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Every reporter on our staff has covered Colorado commercial real estate news for more than a decade, through the highs and lows in the commercial real estate cycle.

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Amstar on board with Jefferson Park community

16 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Amstar, a Denver-based real estate investment manager, in partnership with Allied Orion Holdings, a Texas- and Colorado-based apartment developer, announced today it will soon start construction on 2785 Speer, a 332-unit apartment project on Speer Boulevard in the popular Jefferson Park neighborhood in Denver. They are scheduled to  break ground this month with a delivery date in the spring of 2015 of the community that had previously been announced.  The five-story bu…

H&M continues Colorado expansion

13 May 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
H&M, Hennes & Mauritz, one of the world’s largest fashion retailers, continues its Colorado expansion. The retailer recently inked a lease at Colorado Mills in Lakewood, where it will open its 23,000-square-foot store this fall. The opening of the Colorado Mills location is part of the Swedish retailers plans to expand "greatly" throughout the West.    H&M at Colorado Mills will include collections for ladies, men, young ladies and y…

Summit Materials selects LoDo building for headquarters

13 May 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Summit Materials is moving its Washington, D.C., headquarters to Mercantile Square in Lower Downtown Denver. The company signed a seven-year lease for 16,653 square feet of third-floor space that spans 1550 Wynkoop St. and 1628 16th St. The Colorado Economic Development Corp. recently approved $1.3 million in incentives for the corporate relocation, which will bring 79 jobs to the state. “We’re thrilled,” said Mike Coughlin of Coughlin & Co., which owns the…

Medtronic leases 40,657 sf in Colorado Tech Center building

13 May 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Medtronic Navigation Inc. signed a lease for 40,657 square feet of office/flex space in the Colorado Technology Center in Louisville, boosting its presence on the U.S. Highway 36 corridor. The global medical technology company will occupy a portion of the 92,576-sf building at 1480 Arthur Ave. in July. Etkin Johnson Group owns the property. Ryan Good, Etkin Johnson vice president of leasing and sales, negotiated the transaction with Todd Wheeler of Cushman & Wakefield o…

Longtime owner sells Armory Building in $6.31 million deal

13 May 2013 | Posted in Office, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
A historic Pearl Street building leased to a hip national retailer sold for $6.31 million. R&L Properties, through a pair of limited liability companies, bought the Armory Building at 934 Pearl St. from Armory Building LLC. Urban Outfitters occupies the 12,298-square-foot structure, which was built in 1898 for Company H of the Colorado First Infantry. “We were seeking out to try to find the best building in Boulder, and we think we did. It’s a great building, a h…

Landscape architect prospers in tough economy

13 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Construction, Design & Engineering, Green Building, Land
On the long plane ride from Denver to China, landscape architect Craig Karn read the best seller, “The World is Flat,” by Thomas L. Friedman.       “Hey, that is us,” Karn thought, while reading the book about how there are increasingly no geographic or other barriers to doing global business in these days of heightened technology.       “Our tiny little firm is doing this giant, transit-oriented, re…

Considerations for medical office leases

13 May 2013 | Posted in Law & Accounting, Medical/Medical Office
Leases for medical office space raise additional issues and considerations beyond those of a standard commercial office lease. Both landlords and tenants should be aware of these unique issues so they can draft a lease that sets up both parties for success. Some of the key issues for landlords and tenants leasing medical office space to consider are: hazardous materials and biohazard waste, access and utilities, Stark Act and anti-kickback, entry rights and HIPPA, death and disab…

Kendall coins TINA to describe market

13 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily
When apartment investment expert Jerry Kendall talks about TINA, he isn’t referring to Fey or Turner. Rather, Kendall, principal of Greenwood Village-based from Multifamily Capital Advisors, coined the TINA acronym that stands for “There Is No Alternative.” TINA has never been more relevant for the Denver-area multifamily market than today, according to Kendall. In the first quarter, the average monthly rent for all apartments set a new record of $992, accordi…

ARA handles large apartment sale

13 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Greystar Real Estate Investments, in a joint venture with Goldman Sachs & Co., last month paid $156 million for four Denver-area apartment communities with a total of 1,003 units. “This is the biggest single deal so far this year,” said Jeff Hawks a principal with ARA. Hawks, along with fellow ARA team members Doug Andrews, Terrance Hunt and Shane Ozment represented the seller, Chicago-based Equity Residential Properties. Earlier, Greystar had purchased about an…

PeakView at Dabling sees occupancy skyrocket

12 May 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Office, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Northstar Commercial Partners recently invested in a 152,023-square-foot building in Colorado Springs, where occupancy rocketed from 28.57 percent at contract negotiation to 73.03 percent at closing. Northstar, which specializes in acquiring opportunistic commercial real estate assets throughout the United States, bought a controlling interest in Dabling Properties LLC, which owns the facility, PeakView at Dabling, at 5825 Mark Dabling Blvd. “We’re extremely excited …

Construction starts on Elan Union Station project

12 May 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Construction is under way on a mixed-use project that will bring King Soopers to Lower Downtown Denver. Martines|Palmeiro Construction recently broke ground on Elan Union Station, a seven-story, approximately 642,000-square-foot development at 20th Street and Chestnut Place that will feature 314 apartment units above-ground level retail and two stories of underground parking. “We are really excited to be building such a high-profile property in Denver,” said Michael …

Celebration on Wednesday for 2020 Lawrence

10 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Green Building
The public is invited May 15 to attend the official grand opening of one of the most energy-efficient apartment high-rises in the nation - the 10-story, 231-unit 2020 Lawrence in Denver’s Ballpark neighborhood. Tesla Motors will demonstrate how its electric cars can be charged at one of the stations at 2020 Lawrence and details of the nation’s first-of-its kind rooftop greenhouse will be discussed at the even that will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The celebration…

Statewide apartment vacancies fall to 4.6 percent

9 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Western Slope
The vacancy rate in Colorado apartments fell to 4.9 percent in the first quarter, down from 5.2 percent in the first quarter of 2012, according to a Colorado Division of Housing report released today. The first-quarter vacancy rate is also down from 5.2 percent in the fourth quarter. The vacancy rate had now been down for 14 consecutive quarters.   Vacancy rates varied considerably in different metros of the state, however, with northern Colorado and metro Denver showing s…

Developer comes forward for Gaylord hotel

9 May 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Hospitality, Economic Development
Houston-based Rida Development Corp. is picking up where Gaylord Entertainment left off to build a 1,500-room Gaylord convention center hotel in Aurora. Rida and AREA Property Partners are working with Marriott and the city of Aurora to build the $800 million project, which would include 400,000 square feet of exhibition and meeting space. Financing is not yet in place, but, “With Rida and AREA and Marriott, we now have the right team in place to make it happen,” said …

Mental Health Center receives LEED Platinum certification

7 May 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Green Building
The Mental Health Center of Denver’s Recovery Center recently was awarded LEED Platinum certification, representing the first major reuse and revitalization of a building in the former University of Colorado Health Sciences Center campus in Denver. The certification is part of MHCD’s vision of being the greenest mental health facility in the country. “We believe that the Recovery Center is the only mental health facility in Colorado and the second in the nation…

A&P celebrates completion of Rangely District Hospital

7 May 2013 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
Adolfson & Peterson Construction’s AP Healthcare group recently celebrated the completion of the Rangely District Hospital.The replacement facility was completed three months early, on budget and with no contractor-initiated change orders. The high-tech, single-story medical facility is a 72,367-square-foot critical access hospital that includes 18 beds, labs and clinic space, and provides primary and emergency health care services for residents and visitors of Northwes…

University of Colorado wins real estate challenge

2 May 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
A team from the University of Colorado won the Rocky Mountain Real Estate Challenge with its development scenario for a block within Boulder’s Civic Area. The student competition is put on by NAIOP Colorado with sponsorship by Land Title Guarantee Co. The city of Boulder was this year’s project sponsor. CU’s “Boulder International Center” included plans for an Andaz Boulder Hotel, a 108,302-square-foot Class A office building, a community events cen…

Springs rental rates continue to rise

1 May 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
The average rent in the Colorado Springs area rose year over year for the 13th consecutive quarter during the first quarter, , climbing 4.4 percent to $787, according to a report released today. The report by the Colorado Division of Housing and the Apartment Association of Southern Colorado, the average rent for the region during the first quarter this year was up from $754 during the first quarter of 2012, but was down slightly from 2012’s fourth-quarter average rent of $…

Successful property tax appeal

29 April 2013 | Posted in Property Management
This week, property owners across Colorado will receive their updated notices of value from the county assessor. Emotions will range widely. Some owners will accept their value as fair; however, if the value doesn’t match expectations, the likely reaction will be surprise, shock and perhaps dismay. If you fall into the latter category, we offer three important “pillars” for a successful property tax appeal. Colorado’s property tax rules are unique. Owners…

Madden rolls out new high-design tower

29 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
Developer John Madden is ready to roll out his new masterpiece – a $100 million office tower in Greenwood Village. Madden aims to start construction of the 360,000-square-foot LEED Gold building by August for occupancy in summer 2015. Like his last office building, Palazzo Verdi, Palazzo Verdi II will be something to behold, with sculptures of three life-size giraffes welcoming tenants and guests to its lobby. Read the entire story in the May 1-14 issue.

Conscience Bay acquires third industrial building for $8.8m

29 April 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
A Boulder private equity firm acquired the final piece of an industrial property strategically located near the city’s new transit village. Conscience Bay Co. paid $8.8 million, or $88 per square foot, for the 100,000-sf industrial building on five acres at 3825 Walnut St. The building is 100 percent leased to the Denver Newspaper Agency, Grainger Industrial Supply and eTundra, a restaurant supply company. It the last of three buildings that DPC Development Co. owned in Fo…

Group pays $160.67 per sf for Cherry Creek office building

29 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
A local investment group, in its second recent acquisition, paid $160.67 per square foot for a Cherry Creek office building. PIII Properties acquired the 26,930-square-foot building at 3400 E. Bayaud St. in Denver for $4.3 million. The building was 100 percent occupied. Derek Vanderryst of Miller Frishman Group represented the buyer. The listing brokers were David Tilton and John Torp of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank. “We achieved a pretty high price per square foot,&rdquo…

Apartment vacancy rates falls to 4.6 percent

29 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
The apartment vacancy rate in the Denver metro area fell to 4.6 percent during the first quarter, dropping to the second-lowest vacancy rate recorded in any quarter since the first quarter of 2001, according to a report released today. The vacancy rate was down from 2012’s first-quarter rate of 4.9 percent, and was also down from last year’s fourth-quarter rate of 4.9 percent, according to the report by the Apartment Association of Metro Denver and the Colorado Divisi…

Denver sees 10 percent increase in lumber costs

28 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
According to the latest construction cost report from property and construction consultant Rider Levett Bucknall, the construction industry is recovering from the worst effects of the Great Recession and should experience modest growth throughout 2013. RLB cites the strengthening of the Architectural Billings Index, prepared by the American Institute of Architects, as just one sign of the recovery. The index rose to 54.2 in January from a mark of 51.2 in December. Overall constr…

Work begins on new commercial development in Gunnison

28 April 2013 | Posted in Retail, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
Construction has started on the first new commercial development in Gunnison in years. Denver-based Drake Real Estate Services recently acquired a 4.8-acre site fronting State Highway 135 and accessible from Van Tuyl Circle where it is developing the Blue Mesa Shopping Center. The Blue Mesa Shopping Center will comprise approximately 40,000 square feet and be anchored by Tractor Supply Co. on one of the four pad sites that make up the development. “It’s huge for Gun…

Senior center planned for Centennial

27 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
Denver-based MorningStar Senior Living and Haselden Construction, recently formed a joint venture and broke ground on a $20 million, 84-unit assisted living and memory care community 14301 East Arapahoe Road in Centennial. MorningStar and Haselden believe the site is ideal for an assisted-living center, based on demographics showing that the senior population in Centennial is anticipated to grow much faster than in the overall Denver area. The new center is called MorningStar at…

Value-add apartment deal a winner

27 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Nuevo Oaxaca LLC  paid $19.66 million for the 24-building, 288-unit Village by the Park apartment community in Northglenn.The transaction was handled by Joe Hornstein and Josh Newell of Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors. Sixteen months earlier, 10701 Pecos Street Partners LLC bought and repositioned the property. Read the entire article in the May 1 to May 14 edition of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.        

Brixmor adding Neighborhood Market

27 April 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
New York City-based Brixmor Property Group plans to bring a 55,669-square-foot Walmart Neighborhood Market to its Villa Monaco shopping center in southeast Denver. The Neighborhood Market will replace a former King Soopers as the anchor tenant in the center on the southwest corner of South Monaco Parkway and East Evans Avenue. “The new Neighborhood Market will be in the old King Soopers building, but the building might be reconfigured for the Neighborhood Market,” sa…

Denver projects detailed in President's 2014 budget

26 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The U.S. General Services Administration recently announced major public building construction and repair projects outlined in President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2014 Budget. The budget proposal calls for common sense investments in the nation’s public buildings managed by the GSA. “By investing in our public buildings, a smaller federal footprint and improved border crossing stations, GSA will not only create savings for the American people, but also assist in prov…

ULC's W line investments will create 500 jobs

24 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
While the first leg of the RTD’s FasTrack transit project opens on Friday â�¯ the 12-mile W line hat connects downtown Denver with Lakewood and Golden   â�¯ the Denver-based Urban Land Conservancy has ben buying land along and near the new line for the past six years. ULC spent almost $14 million acquiring the properties to assure that affordable. Housing and other community services would be available along the line. ULC used the $15 million…

White Lodging to build first dual-branded Hyatt in Denver

24 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Hospitality, Economic Development
White Lodging Services will build its first dual-branded Hyatt hotel near the Colorado Convention Center in downtown Denver. The 21-story building at the southeast corner of 14th Street and Glenarm Place will combine a Hyatt Place hotel with White Lodging’s first newly constructed Hyatt House. The company will operate the 346-room hotel under a franchise agreement. Read more in CREJ's May 1-May 14 issue.

