop Indigo Beach Residences, the 15-story Clearwater Beach tower with 78 condominium hotel suites. Construction will start in the fall. Indigo Beach Residences will offer 112 one-, two- and three-bedroom luxury condominiums priced from $1 million to $2.5 million.