EDCC awards its 2013 awards for excellence

23 April 2013 | Posted in Economic Development
The Economic Development Council of Colorado recently awarded its 2013 awards for excellence in the field of economic development in Colorado.             This year’s recipients were chosen from seven categories:             Volunteer of the Year – Commissioner Jill Repella of Douglas County             …

Rosemont Realty buys World Trade Center

17 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
Rosemont Realty LLC, a commercial real estate investment company with approximately 18 million square feet of commercial office space valued in excess of $1.8 billion, has acquired the two-building Denver World Trade Center office towers in downtown Denver. Rosemont Realty purchased the Class A, 770,221 square foot office complex from I&G Denver WTC, LLC. The sales price was not disclosed. The complex includes two Class A, LEED Gold-certified towers. Tower I is a 28-stor…

Westin Hotel planned in Greenwood Village

16 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Hospitality, Economic Development
Greenwood Village City Council has agreed to sell 3.54 acres of property at the Arapahoe at Village Center Station (on the east side of Interstate 25) for construction of a Westin Hotel. Greenwood Village Hotel LLC, a development group consisting of Waveland Ventures, Jackson Street Holdings and Arrival Partners, expects to begin construction in the fourth quarter. Preliminary plans for the hotel include 200 guest rooms and suites; a signature restaurant and bar welcoming both …

Forum plans apartments at Kent Place

16 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily
The Denver-based Forum Real Estate Group today announced the launch of a luxury, 300-unit apartment community at Kent Place, an 11-acre site at South University Boulevard and East Hampden Avenue in Engelwood. The site, formerly home to the Denver Seminary, is near some of the metro area’s most expensive neighborhoods, including Cherry Hills Village, Buell Mansion and the Wellshire. “The Kent Place Residences will be among the finest anywhere in Denver, providing the …

Block 32 enters hot RiNo market

15 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
A dozen years ago, Scott McFadden developed the first transit-oriented development in the Denver area, the Alexan City Center in Englewood. This week, he was scheduled to put the finishing touches on one of his latest development – Block 32 at RiNo, an apartment community in the up-and-coming River North, or RiNo, neighborhood. “Well, I certainly have learned a lot since I did Alexan,” said McFadden, now principal of his own company, Prospect Real Estate. Duri…

Energy companies drawing construction workers

15 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Economic Development
A construction labor shortage impacting apartment building in much of the Southwest, including the Denver area, increasingly could be exasperated by an unexpected source ⎯ competition from oil and exploration outfits that pay much higher wages than builders. Jeff Booth, a senior vice president of San Antonio-based Embrey Partners, which has developed more than 40 million square feet of apartments and commercial properties during the past 39 years, highlighted the issue of compe…

Making the case for multifamily

15 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily
Apartments are the shining star of commercial real estate investments. What do investors, real estate professionals, institutional owners, banks and lenders know? Why choose multifamily over office, industrial, retail and other commercial property types? In terms of commercial real estate, the stars rarely align in the way they have for multifamily rental properties. Fundamentals are everything, and the fundamentals are strong in every area of apartments. This element gets the ca…

Westmoor buildings trade at $65.49 million

15 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Investors are looking favorably on suburban office, as evidenced by a $65.49 million sale of an asset on the Denver-Boulder corridor. Public records show Investcorp bought Westmoor Place, a 428,029-square-foot Class A office property, from CBRE Global Investors for $153.03 per sf. The three LEED-certified buildings were 89 percent leased to tenants that include LGS Innovations, an Alcatel-Lucent subsidiary, and McKesson Technologies. The two tenants occupy approximately 270,000 …

HFF arranges $230 million for Breakers Resort

15 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Finance & Appraisal
HFF arranged $230 million in financing for The Breakers Resort, a six-village, 1,523-unit, Class A multifamily community in Denver.  The HFF team worked exclusively on behalf of the borrower, The Bascom Group LLC, to secure a $165 million first mortgage, a $26.25 million mezzanine loan, and $38.75 million of preferred equity.  The $165 million first mortgage was a floating-rate loan and included a three-year term with two, one-year extension options. It was provided t…

Industrial build-to-suits in the works

15 April 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market, Economic Development
Build-to-suits for two users are in the works at Highfield Business Park in Douglas County and Coors Technology Center in Golden. Central Development has broken ground on a 63,981-square-foot tilt-up building at Highfield for Applied Control Equipment, which delivers automation solutions to clients in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and parts of Nebraska and South Dakota. The local business partner in the Rocky Mountain Region for Emerson Process Management, the company services indu…

HOK working on Byron G. Rogers office building

14 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The modernization of the Byron G. Rogers Federal Office Building in Denver is under way. HOK is the design architect on the design-build team for the modernization of the 18-story building for the U.S. General Services Administration. The team was challenged to design an affordable, highly energy-efficient retrofit of a large historic existing building while creating a modern, flexible workplace for 11 federal agencies. The project included complete design and construction for u…

High-tech manufacturing bldg. trades for $2.5m

14 April 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Alliance Storage Technologies Inc. purchased a Colorado Springs high-tech/manufacturing facility at a fraction of replacement cost. The firm, which specializes in professional data archiving solutions for secure archival data, paid $2.5 million for the 51,588-square-foot industrial building at 10045 Federal Drive. Alliance Storage is under way on renovations to the building, built in 1996, according to public records, and is expected to fully occupy the building in three to four…

City Council approves redevelopment of 104th Ave. site

12 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
This month, demolition and remediation will start on a former Target store in Thornton. The city of Thornton, Thornton City Council and the Thornton Development Authority made the determination to demolish the site. “We are certain the demolition of the vacant former Target building will create a positive momentum that will spur new development interest on the site,” said Thornton Interim Economic Development Director Jessica Erickson. “The redevelopment is an …

Data reveals stronger employment growth in metro Denver

12 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Revised data for employment shows annual growth was even stronger than estimated in metro Denver, with 37,300 jobs added in 2012. The annual benchmark revision of the employment data reflects an increase of 2,800 more jobs than the previous estimate, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. in its Monthly Economic Summary for April.     In addition to employment, retail sales and residential building permit annual data also were revised …

McWhinney unveils apartment community

11 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Loveland-based developer McWhinney plans to begin construction this month on its fifth multifamily project, Arbour Commons, in Westminser.   The 394-unit lifestyle community is the second multifamily project developed by McWhinney at the Orchard Town Center master-planned community located off Interstate 25 and 144th Avenue.  Arbour Commons will be north of Arbour Square Apartments, a 300-unit multifamily project developed by McWhinney that opened in the fall of 2011. …

AIA Denver to host Box City for Kids

10 April 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The American Institute of Architects Denver chapter invite area children to participate in Box City for Kids, a free and unique children’s event that promotes an understanding of historic preservation and urban design by combining art, architecture, creative thinking, city planning, design, construction, fun and learning into one comprehensive educational experience. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade (accompanied by adults) will experience the design and cons…

HFF arranges $230 million financing for The Breakers

9 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Finance & Appraisal
HFF arranged $230 million in financing for The Breakers Resort, a six-village, 1,523-unit, Class A multifamily community in Denver.  The HFF team worked exclusively on behalf of the borrower, The Bascom Group LLC, to secure a $165 million first mortgage, a $26.25 million mezzanine loan, and $38.75 million of preferred equity.  The $165 million first mortgage was a floating-rate loan and included a three-year term with two, one-year extension options. It was provided thr…

Tenants take 66,025 sf at 1801 California

9 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Brookfield Office Properties has leased 66,025 square feet of office space at 1801 California to two tenants. Halcón Resources Corp., an independent energy company, signed an 11-year lease for 43,829 square feet. Charlie Lodge, Alec Wynne, Rob Neblett and Harry Holmes of Avison Young represented the tenant. Newalta, a Canada-based industrial waste management and product recovery company, also signed an 11-year lease. It will occupy 22,196 sf. Colliers International broker…

Transformed printing plant to be multistate draw

4 April 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Ascendant Development plans a next-generation design center at the former Denver Post printing facility at Interstates 25 and 70. Ascendant expects the multifaceted center to be a destination for Colorado and surrounding states. Read more about it in CREJ's April 17 issue.

Pauls Corp. to break ground in Cherry Creek

4 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
The Pauls Corp., in a joint venture with FirstBank and Junction Energy Partners, will break ground this fall on an upscale office building in Cherry Creek, one of the first new office buildings in that submarket in 25 years. The 150,000-square-foot building at the northeast corner of First Avenue and St. Paul Street is 40 percent preleased. Read about it in CREJ's April 17 issue.

Public, private sectors produce sustainability strategies

1 April 2013 | Posted in Green Building
Public-private partnerships have long proven to benefit both sectors if the parties involved remain focused on the goals they seek to gain from the relationship. For years, private-sector companies have realized that by partnering with public programs, often they are able to reduce expenses, which is a sought-after goal for any business. More recently, the commercial real estate industry has begun to capitalize on the concept that sustainability strategies do not just benefit a co…

Terrix handles challenging deal

1 April 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Finance & Appraisal
Kevin Chadwick said he could have shopped a recent acquisition deal to 50 lenders and 49 would reject it. But Chadwick, a principal of Terrix Financial, only went to about 20 lenders before he found the “needle in the haystack” lender willing to fund a $9.5 million loan for the $15.2 million purchase of an industrial property in Colorado Springs by a California-based investment company. “It was an interesting deal. It was a challenging deal,” said Chadwic…

Kresher Capital adds historic building to portfolio

1 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
Kresher Capital has acquired a historic office building in the Prospect neighborhood as it continues to build its Colorado property portfolio. Kresher paid $4.4 million, or $152.22 per square foot, for the three-story building at 3012 Huron St. The 28,926-sf building dates to 1917 and is fully leased to digital signage company Four Winds Interactive. “We really feel good about the building. It’s a beautiful historic building,” said Kresher Director Patrick Dunn…

Developer assembles Boulder redevelopment sites

1 April 2013 | Posted in Retail, Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Economic Development
A Denver-based company has been busy assembling redevelopment sites in Boulder, including five acres sandwiched between Whole Foods Market, the transit village and the Twenty Ninth Street shopping and entertainment center. Brickstone Partners, which has been active in the Boulder student housing/apartment market, plans to begin the entitlement process for the property within the next 90 days. It is exploring 400,000 to 500,000 square feet of development, including office or hospi…

Spectralink gets back to its Boulder roots

1 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Spectralink is on its way back to Boulder. The company subleased approximately 35,000 square feet of office space from Tendril Networks at 2650 55th St. It is targeting an April 5 move. “We wanted to get back to our roots,” said Michelle Chessler, director of marketing. “Not only did we want to get back to our roots and our heritage, but we also felt that the Boulder lifestyle and community suited this company well.” Read the entire story in the April 3-…

Legacy unveils downtown apartment community

1 April 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Legacy Partners is developing its first downtown Denver apartment community in a decade. The company’s first project since it opened the Ballpark Lofts in April 2003, is a 212-unit development at 21st and Arapahoe streets in the Arapahoe Square area. It started construction in March on the five-story, Class A community. It is tentatively called 21 Lawrence. It is scheduled to open in the fall of 2014. “We’re really excited,” Spencer R. Stuart Jr., a seni…

Hancock addresses BOMA

1 April 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock addressed issues ranging from taxes to toilets to a downtown Target during a recent meeting with about 30 commercial real estate leaders. Hancock spoke and answered questions at an invitation-only event in March arranged by the Denver Metro Building Owners and Managers Association, or BOMA. In addition to local BOMA members, the meeting in the Embassy Suites – Downtown Denver Convention Center Hotel, included Joseph W. Markling, a managing d…

Major milestone reached with $135m design-build project

31 March 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
JE Dunn Construction, in conjunction with architecture, engineering and planning firm SmithGroupJJR, recently celebrated a major milestone of the U.S. Department of Energy’s new Energy Systems Integration Facility on the National Renewable Energy Laboratory campus in Golden. A certificate of substantial completion was issued for the $135 million design-build project, allowing staff to occupy the 182,500-square-foot facility. Research equipment relocation and laboratory…

Black Hawk development site sells for $7.5m

28 March 2013 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
A roughly 45-acre site that could potentially accommodate more than 1 million square feet of development, recently sold in Black Hawk for more than $7 million. Jacobs Entertainment, through Black Hawk/Jacobs Entertainment LLC, acquired the property, locally referred to as the “Dakota/Black Hawk site,” which comprises 2.23 acres of casino land, including 40,788 square feet specifically zoned for gaming, and 43 acres of additional land. “We saw a good opportunity…

Picerne joins Simpson for DTC apartments

26 March 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
A California-based company has started construction on a 248-unit, transit-oriented development in the Denver Tech Center. The Picerne Group, based in Southern California, is building the luxury community on 8.7 acres that is a quarter-of-a-mile walk from the Orchard Station T-Rex light rail station. “The community will appeal to a variety of individuals, from the young employees who work in the Denver Tech Center to the young families who want to live within the Cherry Cr…

Senior living coming downtown

26 March 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
 Louisville-based Balfour Senior Living on Tuesday confirmed plans it will build a  a $74 million senior living community in downtown Denver, with rents as much as $8,000 per month. The Balfour at Riverfront Park development will be at 15th and Little Raven streets in Riverfront Park, near Union Station and across from Commons Park. Groundbreaking is slated for February with an opening in June 2014.  Balfour at Riverfront will be the first age-restricted project o…

Office vacancy rate drops, industrial in demand

22 March 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Office, Denver Market
Denver’s office vacancy rate dropped 60 basis points in the first quarter of the year, and there was healthy demand for warehouse/distribution space, according to CBRE Group. Office vacancies declined or held steady in most U.S. markets, according to preliminary data from CBRE, while six of the 12 largest markets, led by Denver and San Francisco, showed decreases.  Denver’s office vacancy rate was 14.5 percent, compared with 15.1 percent at the end of the fourth …

New energy, capital coming to Shannon Hills Apts.

21 March 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A California-based real estate investment group is set to inject new life into its latest multifamily property in Colorado Springs. Western Investment Partners recently paid $3.42 million, or $48,786 per unit, for the 70-unit Shannon Hills Apartments at 2110 E. La Salle St. “This is an opportunity to inject new energy and capital into a property with great potential,” explained ARA Colorado’s Kevin McKenna. “It was owned and self-managed for a number of …

Containers used for innovative project on Larimer

19 March 2013 | Posted in Retail, Green Building
Denver-based Gravitas Development Group announced today it has broken ground on an innovative retail development in the Upper Larimer area that is constructed out of 29 reclaimed shipping containers. The nine commercial spaces, with a total 7,360 square feet, will be constructed with containers at 25th and Larimer streets that previously had been used for transporting goods around the world. It will open this summer.  Individual spaces range from 320 to 1,280 sf. Sim…

H&M, Loft coming to The Streets at SouthGlenn

18 March 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
H&M, Hennes & Mauritz, announced its continued expansion in the Denver-Aurora metropolitan area with its opening of a new location at The Streets at SouthGlenn. The Streets at SouthGlenn store, slated to open this spring, represents the fourth H&M location along the Front Range.  The approximately 23,000 square-foot store will offer collections for ladies, men, young ladies and young men, with separate “store within store” sections …

McGraw-Hill leases last two floors at 1800 Larimer

18 March 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
McGraw-Hill has leased the last two floors of office space at 1800 Larimer, a 495,518-square-foot LEED Platinum building in Lower Downtown Denver. The deal will allow the company to consolidate offices in Westminster and Evergreen into a single location. The Westminster office, located in Ten West at Westmoor Technology Park, houses about 50 Platts employees and 15 J.D. Power & Associates staff. The Evergreen office is the home of BENTEK Energy, which Platts acquired in 2011.…

REIT buys Greeley MOBs for $15.03 million

18 March 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Northern Colorado, Medical/Medical Office
A Greeley medical office portfolio that traded for $15.03 million was among $47 million in acquisitions announced by American Healthcare Investors and Griffin Capital Corp., co-sponsors of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II Inc. The Northern Colorado portfolio consists of three buildings across the street from the 378-bed North Colorado Medical Center. They were 93 percent occupied, almost entirely by University of Colorado Health. UCH’s lease expires in 2020. The buildin…

Mortenson starts 'gateway' project on UCCS campus

15 March 2013 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Construction, Design & Engineering
Mortenson Construction has broken ground on the University of Colorado Colorado Springs’ first design-build project – and the second project of its kind in the state. “For the university, the main goal is it’s not just a parking structure but it’s a gathering space,” said Chris Knight, design phase manager at Mortenson. “The project will serve as a gateway to the west side of the campus, recreation center and a gathering place for the com…

Maintaining historic buildings 'key' to fabric of downtown

13 March 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Repairing stone on the exterior to the historic Brown Palace Hotel may seem like an inevitability for a building constructed in 1892. However, to Rhonda Maas, it is work like this that is crucial to the vitality of a downtown. “Maintaining historic buildings is key to strengthening the fabric of downtown,” said Maas, president of Building Restoration Specialties Inc., which recently was awarded the contract to complete repairs, such as repairing stone on the exterior…

Grand Junction to light up Times Square in NYC

12 March 2013 | Posted in Western Slope, Economic Development
The Grand Junction Visitor and Convention Bureau partnered with the Grand Junction Economic Partnership in an effort to expand the community’s profile. The latest effort is an electronic billboard near Times Square in New York City that will showcase images and activities in Mesa County. The advertisement will run through April 14. It is estimated that more than 300,000 people will see the advertisement daily. “I am excited about the strong partnership GJEP and the V…

Hines, Cushman highlight CU real estate conference

8 March 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Conferences
Commercial real estate icons Gerald Hines and John Cushman treated students and commercial real estate professionals to candid talk about their careers at CU’s annual real estate conference in downtown Denver Thursday. Hines, whose iconic buildings grace the world’s skylines, spoke about how quests for innovation and great architecture have guided his career, which began with a 5,000-square-foot building he built for a neighbor. Cushman, who in 1978 founded Cushman Rea…

Walmart to anchor Garland Center redevelopment

7 March 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Economic Development
Walmart is coming to Northglenn – and with it building a store that will meet the needs of the community. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. recently announced plans to anchor the redevelopment of Garland Center in a joint project with the Northglenn Urban Renewal Authority. The 41,000-square-foot Neighborhood Market will feature a full grocery store as well as a pharmacy. “We are excited to bring this project to our Northglenn customers,” said Walmart spokesman Joshua Phair…

GSA, design-build partners balance sustainability, history

6 March 2013 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Green Building
After nearly two years of construction, work is complete on what is slated to be the U.S. General Services Administration’s first site net-zero energy building on the National Register. The GSA recently rededicated the 95-year-old Wayne N. Aspinall Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse at 400 Rood Ave. in Grand Junction. The $15 million project, financed with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding, is designed not only to be the GSA’s first site net-zero energ…

Center City Plaza sells for $5.05m

4 March 2013 | Posted in Office, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Medical/Medical Office
Center City Plaza, a sought-after office/medical office building in Colorado Springs’ central business district, recently sold for $5.05 million. Center City Holdings LLC, represented by Kevin O’Neil of The O’Neil Group Co., who also was a principal in the transaction, purchased the 37,000-square-foot building at 455 E. Pikes Peak Ave. “Center City Plaza is the nicest building in the CBD under 50,000 square feet,” said Ted Link of Cascade Commercial…

Majestic Realty to develop 500,000-sf spec building

4 March 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market, Economic Development
Majestic Realty Co. says it will build the first speculative industrial building in Denver in five years – and the largest ever built in the market at 500,000 square feet – at Majestic Commercenter in Aurora. “We’ve taken a very close look at local and national market conditions, vacancy and absorption rates, product supply and the success we’ve had providing large, high-quality, high-cube industrial space that is the best in the market. We’re e…

Rental home vacancy falls to 1.7%

27 February 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Property Management
The vacancy rate for rental single-family homes, townhomes and other small properties across metro Denver fell to 1.7 percent in the fourth quarter, according to a state report released today. The vacancy rate was 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012 and 2.3 percent in the third quarter of last year, according to the report by the Colorado Division of Housing. The lowest vacancy rates were found in Jefferson County and Douglas County where the vacancy rates were 1.3 percent…

On Deck launches Denver hub

26 February 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
On Deck announced today the opening of a new Western regional office in Denver. The Denver office, which opened with 16 employees, will expand to over 200 professionals in the next two years across sales, operations and technology functions. Governor John Hickenlooper and Mayor Michael B. Hancock presided at an inaugural ceremony for local small business owners, business partners and government officials.  “Having a Western regional hub allows us to better reach and se…

CBRE gets listing on former ConocoPhillips site

26 February 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Northern Colorado, Land, Economic Development
CBRE has been awarded the listing on 432 acres in Louisville where ConocoPhillips once planned a global technology campus. The team consists of Martin Roth and Eric Roth, first vice presidents with the Denver Land Services Group; Frank Kelley, a senior vice president specializing in the Northwest Denver office and industrial submarkets; and Sanford Criner, executive vice president of Global Corporate Services. Formerly Sun Microsystems’ technology campus, the property sold t…

RJM Construction starts Mercury Payment office renovations

26 February 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
RJM Construction has started a 65,000-square-foot office renovation for Mercury Payment Systems. Mercury is expanding its existing space in the Metropoint II office building at 4610 S. Ulster St. in the Denver Tech Center. RJM Construction is renovating space on the three floors to accommodate Mercury’s growing payment and call center services, including an expanded data center with 24/7 UPS service and an emergency backup generator. The sixth floor renovations will be com…

River Run apartments sell for $17 million

26 February 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
The only 100 percent market-rate apartment community in the Vail Valley traded in a $17 million deal. A Texas-based real estate investment group purchased the River Run apartment property for $17 million after a $400,000 credit to the buyer at closing, which represents a price per unit of $145,299 and a price per square foot of $146.17. “River Run is made up of 117 units and has a condo map already in place. The buyer intends on maintaining this as apartments for the time …

RTD receives unsolicited proposal for North Metro rail

22 February 2013 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
The Regional Transportation District (RTD) has received a confidential unsolicited proposal for the North Metro Rail Project, part of RTD’s FasTracks program.The proposal was submitted this afternoon by a team led by Graham Contracting Limited. RTD staff will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the proposal consistent with the agency’s Unsolicited Proposals Policy to see if the proposal has merit. If so, RTD will then pursue a competitive procurement process and rele…

NAIOP Colorado honors top CRE professionals

21 February 2013 | Posted in Retail, Industrial, Office, Land
NAIOP Colorado presented its version of the Oscars today, honoring Denver’s top commercial real estate professionals at its Academy of Excellence Awards program. Awards included: Broker Outstanding Achievement: Mike Winn & Tim Richey, Cushman & Wakefield of Colorado Industrial Broker of the Year: T.J. Smith, Colliers International Investment Broker of the Year: Brad Lyons, CBRE Land Broker of the Year: Er…

Economic outlook 2013

20 February 2013 | Posted in Denver Market
Tom Binnings, senior partner at Summit Economics, fleshes out the 2013 economic outlook in the Feb. 20 marekt forecast issue. Here's some of what he has to say: It’s hard to imagine interest rates could go anywhere but up, especially 10- to 30-year rates. We’ve been saying that for several years now. The big issue for 2013 is whether the Federal Reserve will continue accommodating bond markets to counter fiscal drag from growing federal austerity. It appears the group…

Healthy outlook for region in 2013

15 February 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Several economic indicators posted positive numbers in 2012, pointing to significant progress in the economy and a healthy outlook for the region in 2013, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. in its Monthly Economic Summary for February. Employment in metro Denver grew at a steady pace in 2012 and will continue to expand through 2013. The recently released 2013 Economic Forecast expects employment growth of 2 percent in 2013, slightly below th…

Roth Sheppard, Jordy start work on new Izakaya Den

15 February 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
Construction has begun on Izakaya Den’s new location. Hiro & Co., doing business as Den Corner Restaurants, in collaboration with Roth Sheppard Architects and Jordy Construction, will unveil the new Izakaya Denver in late May. The restaurant will be located in the former Pearl Street Grill location at 1487-A S. Pearl St., near its current location at 1518 S. Pearl. Roth Sheppard is designing the new restaurant, slated to feature a grand staircase, glass enclosed eleva…

Average rents set record in Springs

14 February 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
The average rent in the Colorado Springs metro area rose year-over-year for the 12th consecutive quarter during the fourth quarter of 2012, according to a report released today. The average monthly rent at the end of last year was $790, according to the Colorado Division of Housing and the Apartment Association of Southern Colorado. Apartment Realty Advisors, or ARA, also is a major sponsor of the report. The average rent was $775 reported during the fourth quar…

Apartment industry a $2.1 billion economic engine

12 February 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Economic Development
 The Denver-area apartment industry contributed $2.1 billion to the metro-area economy in 2011, according to a national report released today.        The report by the National Multi Housing Council and the National Apartment Assocation showed that apartment constructed and operations in the Denver area in 2011 also supported 16,000 local jobs.        In addition, apartments and their residents contributed $19.4 bi…

Atlas Prep buys 'once-in-a-lifetime' building

11 February 2013 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Atlas Preparatory School is expanding in Colorado Springs. The school recently acquired 1450 Academy Park Loop, where this fall it will open ninth grade and then a phased expansion – one grade per year – into the facility to eventually house grades nine through 12. CSDC Atlas LLC paid $3 million for the two-story, 67,000-square-foot office building, previously occupied by General Dynamics. “The building worked well for a retrofit by Atlas,” explained Mik…

A&P breaks ground on cancer center in Fort Collins

11 February 2013 | Posted in Northern Colorado, Construction, Design & Engineering
A&P Healthcare, a group of health care construction professionals within Adolfson & Peterson Construction, recently broke ground on the University of Colorado Health’s second phase of its new cancer center in Fort Collins. The second phase is a 30,000-square-foot addition to the existing oncology clinic and radiation oncology department. The two-story center will be located on UC Health’s Harmony campus in the city’s southeastern area. The outpatient fac…

Colorado continues to be among LEEDing states

7 February 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Green Building
Colorado continues to be a LEEDer – at least when it comes to green building. The U.S. Green Building Council released its annual list of the top 10 states for new LEED certifications in 2012, on which Colorado ranks No. 3. Last year, Colorado was ranked No. 2. Colorado’s ranking is hardly surprising, noted Angie Fyfe, executive director, USGBC Colorado Chapter. “The level of commitment and talent among Colorado’s green building community is demonstrated…

Gateway project planned for Trinidad

7 February 2013 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Economic Development
Preliminary planning is under way on a mixed-use project designed to be a catalyst for the city of Trinidad. Initial details regarding the La Puerta de Colorado project recently were announced at a press conference regarding the development near downtown and is set to include an event center, baseball training field, classic car museum, brewpub, sporting goods store, movie theater and hotel. “It will represent the renaissance of the city of Trinidad, a new beginning,&rdquo…

HFF arranges $74 million in financing

4 February 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Finance & Appraisal
HFF announced on Monday that it has arranged a $74 million loan for the refinancing of 1400 Wewatta and 1401 Wynkoop, two Class A contiguous office buildings totaling approximately 300,000 square feet in downtown Denver. HFF worked on behalf of the borrower, Wewatta and Wynkoop PT LLC, a GE Asset Management and Crestone Partners managed entity, to secure a permanent loan through a national life insurance company correspondent lender.   The two buldings are on nearly two acr…

CRE loan sales as exit strategy

4 February 2013 | Posted in Finance & Appraisal
With the banks and other real estate lenders becoming healthier, and with distressed real estate loan portfolios shrinking, what is the future of real estate loan sales? Will loan sales remain as a preferred exit strategy for real estate lenders? Over the last five years, loan sales have become a popular exit strategy for holders of nonperforming real estate debt, and over this same period real estate investors’ demand for these opportunities has skyrocketed. The demand for…

Nichols taps Greystar at King Soopers site

4 February 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
      Developer Randy Nichols has brought in Greystar Real Estate Partners as an equity and joint venture partner at his downtown Denver site will include a King Soopers.       While neither Nichols nor the brokers on the land sale by Greystar would confirm a sales price, records indicate Greystar paid $21 million for the site at 20th Street and Chestnut Place.       The site will include a full-service, 47,00…

Retail centers sell for $31.5 million

1 February 2013 | Posted in Retail, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A pair of shopping centers in Colorado Springs recently sold for $31.5 million. TKG Uintah Gardens Development LLC and TKG Academy Place LLC, out-of-state limited liability companies, purchased the Uintah Gardens Shopping Center and Academy Place Shopping Center from Weingarten Realty. “Both Uintah Gardens and Academy Place received strong interest from the investment community given their infill locations and solid tenant mix,” said Brad Lyons of CBRE’s Retail…

Sullivan, Jugl leave JLL for HFF

31 January 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
A leading capital markets team led by Mary Sullivan and John Jugl have left Jones Lang LaSalle to join HFF to focus on capital markets transactions in the office, industrial and retail sectors. Sullivan joins HFF as a senior managing director with more than 30 years of industry experience. She has been involved in the sale of nearly 40 million square feet valued at more than $7.5 billion throughout the United States and has held positions at CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield and Tramm…

Tw telecom leases 161,218 square feet at ParkRidge

29 January 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Tw telecom has signed a lease for ParkRidge Six, a 161,218-square-foot building in Lone Tree. The move will bring the company’s national operations center, along with some customer care functions and general office support, closer to tw telecom’s corporate headquarters in ParkRidge Corporate Center. Inverness Properties brokers Peter Coakley and Rick Egitto represented the landlord. Jones Lang LaSalle brokers Mike Rooks and Robb Johnson represented tw telecom, and Kevi…

Starbucks opens new concept store in Northglenn Greens

29 January 2013 | Posted in Retail, Economic Development
Starbucks Coffee has opened a new drive-thru and walk-up location at Interstate 25 and 104th Avenue in the Northglenn Greens shopping center on Bannock Street in Northglenn. The 480-square-foot concept store is only the second Starbucks location like it in the nation and a model that will be used for future stores worldwide. The store was manufactured in the United States using a reclaimed shipping container from China. Both the inside cabinets and flooring are constructed from …

Shoppes on Academy sells at nearly $400 per square foot

29 January 2013 | Posted in Retail, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A retail property along the Academy Boulevard corridor recently sold for nearly $400 per square foot. JK Capital LLC paid $3 million, or $394 per sf, for the Shoppes on Academy, a 7,599-sf retail center at 7214 Academy Blvd. in Colorado Springs. “It was a good deal for both the buyer and seller,” said Jason Schmidt of Cushman & Wakefield of Colorado Inc. “It’s a well-located, nicely constructed center occupied by stable tenants.”

GH Phipps to build new Hunger Relief Center in Denver

23 January 2013 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
Caring is at the foundation of a planned Denver facility. GH Phipps Construction Cos. was awarded the job of building a new Hunger Relief Center for Metro CareRing, one of Denver’s largest hunger relief programs, which distributes between 4,000 and 6,500 pounds of food, baby items and personal care products every day.  Currently, Metro CareRing is raising $5.5 million to fund construction of the new 15,000-square-foot center, which will be built on the existing site a…

Taylor Farms facility sells for $15.2 million

23 January 2013 | Posted in Industrial, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Taylor Farms’ facility sold in one of, if not the, largest industrial investment transactions to close in Colorado Springs in 2012. Los Angeles-based Pacific View Investments paid $15.2 million for the 83,616-square-foot industrial building at 890 N. Newport Road in the Aerotech Commerce Center. “Pacific View Investments likes strong, long-term, net-leased, great quality buildings, which it found in the Taylor Farms’ building,” said Marty Cohan of the Wes…

Jax Mercantile expands Lafayette presence

15 January 2013 | Posted in Northern Colorado, Economic Development
Jax Mercantile has expanded into a second Lafayette store. The Colorado-based company opened its first Lafayette store, a 37,000-square-foot Jax Outdoor Gear in June 2010. In November, the 57-year-old company hosted a soft opening for its second store, Jax Ranch and Home. The 45,000-sf retail store is home to pet and equine supplies, hardware, paint, Western wear and an assortment of lawn and garden supplies and equipment. A grand opening will be held in the spring, when farm an…

'Expanding' horizons for mechanical design

15 January 2013 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering, Green Building
It’s an energy-conscious building that “expanded horizons” for mechanical design. The Denver Department of Human Services Eastside Building, for which ACEC Colorado recently awarded MKK Consulting Engineers Inc. a 2013 Engineering Excellence Award, is part of the growing trend of furthering sustainability through mechanical design. “This project gave us a great opportunity not only to help repurpose an existing vacant site with a facility that serves the …

Economic report shows that center city on upswing

10 January 2013 | Posted in Economic Development
The Downtown Denver Partnership recently released its latest Quarterly Economic Update for 2012.  “We are seeing steady improvement in important economic drivers for downtown Denver such as the strengthening housing market, increased retail sales tax collections, and a falling unemployment rate,” said Jim Kirchheimer, Downtown Denver Partnership senior vice president of economic development.   “The Quarterly Economic Report highlights the key fac…

Shaw Builders breaks ground on senior housing

10 January 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
Shaw Builders LLC is under way on a senior housing project minutes from downtown Denver’s core. The 101-unit University Hills Senior Residences project will be a four-story, wood-framed construction built over secured, underground parking designed to provide quality, independent-living options for seniors aged 62 to 75. Shaw Builders is the contractor for the project, located at 2775 Southbrook Drive in Denver. Also part of the project team are owner and developer The Resi…

Broe buys $80 million portfolio

9 January 2013 | Posted in Finance & Appraisal
The Denver-based Broe Real Estate Group today announced it has acquired for cash an off-market, $80 million portfolio of non-performing loans and real estate owned property from a billion dollar regional bank.  Broe has acquired more than $500 million total in distressed real estate assets to date. “2012 was a strong year for us, and we expect that 2013 will be even better,” said Pat Broe, CEO, Broe Real Estate Group. “We have a strong interest in continui…

McWhinney joins Union Station team

9 January 2013 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Finance & Appraisal, Hospitality
       Loveland-based McWhinney has joined the Union Station Alliance group as the managing member of the team that is redeveloping Union Station.      Union Station Alliance includes Larimer Associates, Sage Hospitality, REGenLLC and Urban Neighborhoods  McWhinney is an real estate investment and development company, responsible for large-scale multi-use developments in Colorado such as Centerra in Loveland and North Park in Broomfie…

Data centers, collaborative offices emerging

8 January 2013 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Construction, Design & Engineering, Economic Development
Technology advances are driving huge growth in data center industry, and Colorado is well-positioned to capitalize on that growth, CBRE Director of Enterprise Management Kate Waggoner told NAIOP Colorado members at the organization’s annual economic forecast this morning. “Every company has a data center need, and storage demand is doubling every 18 months,” said Waggoner, adding Colorado is well-positioned because of its climate and affordable power. Discussing …

Apartment community coming to Denver

4 January 2013 | Posted in Multifamily
MKS Residential, a Southern California-based developer, plans to build a 341-unit apartment community on a key, 5.24-acre site it bought at the southwest corner of Cherry Creek Drive South and South Cherry Street in Glendale. The land is within the 24.8-acre Cherry creek Corporate Center, which has 593,714-square-feet of office space. Steve O’Dell and Chris Cowan, principals of the Denver office of ARA, sold the land on behalf of the sellers, a joint venture between DCPA D…

Job growth continues to influence CRE market's recovery

4 January 2013 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Job growth will be key to Colorado Springs’ overall commercial real estate market’s recovery, according to Sierra Commercial Real Estate’s 2013 market outlook. The firm recently held a forecast event discussing the future of the city’s retail, office, industrial and land submarkets. The outlook noted that job growth was statistically flat in 2012 and without those numbers “dramatically” improving, 2013 will continue to be a mixed bag. The reta…

Construction starts on workforce housing in Grand Junction

4 January 2013 | Posted in Multifamily, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
A much-needed workforce housing community is just months away from helping meet the demand for affordable apartments in Grand Junction. The Grand Junction Housing Authority is developing the Village Park Apartments, a two-phased 132-unit community at 28th ¼ and Patterson roads. The initial, 72-unit first phase is slated to deliver its first units in July with completion by Halloween.  Read more in the January 2 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Construction spending slips, according to AGC

2 January 2013 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
Construction spending dipped from October to November, but resolution of the uncertainty regarding federal taxes for 2013 should unleash more private construction investment, according to an analysis of new federal data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials warned, however, that unresolved issues about federal construction spending, including storm relief for northeastern states, will hold down public construction spending. “…

Newmark Grubb parent acquires Frederick Ross

2 January 2013 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
BGC Partners Inc., the parent company of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, has acquired Frederick Ross Co. in Denver for an undisclosed price. "Frederick Ross Co. has built an outstanding reputation in the Denver market and its desire to join NGKF is confirmation that our expanded platform offers clients the best real estate solutions in the industry," said NGKF CEO Barry M. Gosin. "The team has benefited from the transformation that has taken place since Newmark and Grubb & Ellis b…

State is on track for economic growth in 2013

26 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Employment gains are expected to be broad-based, with all industry sectors except information forecasted to add workers in 2013, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. in its Monthly Economic Summary for December. Colorado's economy is expected to perform among the top 10 states next year, said Richard Wobbekind, executive director of the CU Leeds School of Business Research Center. Unemployment will decrease to 8 percent in 2012 and 7.4 percent…

Hyder Construction completes Elk Camp restaurant

26 December 2012 | Posted in Retail, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
After two summer building seasons, Hyder Construction has completed the new Elk Camp restaurant in Aspen. The restaurant, constructed for Aspen Skiing Co., opened in time for the resort’s 2012-2013 season. Elk Camp is design to capitalize on the views that can be seen from all three sides of the building, which sits at 9,970 feet above sea level. CCY Architects of Basalt designed the contemporary structure, which features a vast area of windows, large timbers, metal siding…

Big-box properties ready for reinvention

21 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Change is coming to the big box, and sooner than you might expect in Colorado, according to Jeff Sheppard, AIA, Roth Sheppard Architects. Sheppard, a principal with Roth Sheppard, which was selected by Scandinavian Designs to strategically “reimagine” a number of the contemporary furniture company’s retail storefronts, sees the firm’s efforts as the tip of the iceberg in change coming to big-box properties. “I think reimagining storefronts and big b…

Evergreen's Elk Bridge Center sells

21 December 2012 | Posted in Retail, Office, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
An Evergreen-based investor acquired a local mixed-use property steeped in synergy. Evergreen Investors LLC paid $2.95 million for Elk Bridge Center, a two-story, 20,633-square-foot office and retail property. “It will be a nice investment for the group,” John Becker of Fuller Western Real Estate said of the buyer, noting its local sponsorship recognized the quality of the asset, which was built in 1999. “Elk Bridge has a good tenant mix with a good synergy fo…

Denver investment market in Top 10

19 December 2012 | Posted in Retail, Multifamily, Industrial, Office, Denver Market, Medical/Medical Office, Land, Economic Development
The Denver commercial real estate market is among the top 10 investment markets in the country, due largely to a strong local economy aided by a diverse employment base and good quality of life, PwC Denver-based real estate expert Wendy McCray said in response to the fourth-quarter PwC Real Estate Investor Survey. The survey is an outlook on commercial real estate based on hundreds of interviews and survey responses from real estate market participants. Total transaction volume in…

Seagate Properties grows portfolio with $18.1m buy

19 December 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
California-based Seagate Properties continues to expand its Colorado portfolio with its latest acquisition. An entity formed by Seagate Colorado Partners paid $18.1 million, or $62,847 per unit, for Dove Tree, a 288-unit Colorado Springs community. Dove Tree represents the fourth Front Range multifamily property Seagate has acquired in Colorado in the past 18 months.  Read more in the Dec. 19 issue. 

RedPeak buys Burnsley

18 December 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Hospitality
Denver-based RedPeak Properties confirmed today it has purchased the Burnsley Hotel in Denver from Joy Burns. Burns converted the building at 1000 Grant St. into a hotel about 30 years ago.  RedPeak plans to convert the 17-story building back to an apartment building, returning it to its original use. Burns sold it as part of an effort to reduce the scope of her real estate portfolio. The building was constructed in 1963 as an apartment building. In 1969, Joy and Frank…

Denver's biggest spec industrial building planned

17 December 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Economic Development
The biggest speculative industrial building ever built in Denver could be landing at Stapleton. United Properties says it will build a 514,500-square-foot distribution building in 2013 at Enterprise Business Center, a new industrial development near Interstate 70 and Havana Street. Enterprise Business Center also would include two office/flex buildings, for a total of 710,850 sf. The announcement is surprising because of its size and also because Enterprise Business Center would b…

ADT signs 121,954-sf lease

17 December 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Security giant ADT has signed a 121,954-square-foot lease for space at Cherry Creek Place II in one of the largest office lease transactions to be completed in the Denver metro area this year. “We’re very excited about the opportunity that it brings to Aurora as well as the value creation in our building,” said R. Brian Watson of Northstar Commercial Partners, which owns the property. “It’s going to bring 850 jobs to the building, which is a big econo…

High-profile Presidio bldg. sells in value-add play

17 December 2012 | Posted in Office, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
The Presidio office building, a Class A office building in northern Colorado Springs, traded for $7.28 million, or around $90 per square foot, to a California real estate investment trust. Netreit Inc. out of Escondido, Calif., purchased the Presidio office building at 1155 Kelly Johnson Blvd., off Interstate 25, as part of a value-add play. “The building is one of the most well known and recognizable buildings in suburban Colorado Springs,” said Cushman & Wakefi…

Fiscal cliff a 'primary concern' for commercial real estate

14 December 2012 | Posted in Retail, Industrial, Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Northern Colorado, Finance & Appraisal, Economic Development
Cassidy Turley today released research examining the impending “fiscal cliff’s” impact on commercial real estate markets across the country. The report summarizes the various scenarios related to fiscal policy and then draws the link to commercial real estate. “The fiscal cliff is our primary concern regarding the continuation of Denver’s current positive growth,” according to Greg Morris, president and CEO of Cassidy Turley Colorado. “Goi…

Nichols to develop downtown Boulder project

14 December 2012 | Posted in Retail, Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Economic Development
A development team managed by The Nichols Partnership will develop the former Daily Camera site in downtown Boulder. The 60,000-square-foot site will house an $80 million mixed-use project with large floor-plate office space, retail and specialty uses, including an art house theater. Ten Eleven Pearl LLC bought the property from Karlin Real Estate for $13.5 million in a deal handled by Lynda Gibbons of Boulder-based Gibbons-White. For more details, see the Jan. 2 issue of the Colo…

AGC Colorado projections for 2013

12 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
AGC Colorado expects conservative growth for the 2013 construction industry - Colorado's sixth-largest industry - related to job growth and economic impact, according to a recent forecast event presented by AGC/C and McGraw-Hill Construction. The forecast included an overview of the national economy, historical trends and expected activity for 12 different market sectors for Colorado. “We expect conservative overall economic growth in GDP of 2.7 percent for 2013, with 6 pe…

Turner Construction completes two-floor fit-out

10 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Turner Construction recently completed a two-floor fit out for KMPG. The scope of work for the project included complete interior demolition and new construction for all interior finishes and MEP systems. The project is pursuing LEED Silver certification by the Green Building Certification Institute. The 38,000-square-foot space, designed by Perkins + Will out of Chicago, is located in the 17th Street Plaza in downtown Denver, also built by Turner in 1983. 

Mount Crested Butte landmark sells

10 December 2012 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Hospitality
A Mount Crested Butte landmark sold to a local buyer for nearly $3 million. Nordic Inn LLC purchased The Nordic Inn, a 28-unit lodge at 14, 16, 18, 22 and 24 Treasury Road, where it is upgrading “virtually everything.” “The new owners will be good stewards of the property,” commented Jerry Jones of Prudential Commercial Real Estate. “A lot of people were interested in the property but there was no one like the buyer; a local individual who knows the…

Housing task force submits recommendations

7 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
The Mayor’s Housing Task Force has submitted a series of recommendations designed to assist with the development of a new, comprehensive housing strategy for the City and County of Denver. Mayor Michael Hancock convened a task force of community experts in February to analyze the city’s housing inventory and needs, review current policies, and make recommendations to address affordable and market rate housing. Moving forward, the Denver Office of Economic Development…

Gingsborg honored by CSU

6 December 2012 | Posted in Retail, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Northern Colorado
Veteran shopping center developer Allen Ginsborg has been named the 2012 Real Estate Entrepreneur of the Year by the Everitt Real Estate Center at Colorado State University - College of Business.Ginsborg is the managing director and principal of NewMark Merrill Mountain States. The company owns and is redeveloping the Twin Peaks Mall in Longmont. The award was presented by Eric Holsapple, the executive director of the Everitt Real Estate Center.  "Northern Colorado is extr…

Colin Powell headlines AIA 2013 Nat'l. Convention in Denver

5 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
General Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.), former Secretary of State (2001 – 2005), joins Cameron Sinclair, co-founder and chief eternal optimist of Architecture for Humanity, and Blake Mycoskie, founder and chief shoe giver of TOMS, as keynote speakers for the AIA 2013 National Convention. The nation’s architects and design industry meet June 20-22 in Denver. The AIA Convention is architecture’s largest annual gathering to keep current with innovative design sol…

Real Capital Solutions acquires Tanager Meadows apts.

5 December 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Colorado Springs’ largest apartment community sold to a Colorado-based investment and property management company as part of its strategy to acquire value-add properties nationwide. Real Capital Solutions paid $35.73 million, according to public records, for the Tanager Meadows Apartment Homes. “The acquisition of Tanager Meadows is consistent with our strategy to acquire value-add properties nationwide. Real Capital Solutions has a very aggressive purchasing plan ov…

Charles Schwab zeros in on site for possible campus

4 December 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Charles Schwab could announce plans for a new corporate campus in Denver in the very near future. “At this point, we’re pretty far along in negotiations for a particular site, but nothing has been finalized yet,” said Sarah Bulgatz, Charles Schwab director of corporate public relations. The company expects to make a decision by the end of the quarter, she said. “The new campus we’re considering would give us greater control of our real estate footprin…

Construction spending rises for seventh-straight month

3 December 2012 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
All major segments of construction spending increased in October, bringing total spending to a 37-month high at an annualized rate of $872 billion, according to an analysis of new federal data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials warned, however, that the “fiscal cliff” imperils future improvement in both public and private spending. “Widespread gains in spending in October, along with hefty upward revisions to e…

Alliance Construction starts renovation of downtown bldg.

3 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Alliance Construction Solutions has started renovation of the Colorado National Bank building. Alliance Design/Build Solutions is serving as the design-builder and Alliance Construction Solutions is the general contractor for the project that will convert the historic bank building at 918 17th St. in downtown Denver into a Renaissance Hotel by Marriott. “We are excited for the opportunity to renovate such a remarkably historic building,” said Alliance Construction So…

Brinkman completes latest building on Taxi campus

3 December 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Construction has wrapped up on Zeppelin Development Inc.’s latest building at the Taxi development in the River North area of Denver. Brinkman Construction completed construction on the sixth building at the 172,700-square-foot campus, an $8 million, 40,000-sf space with a modern design. Drive, which officially opened Nov. 1, was designed by Stephen Dynia Architects, with the architect of record Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture for the office building. Read more in the De…

Lakewood recognized for green practices

30 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Green Building
The city of Lakewood recently was recognized for its use of green building practices on the 11th Avenue Head Start facility at 6201 W. 11th Ave. in Lakewood. The facility, which opened in fall 2011, achieved LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, making it the first city-built facility to achieve the recognition. "If we can save money on utilities, we have more for other program expenses – materials, supplies, field trips, the fun th…

Union Station renovation kicks off in December

28 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Hospitality
The RTD has approved the lease of the historic Union Station building to the veteran development team of Sage Hospitality, Larimer Associates, REGen LLC and Urban Neighborhoods. The team plans to transform the historic building into a  mixed-use, transit-oriented hub with a planned opening in mid-2014. The building will close to the public on Dec. 1 and construction will begin Dec. 3. “It’s been a long journey, but our dream to see this historic landmark come ba…

Brown Palace selects BRS for facade restoration

28 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Building Restoration Specialties Inc. recently was selected to complete repairs on Denver’s historic Brown Palace Hotel. The repair project, slated to last for three years, will be conducted without interrupting business at the Brown Palace, which has been open every day since it opened Aug. 12, 1892. BRS will be repairing stone on the exterior façade, replacing all stone window sills and modifying existing flashings where needed. The firm also will begin carving st…

Construction kicks off on apartments near Union Station

27 November 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Atlanta-based Wood Partners has broken ground on the Alta City House, a five-story, 281-unit luxury apartment community near Union Station.        Wood Partners, the largest apartment developer in the country, is developing the community with East West Partners.USAA Real Estate is providing the financing for the community at 1801 Chestnut Place.        In 2007, USAA Real Estate provided the financing for the Glass House…

Capitol Hill gets green apartment

27 November 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Green Building
           The Denver-based Forum Real Estate Group has opened a five-story, 57-unit, Class-A and energy efficient apartment building in Capitol Hill, which it believes is the first new apartment building in the neighborhood in at least a decade.          The Logan is at East Sixth Avenue and Logan Street, on vacant land that Forum purchased in 2011.          “This…

Purchase, sale agreement approved by commissioners

27 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
A development group has made an offer to buy the New York Building in Lakewood for possible use by the Rocky Mountain College of Art & Design. The Board of County Commissioners approved a purchase and sale agreement Oct. 23 with the Colorado Investment and Development Co. for the 31,000-square-foot historic building at 1651 Kendall St., which currently houses Jefferson County’s community corrections program. The agreement, which isn’t final, indicates the company…

MSU announces plans for $12 million athletic complex

27 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
Metropolitan State University of Denver recently announced plans to construct a state-of-the-art athletic complex, which will include baseball, softball and soccer fields, and eight tennis courts. “The complex will provide a new home for Roadrunner athletic events as well as academic programs,” said MSU President Stephen Jordan. “This will continue the physical transformation under way on our campus and is the kind of facility that our students and student-athle…

Eldorado Ridge trades at $42.4 million

19 November 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Eldorado Ridge, a Class A office park on the Denver-Boulder corridor, traded for $42.4 million, or $130.76 per square foot, according to public records. Lowe Enterprises teamed up with Starwood Capital Group to buy the 324,269-sf Broomfield property, according to Lowe’s website. Situated on a ridge that overlooks Interlocken Advanced Technology Environment, Eldorado Ridge consists of three buildings at 11001, 11101 and 10901 W. 120th Ave. CBRE brokers Geoff Baukol and Tim Sw…

Changing design trends for retail, medical office

16 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The big box isn’t dead, chef-driven restaurants are growing and the delivery of medical services is moving to a new arena. Three trends in the ever-changing world of design and just a few of the topics discussed during the Design Trends for Retail/Restaurant, Hospitality and Medical Office Buildings panel at the Colorado Real Estate Journal’s recent 2012 Commercial Interior Architecture & Design Conference held Nov. 7 at the Inverness Hotel & Conference Center…

Statewide apartment vacancies drop

15 November 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
The vacancy rate in Colorado apartments was down during the third quarter of 2012, falling year over year statewide and in Colorado Springs, Metro Denver, Grand Junction, and in the Ft. Collins-Loveland area. According to a report released Thursday by the Colorado Division of Housing, the combined vacancy rate for Colorado was 4.6 percent during the third quarter.  The vacancy rate during the third quarter was down from 2011’s third-quarter rate of 5.0 percent, and was…

FCI Constructors begins pair of Colo. projects

14 November 2012 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
FCI Constructors Inc. recently started a pair of projects, including the conversion of the former Frederick High School into a prekindergarten through eighth-grade facility for the St. Vrain Valley School District. The $8.5 million project includes two major additions as well as upgrading classrooms, art room, music room, gym, safety, doors, technology, lighting, storage, sound control and air quality. Work is anticipated to be complete in April. The firm also recently started w…

City of Lafayette named conservation leader

14 November 2012 | Posted in Green Building
The city of Lafayette has been named Community Conservation Leader of the year by the Center for ReSource Conservation. The award is presented to an individual or organization demonstrating outstanding leadership and creative vision toward a more sustainable future for the community and embodies the principles of conservation and environmental protection. The city was recognized for its efforts, which included reducing waste at city and community events; increasing recycling and…

Target confirms Tamarac Square store

14 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
       Target announced on Wednesday it will open the long-anticipated 135,000-square-foot store at the former Tamarac Square site in Denver next July.        The Tamarac Square Target will be constructed at the corner of East Hampden Avenue and South Tamarac Drive. This is one of 11 U.S. Target stores announced to open in 2013.        The new Target will hire about 200 people, according to Mark…

National Western Stock Show commits to stay in Denver

13 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
National Western Stock Show leaders, joined by Mayor Michael B. Hancock and other city officials, announced today they are committed to keeping the Stock Show in Denver.“Denver has been the Stock Show’s beloved home for 106 years, and our complex is a time-honored destination for visitors worldwide,” said Paul Andrews, the National Western’s President and CEO. “We want to enrich and educate the lives of millions for another century, and we believe our…

Multiphase project to boost sustainability of CU-Boulder

13 November 2012 | Posted in Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Construction, Design & Engineering, Green Building
A campuswide effort is under way in Boulder to help reinforce the University of Colorado’s reputation as a leader in sustainability and an innovator in efforts to reduce carbon emissions. The multiphased project, anticipated to be fully operational by winter 2014, comprises three main elements: construction of a new heating and cooling plant that will be known as the East District Energy Plant and will serve as a showcase for energy-efficient concepts; renovation of the exi…

Slow, bumpy recovery for Springs apartment market

13 November 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Colorado Springs’ apartment market is headed in the right direction, albeit at a “fairly” slow and uneven pace over the last year, according to a recent report. Apartment Insights’ Statistics/Trends report noted that the Colorado Springs apartment market has experienced two soft quarters followed by two strong quarters. The citywide vacancy rate at then end of the third quarter decreased by 62 basis points to 5.76 percent. Even after a 124 basis-point dro…

Investors want to be in Denver, says Sullivan

9 November 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
Denver is for the first time among a handful of metro areas that is leading the country toward recovery, and institutional investors want in on the action, according to Jones Lang LaSalle investment broker Mary Sullivan. “Institutional investors coast to coast have Denver marked and circled as one of the top five metros in the country … We are viewed from the institutional capital from coast to coast as a first-tier city,” Sullivan said at the recent Rocky Mount…

Building fire at The Streets at SouthGlenn

8 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
Alberta Development Partners LLC released the following information regarding today's fire at The Streets at SouthGlenn in Centennial: During demolition of a vacant portion of the Block 1 building at The Streets at Southglenn, a fire started in an exterior wall cavity. No property damage occurred beyond the demolition area, and no reported injuries have occurred, other than smoke inhalation by one worker, who did not require hospitalization. The contractor had…

Hitachi Data selects Douglas County for R&D hub

8 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Hitachi Data Systems recently announced that the firm is making a “major” new investment in metro Denver. HDS is locating a new technology center in the Meridian Corporate Center in Douglas County. The 53,000-square-foot research-and-development facility is expected to create hundreds of new jobs in the area over the next five years. Construction on the new facility started in October with employees slated to move into the new facility in spring. HDS staff in downtow…

Character defines GH Phipps projects at USAFA

8 November 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Construction, Design & Engineering
Character is the defining vision for a pair of projects GH Phipps Construction Cos. has been awarded. GH Phipps broke ground Oct. 19 on the United States Air Force Academy’s Center for Character and Leadership Development, designed to embody the academy’s vision for developing leaders of character. In late October, the firm also began the ninth phase of renovations at Vandenberg Hall, one of the largest student facilities in the United States and one of the original …

Distributor to build 242,000 sf at Prologis Park 70

5 November 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market, Land, Economic Development
 A distributor will expand its Denver presence with a 242,000-square-foot facility in Aurora. WinWholesale Inc.’s building will be the third new building started this year at Prologis Park 70, a master-planned industrial park at Interstate 70 and E-470 in Aurora. WinWholesale currently occupies approximately 124,000 sf in Denver Business Center, so the new building will be nearly double that size. It will allow the growing company to expand the number of product lines i…

Saunders Construction building apt., Whole Foods projects

5 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Multifamily, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Saunders Construction Inc. is the contractor for a pair of metro Denver projects, including One City Block. The contractor will build the four-building residential project at 19th Avenue and Logan Street in Uptown. The project is slated to achieve LEED Silver certification. RedPeak Properties is developing One City Block, which is designed by Davis Partnership. The firm also is the contractor for a new 36,000-square-foot Whole Foods on Wadsworth Boulevard in Littleton. CSHQA is …

Fierce competition in sale of grocery-anchored center

5 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
The competition was fierce for an asset type that doesn’t often fall into foreclosure. Multiple buyers bid on Conifer Town Center, a 107,451-square-foot, six-building, Safeway-anchored shopping center in Conifer that ultimately sold to a Dallas-based buyer for $13.13 million, according to CoStar. T Conifer Retail LLC, an affiliate of Dallas-based Tabani Group Inc., purchased the Safeway-anchored center at 27102-27182 Main St.

DaVita, others honored at DU, DMCAR conference

2 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Multifamily, Industrial, Office, Denver Market, Hospitality
The $110 million DaVita world headquarters building in downtown Denver on Thursday was named both the “Overall Project of the Year” as well as the “Office Property of the Year” at one of the largest and most prestigious gatherings of commercial real estate officials in Denver.The DaVita project in the Central Platte Valley at 2000 16th St. was lauded at the 18th annual Rocky Mountain Commercial Real Estate Expo and Fall Forecast sponsored by the University …

Construction under way on new Thornton project

1 November 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Thornton Development LLC and the city of Thornton celebrated breaking ground on The Grove, a new retail development in Thornton that will be home to a new Cabela’s. The 90,000-square-foot Cabela’s store will serve as an anchor for the development at the southeast corner of 144th Avenue and Interstate 25 in Thornton’s North Washington corridor. “We are excited about the future jobs and development that will grow on this site. This is a great day for th…

Hyder Construction awarded Merrick & Co. TI

1 November 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Hyder Construction was awarded the tenant improvement project for Merrick & Co.’s new corporate headquarters in Greenwood Village. The $3.5 million, 103,000-square-foot project encompasses three floors of all new finishes, including carpet, flooring and ceiling, new lighting, retrofitted mechanical and electrical systems, and a controlled access area with a dedicated mechanical system, cooling system and access floor.

Shaw Construction starts work on Aspen campus

30 October 2012 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Construction, Design & Engineering
Shaw Construction recently started work on the $23 million Castle Creek campus. The work, which is slated for completion in September, for owner AMFS/ACDS comprises the redevelopment of the 22-acres Castle Creek campus in Aspen. The redevelopment is a joint initiative of the Aspen Music Festival and School and Aspen Country Day School to provide facility for the both the renowned music festival and the independent, prekindergarten through eighth-grade school. Read more in the upc…

Williams named economic development manager

30 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Walter Williams was recently named Commerce City’s new economic development manager. Williams brings 18 years of experience in executive-level leadership, economic development, redevelopment and real estate finance to the position and will report to newly appointed Deputy City Manager James Hayes. Read more in the upcoming Nov. 7 issue of the Colorado Real EState Journal. 

DMCAR names president

27 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Scott Peterson, the director of office properties and general counsel with Ringsby Realty, has been installed as the the 2012-2013 president of the the Denver Metro Commercial Association of Realtors. Peterson will serve a one-year term as president of the association which represents approximately 2,000 commercial brokers in the Denver metro area. In addition to his more than 13 years of commercial real estate experience, Peterson, brings an experienced and pragmatic legal pers…

Market is back, declares Holsapple

24 October 2012 | Posted in Retail, Industrial, Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Northern Colorado, Land, Conferences, Economic Development
“You heard it here first: The market is back” was Dr. Eric Holsapple’s concluding remark based on information presented at the 16th annual Northern Colorado Real Estate Conference today in Fort Collins. Holsapple is executive director of Colorado State University’s Everitt Real Estate Center, which hosted the event with the Northern Colorado Commercial Association of Realtors. Job growth is “very healthy” in Northern Colorado and in Denver, hous…

Cabela's breaking ground in Thornton

23 October 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
     A groundbreaking ceremony for Cabela’s, the giant outdoor outfitting company, is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Oct. 31 at the southwest corner of 144th Avenue and Interstate 25 in Thornton.        The 90,000-square-foot store, which along with one in RidgeGate in Lone Tree, will be the first in Colorado. Both are scheduled to open next year.        The Thornton store will anchor the 63-acre Grove, …

Foothills Commercial to remodel corporate campus

22 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
A Denver office property is getting a new look, thanks to Foothills Commercial Builders. The firm is renovating and remodeling 155 S. Madison St. for client Ogilvie Properties. Work includes the renovation and remodel of an existing three-story, 2,200-square-foot lobby, including a 700-sf conference room addition.

Retailers bring new- to-market stores to Cherry Creek

22 October 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
Cherry Creek Shopping Center in Denver is adding a multitude of new retailers, including many that are new to the Denver market. True Religion Brand Jeans, Buckle, Madewell, Omega and Fresh-Healthy Café all will open by the end of the year at the center, which recently welcomed H&M, an expanded 19,900-square-foot Forever 21 and the region’s first Athleta. Read more in the Oct. 17 issue. 

ULI honors Red Oak Park in Boulder

19 October 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Green Building
Boulder Housing Partners and its Red Oak Park development have won a 2012 Global Award for Excellencein Real Estate Design and Development by the Urban Land Institute. BHP executive director Betsey Martens accepted the award this morning at ULI’s 75th anniversary national conference in Denver that ends today. Red Oak Park was selected as one of 14 global winners from among a broad mix of exemplary projects from around the world, according to Randall K. Rowe, Chair of the U…

Colorado Convention Center owes debt to ULI

17 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Hospitality
The Urban Land Institute’s fall conference that ends on Friday, in downtown Denver, is expected to pump $10 million to $12 million into the local coffers. But the ULI conference at the Colorado Convention Center, brings developers, designers, planners, financiers, investors, and others from the metro area, the entire U.S., as well as Asia, Europe, South America and elsewhere around the globe. ULI, however, has a claim to the convention center that no another group holds. I…

ULI conference draws 6,000 to Denver

17 October 2012 | Posted in Retail, Multifamily, Office, Denver Market, Hospitality
More than 6,000 developers, real estate investors, architects, planners, attorneys and others from the U.S. and around the world are attending the Urban Land Institute’s 75th anniversary convention in Denver. The event, whose theme is “What’s Next” ends Friday and focuses on larger issues of economic and political consequences, including global finance, innovation and, of course, potential impacts of the Presidential election in November. ULI, at the conf…

Phillips 66 scraps plans for Louisville research facility

17 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Land
Phillips 66 has scrapped plans for a global research facility in Louisville and plans to sell the 432-acre campus it acquired for $58.5 million. “After careful consideration of the needs of the new company and its employees, Phillips 66 has decided to sell its 432-acre property in Louisville, Colo. Phillips 66’s predecessor company, ConocoPhillips, purchased the Louisville property in 2008. As a result of the repositioning of ConocoPhillips into two independent energy …

FasTracks sets the stage for TOD in Denver

17 October 2012 | Posted in
Jim Mulligan of Snell & Wilmer reports on the state of metro Denver's transit-oriented mixed-use development. See more in the Oct. 17 issue of CREJ.

Douglas Co. District Court says show me the water

17 October 2012 | Posted in Land
W. Craig Willis, a Holland & Hart attorney, says that a recent court decision changing the development approval process may force development projects to take longer and cost more in Douglas County.In Chatfield Community Association Inc. et al vs. Board of County Commissioners, et al (Case No. 2011CV1437), currently pending in the Douglas County District Court, a group of property owners banded together to challenge the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners' ap…

Adolfson & Peterson completes Marquez Hall

17 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Adolfson & Peterson recently completed a cutting-edge building for the School of Mines. Nearly 1 ½ years after construction began, Marquez Hall celebrated its grand opening. The 64,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility, which has the capacity for up to 400 students, was made possible by more than $27 million in donations from alumni and others. Bohlin Cywinski Jackson in partnership with Anderson Mason Dale designed Marquez Hall. Read more in the Oct. 17 issue of…

Medical uses in future for Interstate 25 and Highway 52

16 October 2012 | Posted in Northern Colorado, Medical/Medical Office, Economic Development
The area surrounding Interstate 25 and Highway 52 between Denver and Northern Colorado been called a “medical desert,” but that is about to change. Major health systems have laid claim to land on either side of the interchange in Frederick. Exempla Healthcare just purchased 50 acres at the northwest quadrant for a future hospital campus. Longmont United Hospital and University of Colorado Health own just under 70 acres at the northeast quadrant, where Longmont Uni…

Denver South EDP completes in-depth look at jobs

15 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
The Denver South Economic Development Partnership recently released a new analysis of industry and jobs data in the Denver south region. Contracting with Development Research Partners, Denver South EDP completed an in-depth look at the region’s jobs, industries and growth opportunities to better promote the region as a business location and to showcase the area’s strengths. “We undertook this project with the goal of identifying and analyzing the number of jobs…

Springs apartment sale sets record mark

15 October 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A lakeside apartment community in Colorado Springs achieved the highest price per unit ever paid for a 1970s garden-style asset in the city. Colorado Springs-based Griffis/Blessing paid $16.5 million, or $105,769 per unit, for the 156-unit Bonterra Lakeside apartment community at 890 Quail Lake Circle. “We had strong interest from a number of buyers. This demand along with the unique nature of the property helped achieve the highest price per unit ever paid for a property …

Swinerton celebrates 70 years with initiative

12 October 2012 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering
To commemorate its 70 years in Colorado, Swinerton Builders launched Discovery Builders, a six-week educational program designed to expand awareness about the career opportunities available in the fields of construction, architecture and engineering. During the program, students at The Academy, a charter school in Adams 12 Five Star Schools, gained insight about a new aspect of the industry from Swinerton employees and experts, as well as learned how to design and build a structu…

Grand Junction to use new media to promote Mesa County

12 October 2012 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Economic Development
The Grand Junction Economic Partnership is taking a new tack to advertising the Grand Valley. GJEP compiled footage received from its Outdoor Video Contest into a showcase video filled with activities taking place in the Grand Valley. Local band Exit 42 granted use of its original song, Colorado Home, to be the music background to the film. Read more in the Oct. 3 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Breckenridge looks to a variety of green initiatives

12 October 2012 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Green Building
Things are looking green in Breckenridge. And it’s only getting greener. The town has a number of green initiatives under way and another in the works, all designed to improve the mountain town’s sustainability. Half a year after its completion, a seven-site solar array distributed throughout Breckenridge is performing at an average of 10 percent above expectations since their commissioning in January, while the SustainablBreck Business Program has been eagerly embr…

Stapleton among top 10 master-planned communities

10 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Metrostudy has ranked Stapleton in Denver the ninth best selling master-planned community in the country. Metrostudy provides primary and secondary market information to the housing industry and related industries nationwide. The ranking covers the period from July 2011 through June 2012. “This ranking confirms what we hear from homebuyers over and over again: The quality of life and the housing values and choices at Stapleton make it one of the most desirable places to purc…

Walmart pulls out of Ninth and Colorado

10 October 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has decided not to build its first urban-style store at East Ninth Avenue and Colorado Boulevard. The giant retailer’s presence has sparked highly publicized opposition from neighbors and some city council members. It appeared unlikely that developer Jeff Fuqua would receive needed tax increment financing approval with Wal-Mart on board. “While Walmart will not be part of the planned redevelopment of the former University of Colorado Health Scien…

Englewood City Council adopts economic development policy

9 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
At its Sept. 4 meeting, Englewood City Council adopted an Economic Development Incentive Policy. The policy is aimed at attracting of businesses and development-related projects that diversify the local economy, and enhance the quality of life and the fiscal condition of the city. The goals of the policy include creating a tool to assist economic development efforts; fostering diversification of the economic base; to expand the retail sales tax base; to assist in attracting desir…

SlaterPaull to design new Aims Community College facility

9 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
SlaterPaull Architects is taking inspiration from Aims Community College’s existing building in designing the addition that will double the Fort Lupton campus. The architecture firm was selected by Aims Community College to design the new $8 million facility, which is dedicated to energy technologies and agriculture programs at the Fort Lupton location. “We were inspired from the building already on campus,” said Jennifer Cordes, principal, with SlaterPaull. &l…

Cherry Creek North BID receives merit award

5 October 2012 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering, Economic Development
During its most recent annual conference in Minneapolis, the International Downtown Association recognized the Cherry Creek North Business Improvement District with a 2012 Downtown Merit Award for its role on the recently completed City and County of Denver Cherry Creek Area Plan. The BID was one of the plan stakeholders and on the plan leadership team. Additionally, Denver Community Planning and Development as well as Public Works were responsible for project management, staffing…

Pueblo selection a first for Austrian-based manufacturer

5 October 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Construction, Design & Engineering
One of the world’s leading chain manufacturers is linking up with Pueblo.   Austrian-based pewag, in conjunction with the Pueblo Economic Development Corp., recently announced that it will open its first North American manufacturing center next year in the Minnequa Industrial Park in the south end of the city. A ceremonial groundbreaking recently was held for the 55,000-square-foot facility, for which construction will begin in January. Read more in the Oct. 3 issue o…

Pinkard begins Mercantile Bldg. work

2 October 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Pinkard Construction is under way on the renovation of Mercantile Building in Lower Downtown Denver. Pinkard will perform core and shell renovations to the six-story mixed-use building, whose tenants include the Tattered Cover, as well as the four-story office building immediately adjacent to the west. Read more in the Oct. 3 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Construction starts on Aspen Art Museum

2 October 2012 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Construction, Design & Engineering
Aspen’s new art museum is taking shape. Construction started this month on the new 30,000-square-foot Aspen Art Museum, which will replace a 9,000-sf converted historic hydroelectric plant outside the center of town the museum has occupied for the last 30 years. Turner Construction Co., in conjunction with Summit Construction, are building the new museum located at the corner of East Hyman Avenue and South Spring Street in downtown Aspen, which will features 12,500 sf of e…

Owners ready to reposition data center at I-25 and 120th

1 October 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Economic Development
The owners of a former data center at Interstate 25 and 120th Avenue in Thornton are ready to take the building in a new direction. Comprising 232,883 square feet, the seven-story building at 12121 Grant St. is one of the few large blocks of office space in North Denver and one of the only contiguous space options in Denver of 200,000 sf or more. “This building, with its location, could be a very attractive option for a Class A, credit office tenant for a headquart…

REIT pays $90.85 million for data center

1 October 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market
A real estate investment trust paid $90.85 million for a data center and office complex in the southeast Denver metro area, according to public records. The 287,231-square-foot center at 11900 E. Cornell Ave. in Aurora is 94 percent leased. ViaWest, a co-location provider, leases the data center space, and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons occupies the office space. San Francisco-based Digital Realty Trust Inc., which specializes in buying and developing data centers, purchased the prope…

ICSC awards Aspen Grove for community efforts

28 September 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
The International Council of Shopping Centers Foundation recently awarded Aspen Grove its western region winner of the 2012 U.S. Community Support Award. The center was recognized at ICSC’s NOI+ Conference Sept. 5. ICSC presented one overall and four regional awards at the conference. Aspen Grove in Littleton was recognized for its “Queen for a Day” campaign. Aspen Grove teamed up with Bessie’s Hope for the monthly program, which honors a nursing home eld…

CSNA recognized for Bal Seal facility

28 September 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Construction, Design & Engineering
CSNA and Bal Seal Engineering recently received a citation for design excellence from the American Institute of Architects Colorado South Chapter for Bal Seal Engineering’s yet-to-be-built facility in Colorado Springs. AIA Colorado South named the project its Citation Award winner in the “unbuilt architecture” category. CSNA and Bal Seal are planning the 155,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at 1350 Belpratt View. The design was selected from 12 entries an…

USPS building for sale in Glenwood Springs

27 September 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
The only high-quality manufacturing grade building in the Roaring Fork Valley is on the market. The United States Postal Service’s former mail distribution center at 195 Center Drive, at the northwest corner of Storm King Road and Center Drive, in Glenwood Springs is for sale for $2.19 million - a price that is less than half of replacement cost, noted Craig Rathbun, CCIM, president/managing partner of The Fleisher Co. Read more in the Sept. 19 issue of the Colorado Real Es…

Architects need to use their ears

25 September 2012 | Posted in Construction, Design & Engineering, Conferences
Today's world is getting noisier all the time.  It affects everyone negatively, i.e., increased tension, apprehension, etc.  We need to think more about the purpose or use of interior spaces and design accordingly.  Here is a link to a recent TED talk concerning the importance of good acoustics in education, healthcare and hospitality settings.  With all the communications problems in today's society, we should be designing spaces with appropriate acoustics. &n…

Metro Denver job market seen nationally as bright spot

25 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Metro Denver’s job market continues to show strength and is recognized as a bright spot in national employment growth, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. in its Monthly Economic Summary for September. A recent analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield MSA ranked third among the largest metro area in nonagricultural job growth from July 2011 to July 2012, posting a 3 percent gain. “Key hi…

Peak Capital pays $12.2m for latest addition to portfolio

25 September 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
Peak Capital Partners is making plans for improvements at its latest addition to its portfolio. And Peak Capital’s not done. The Utah-based firm is looking to add two to three more Front Range properties to its holdings this year. Peak Capital Partners recently paid $12.2 million, according to public records, for Summer Grove. The 374-unit apartment community at 3915 Harmony Drive in Colorado Springs represents the fifth multifamily property acquired by Peak Capital in the…

Site selection experts high on Denver

21 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
About 500 business, real estate and political leaders this morning heard the perspectives and insights on economic growth from eight site selection experts. Site selectors are crucial because they advise clients on everything from corporate headquarter relocations to where to build and expand giant call and data centers. They crunch numbers, run numerous computer models in trying to identify the best fit for their clients, and ferret out information that can't be found with a si…

Bass Pro Shops to build 117,000 sf at Centerra

20 September 2012 | Posted in Retail, Northern Colorado, Economic Development
Bass Pro Shops has signed a letter of intent with McWhinney to anchor a major new development at Centerra in Loveland. The development will be built at the northeast corner of Interstate 25 and U.S. Highway 34. Bass Pro’s store will total approximately 117,000 square feet and will generate at least 250 jobs. “Northern Colorado is known as a destination for some of the top retailers in the country, serving not only the local community, but also attracting shoppers from …

Special due diligence considerations

19 September 2012 | Posted in Law & Accounting
As purchasers look to take advantage of recent property development trends, such as the growing popularity of development in downtown business districts and transit-oriented developments, they may need to perform due diligence with special, additional considerations in mind that differ from those considerations on a typical project in less developed areas. Because of the high value of each square foot of property and the need to make the most of that expensive property, purchasers…

Aurora waiving SIR rezoning fees through end of 2013

18 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Green Building, Economic Development
The city of Aurora's new Sustainable Infill and Redevelopment (SIR) Zoning District recently established allows for creative approaches to sustainable development and redevelopment within high-profile, targeted areas of the city, ultimately resulting in business growth and expanded living choices.To jumpstart the program, the city has decided to waive SIR rezoning fees through the end of 2013 within the strategic areas identified as SIR target areas in the city's Comprehensive Pla…

Pinkard Construction to complete TI project

18 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
Pinkard Construction recently was awarded the Sloan’s Lake Care and Rehab tenant improvement project. Owner Ensign Facility Services selected Pinkard to improve the existing, occupied six-story extended care facility at 1601 Lowell Blvd. Work includes improvements to the 6,800-square-foot ground floor, including a kitchen, physical therapy, lounge and office areas. Read more in the Sept. 19 issue.

Kuni opening ritzy new dealership

16 September 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
Kuni Lexus will open an eco-friendly dealership with country club-style amenities near the Denver Tech Center in the spring. As interesting as the new dealership is, there are a lot of moving pieces to the transaction. Read about it in the next edition of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.

Finance group expanding in Denver

16 September 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Finance & Appraisal
A New York based firm that specializes in funding the renovation and acquisition of apartments, is looking to expand its footprint in the Denver area. The ideal borrower is a savvy buyer that wants to build a relationship with the lender and its tenants. Read about it in the next edition of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.

Retail in apartment communities?

16 September 2012 | Posted in Retail, Multifamily
Does retail belong in an apartment community? That is something David Zucker, principal of Zocalo Community Development, explores in the next issue of Colorado Real Estate Journal. Zucker came to the conclusion that retail only makes sense if it provides an amenity to both the residents of his highrise apartment buildings and the surrounding neighborhood. Read about it in the next issue of CREJ.

Intergroup completes UE facility

14 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Intergroup Architects recently completed the 95,200-square-foot UE Compression facility in Commerce City.  UE Compression specializes in the fabrication and packaging of custom engineered gas compressor systems. The facility is located at 6471 E. 49th Ave. Read more in the Sept. 19 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.  

Luxury apartment building planned in Cherry Creek North

13 September 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
Denver based BMC Investments plans to develop a 250-unit, 12-story,$80 million luxury apartment community building on a key corner in Cherry Creek North. BMC purchased the corner at East First Avenue and Steele Street. The new development will include at least 16,000 square feet of retail space. Half the rental units will be one-bedrooms and the other half will be split between studios and two-bedroom units. The amenity package will include a roof-top deck with a swimming p…

Lichtenfels promoted at Johnson Capital

12 September 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Finance & Appraisal
Kristian Lichtenfels has been promoted to vice president in the Denver office of Johnson Capital, a national real estate capital advisory firm. In his new position, Lichtenfels will expand the direct capital advisory services for clients of the Denver office. Lichtenfels joined Johnson Capital in 2010 as a senior analyst and by the start of 2011 he was promoted to the position of director to assist clients directly in arranging capital solutions. Since joining Johnson Capital h…

Experts say spec development coming. What do you think?

11 September 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Conferences, Economic Development
Experts who spoke at CREJ's Office & Industrial Summit last week said developers are gearing up for speculative office and industrial development. "I think you will see speculative office construction throughout the metro area at a much quicker clip than might be expected," said Doug Wulf of Cassidy Turley Fuller Real Estate. "I would be surprised if somebody doesn't start building by the end of 2013 in the airport (industrial) submarket," said CBRE industrial broker Jim Bolt.…

Rustic Hills Shopping Center sells in value-add play

10 September 2012 | Posted in Retail, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A Texas-based buyer acquired the Rustic Hills Shopping Center in a value-add play. SpringsBon LLC paid an undisclosed amount for the retail center situated in eastern Colorado Springs at the southeast corner of North Academy and Palmer Park boulevards. The four-building center comprises 234,015 square feet on a 17.28-acre site. Read more in the Sept. 5 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Chotin, i2 start full-scale renovation

10 September 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Chotin Properties LLC has started a full-scale renovation of its Denver Tech Center building. Work at the building at 5675 DTC Blvd. in Greenwood Village includes all new mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems consistent with Class A properties. The general contractor for the project is i2 Construction LLC while Burkett Design Inc. is responsible for core-and-shell building redevelopment and architectural design. Catalyst Planning group has been engaged to act as the owner&…

Raymond James plans tech center

4 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Financial services company Raymond James has acquired 3.56 acres of land at Gateway Park in Aurora for construction of a 40,000-square-foot “technology center.” The company paid $1.02 million for the property at 4501 Airport Way, according to public records. Gateway Land LLC, an entity affiliated with Gateway Park developer The Pauls Corp., was the seller. Raymond James said it selected Denver for the center because of its “outstanding technology talent…

Natural Grocers signs lease for 107,000 sf at Coors Tech

4 September 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, a Colorado company that recently went public and is opening 10 new stores a year, is doubling its distribution space with a move to Coors Tech Center in Golden. Vitamin Cottage Natural Foods Market leased 107,000 square feet in a 149,628-sf building at 4403 Table Mountain Drive. James Craddock of Craddock Commercial Real Estate represented the tenant. Cassidy Turley Fuller Real Estate brokers Chris Ball and Esther Kettering represented the landl…

Work starts on renovating building into dual-brand hotel

4 September 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Hospitality
Alliance Construction Solutions has started work on the first project of its kind in Colorado. The firm has begun renovations transforming the former Xcel Energy building into the state’s first dual-brand hotel. Homewood Suites by Hilton and Hampton Inn and Suites will be housed in the 12-story building at 550 15th St. in downtown Denver and share more than 262,000 square feet of space. “We are excited to be part of such a new concept in hotel design,” said Jer…

Group buys Denver-area apartment communities

3 September 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
LYND, a national real estate investment, development and management company specializing in the multifamily sector, recently purchased two Denver-area apartment communities as part of a portfolio purchase. LYND, based in San Antonio, partnered with Florida Value Partners to buy a portfolio of 11 multifamily properties, with a total of 3,241 units, in a court-appointed receivership brokered by CBRE. The original loan balance for the properties was $200 million. The purchase price…

Mayor, DIA celebrate milestone for terminal redevelopment

30 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock and Denver International Airport commemorated a significant construction milestone of the South Terminal Redevelopment Program. Elected officials, travel and aviation industry members and employees impacted by the program all gathered to witness the ceremonial release and transfer of the Jeppesen Terminal roof tension cables to temporary structures that will support the tents for the duration of construction. “We are building Denver’s…

Design Concepts to work on nine school projects

30 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Design Concepts was selected to be the landscape architect and planning partner for nine school projects funded by the Colorado Department of Education’s BEST Program for capital school construction. The Building Excellent Schools Today Program is a competitive grant program available to public school districts and other educational institutions in Colorado. Administered by CDE’s Division of Public School Capital Construction Assistance, the BEST Program aims to allev…

Bank merger completed

24 August 2012 | Posted in Finance & Appraisal
CIC Bancshares Inc., a Denver-based bank holding company and the parent holding company of Centennial Bank  and Millennium Bancorp Inc. have completed their merger. Millennium Bancorp  is the parent holding company of Millennium Bank, based in the mountain town of Edwards.  The combination creates a  full-service community bank with approximately $400 million in assets and a total of nine branch operations serving the Denver-Boulder area and several key …

FRA opens new accelerator facility

22 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
Fitzsimons Redevelopment Authority officially opened its new $8 million, 37,000-square-foot Accelerator Building today, adjacent to its original Incubator Building at the Bioscience Park Center in the Fitzsimons Life Science District.   The FRA's original Incubator Building opened in 2000 and now houses 35 companies in different stages of development. The expansion will enable companies to move into larger, long-term space. The new space includes:  * Built-to-sui…

HFF makes hire in Denver

22 August 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Finance & Appraisal
HFF announced today that Jordan Robbins has joined the firm as a director in its Denver office. Robbins will focus primarily on multi-housing investment sales throughout Colorado and the western United States. Since 2004, Robbins has closed 96 transactions valued at more than $1.9 billion totaling more than 23,500 units. Prior to joining HFF, Robbins worked as a senior associate specializing in multi-housing investment sales at CBRE’s Denver office. Prior to that, he …

Subsidized apartment opening in Aurora

22 August 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
The Village at Westerly Creek, a three-story apartment building for seniors and disabled residents, is scheduled to open next week at East Kentucky Avenue and South Jamaica Street in Aurora. The $15.4 million development was developed by the Aurora Housing Authority, which also owns and manages it. The Village at Westerly Creek is the first of two buildings to replace the obsolete public housing development known as Buckingham Gardens.

Shaw breaks ground at Centennial InterPort

20 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Shaw Construction recently broke ground for what will become the fifth and sixth facilities at Centennial InterPort. Once completed, owner The SunBorne Cos. and tenant, Sierra Nevada Corp., will have two 24,000-square-foot hangars, a 7,500-sf office, an 8,500-sf office, parking lots at each new facility and an 80 space parking overflow lot. Also, the newly laid ramps and aprons will attach to the currentCentennial Airport runways.

Aurora Housing Authority finishes first phase

17 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
The Village at Westerly Creek is scheduled to welcome its first residents on August 28. The new three-story apartment building for seniors/disabled, located at East Kentucky Avenue and South Jamaica Street, has been in construction since September 2011.  The $15.4 million development is developed, owned, and managed by the Aurora Housing Authority.  The Village at Westerly Creek is the first of two buildings to replace the obsolescent public housing development known a…

Construction launches on Evans Station Lofts

17 August 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Construction, Design & Engineering
The Urban Land Conservancy and Medici Communities LLC celebrated the construction launch of workforce housing located at the Evans Light Rail Station in south Denver. This development will bring 50 new affordable rentals to the Denver market and represents the first Transit-Oriented Development Fund project currently under construction. In June 2011, ULC purchased the property at 2140 S. Delaware Street for $1.2 million using the TOD Fund, a fund created to preserv…

Rebound yet to take root in Springs office market

15 August 2012 | Posted in Office, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
The forecasted rebound in Colorado Springs’ office market has yet to materialize and has diluted some of the “bold enthusiasm” experienced in the first quarter, according to Cushman & Wakefield|Colorado Springs Commercial’s report on the city’s office sector.“The velocity of investor and tenant interest in Colorado Springs to start the year initially led us to believe that 2012 was going to be the tipping-point year to quickly rebound this m…

Front Range apartment portfolio sells for $90m

13 August 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A four-property apartment portfolio recently sold in the largest multifamily portfolio to sell to a single investor in Colorado since 2006. The Texas-based investment group, identified through public records as Archon Group, paid $90 million for the 1,164-unit value-add portfolio stretching from Aurora to Colorado Springs.  Read more in the Aug. 15 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Olympic-level curling facility sweeping into Denver area

13 August 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The Denver Curling Club is planning to construct an Olympic- caliber facility dedicated to the sport of sliding “stones” across a sheet of ice. The Denver Curling Center would be the only dedicated ice between Seattle and Bismarck, N. D., to develop and train youth, junior, adult, senior and wheelchair curlers for local, national, international, Olympic and Paralympics competition. It also would be used to host regional and national events. "It would have about 20,00…

Mixed-use tower to replace LoDo Office Depot

9 August 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Office, Denver Market
A 10-story mixed-use development called 16M will be built in place of the Office Depot at 1350 16th Street in Lower Downtown Denver. The building will offer 130,000 square feet of Class AA office space, 15,000 sf of street-level retail and restaurant amenities, and residential units on the upper floors. The developers, Integrated Properties Inc., Elevation Group and Sage Hospitaity, plan to complete the project by early 2014. Jamie Gard and Nathan Johnson of Newmark Knight Frank F…

Colorado Brownfields assists regional tourism coalition

9 August 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Green Building
The Colorado Brownfields Foundation recently completed the first phase of technical assistance being provided to a coalition of Colorado communities undertaking a heritage tourism strategic planning effort. CBF conducted a tour of cultural and heritage sites across south central Colorado; such as the towns of Canon City, Florence, Pueblo, and Trinidad that connect multiple scenic byways and are gateways to numerous mountain ranges and recreation opportunities. CBF met with local …

Butterball lists Longmont turkey plant for $16.5 million

8 August 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Butterball has listed its 326,309-square-foot facility on 27.57 acres in Longmont for sale at $16.5 million. CBRE brokers Jeff Counsell, Tyler Carner and Erik Abrahamson are marketing the property at 150 Main St. to food production users. It includes the main processing plant, a contiguous lab, parking, truck maintenance, spice blending and cold storage facilities, plus seven land parcels ranging from 0.07 to 12.27 acres. CBRE said all offers are being considered. Butterball close…

Metro West Housing Solutions recognized

8 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
Nonprofit Metro West Housing Solutions received a 2012 MetLife Foundation Award for Excellence in Affordable Housing for its work at the Residences at Creekside in Lakewood. Presented by Enterprise Community Partners and MetLife Foundation, the award honors outstanding leadership, green design, innovation and effective service provision in affordable senior housing. Metro West Housing Solutions received $50,000 and will be honored at the LeadingAge conference in Denver in October…

Denver housing, commercial markets point to stabilization

8 August 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Employment gains, decreasing vacancy rates in commercial real estate and strengthening housing trends are all optimistic indicators of the region's continued economic stabilization, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation in its Monthly Economic Summary for August 2012. According to the report, Metro Denver's residential real estate market is improving, with higher builder confidence, new residential construction and a growing num…

Work starts on 'distinctive' Steamboat Springs community

3 August 2012 | Posted in Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns, Construction, Design & Engineering
A distinctive senior housing and health care facility is under way in Steamboat Springs and designed to be a model for development for all future resort and isolated communities around the country. Construction recently started on Casey’s Pond Senior Community, a 117,487-square-foot facility comprising 144 units of three progressive levels of care. “We believe this will be the model for future resort and isolated communities senior housing design around the country,&…

Momentum in Denver's office market remains positive

3 August 2012 | Posted in
According to Todd Wheeler of Cushman & Wakefield, new and expansion office leasing activity through midyear 2012 is just under 5 million square feet, slightly up from this time last year but clearly holding steady as established companies and new entrants keep looking to grow. To read more, see the Aug. 1 issue.

Manufacturer grows in Littleton

3 August 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market
  A precision-machining company that occupied space in a high-tech manufacturing facility in Littleton made a long-term commitment to the entire 95,520 square feet. Premier Precision Group signed a seven-year lease for the building, which sits on 5.98 acres at 10488 W. Centennial Road in Ken Caryl Business Center, according to Kirk Vanino of Cushman & Wakefield of Colorado Inc. Premier Precision previously occupied about 83,000 sf on a short-term basis. See details in CR…

Briargate building sells to growing firm

2 August 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A Colorado Springs-based software and hardware design engineering company acquired a single-story flex building in Briargate that will accommodate its “significant” growth. Colorado Engineering, under the name Law Land Company LLC, paid $2.33 million for the 38,962-square-foot building at 1915 Jamboree Drive in Colorado Springs. “Our company has steadily grown since we were founded in 2003 and the acquisition is a culmination of our efforts,” said Nancy E.…

City 'excited' for ground-up retail development

1 August 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Construction has started on Promenade at Denver West, a 63,000-square-foot retail development at West Colfax Avenue and Indiana Street in Lakewood. Alberta Development Partners LLC is developing the 11.75-acre site, once home to Stevinson Chevrolet.  "The city of Lakewood is excied to see the southeast corner of West Colfax and Indiana Street redevelopment with a high-quality retail project. This highly visible corner serves an an entrance into the city, Coorado Mills and D…

ACG report details declining construction employment

31 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
Construction employment declined in 162 out of 337 metropolitan areas between June 2011 and June 2012, increased in 127 and stayed stagnant in 48, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said that construction employment declined or remained unchanged in most metro areas as the public sector continued to cut back on investments in new construction and infrastructure and economic g…

Prime West, Intergroup, DSP partner on reuse project

30 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
A unique reuse of a former industrial building is about to take shape. Prime West Development is slated to begin redevelopment this month of the former Gump Glass building at 1265 S. Broadway St. in Denver into a health and day care center for aging adults. The project represents the third Programs of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly that Prime West is completing for InnovAge Greater Colorado, formerly Total Longterm Care, in Colorado. Read more in the Aug. 1 issue of the Colo…

Boulder firm buys Tenth & Pearl for $16.1 million

30 July 2012 | Posted in Retail, Office, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
A Boulder private equity firm acquired Tenth & Pearl, a distinct office/retail property on the Pearl Street Mall, for $16.1 million, or $383.33 per square foot. Conscience Bay Co. bought the Class A asset from a California partnership in an off-market deal. The property is 96 percent leased to tenants including SendGrid, which occupies approximately 7,500 sf; Porzak Browning & Bushong, which leases about 7,000 sf; and Bacaro Venetian Tavern, an approximately 5,000-sf …

Harmony School Shops sell to Revesco in $18 million deal

30 July 2012 | Posted in Retail, Northern Colorado
Harmony School Shops, a fully leased shopping center smack-dab in the middle of Fort Collins’ Harmony Road retail corridor, has a new owner. The $18 million acquisition by Revesco Properties included 85,354 square feet of fully leased retail space and two undeveloped pads. Harmony School Shops includes a collection of large and mid-box stores and a high-visibility strip center fronting Harmony Road. “The lure of it is that it’s on the growth side and th…

Shaw tops out senior housing project

27 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
Shaw Construction LLC recently topped out the Shoshone Senior Residences in Denver’s Sunnyside neighborhood. The Burgwyn Co. and Newsed are development the two-story, 34-unit building, which will offer affordable housing for seniors. OZ Architecture designed the building, part of the Chaffee Park Senior Residence Community. “Thanks to a good design and partnering with a repeat project team, Shoshone has been a smooth-sailing project that’s set to finish on time…

Wellshire Arms sells

27 July 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
When the Wellshire Arms Apartments opened in Observatory Park a half-century ago, it was an instant landmark. The 12-story building was the tallest building in southeast Denver and sported features such as floor-to-ceiling windows that were unheard at the time.  The Denver office of ARA recently sold the building for $12.5 million and the new owner plans to spend another $3 million on it.

Olde Town Arvada takes off

27 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Economic Development
Olde Town Arvada increasingly is enjoying the cachet of other retail hot spots such as West Highland, LoHi and South Gaylord Street. Some retail tenants have even chosen to open their first store in Olde Town Arvada, rather than in downtown Denver or Cherry Creek North. Rents still remain a bit cheaper in Olde Town than in other places with the same type of ambiance.

Colorado Springs apartment vacancy rates down, rents up

26 July 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
The average rent in the Colorado Springs metro area rose year over year for the tenth quarter in a row, climbing 2.3 percent during the second quarter to $776. According to a report released today by the Colorado Division of Housing and the Apartment Association of Southern Colorado, the average rent for the region was up from $759 reported during the second quarter of last year, and was also up from 2012’s first-quarter average rent of $754.   The average rent increas…

RTD approves Kiewit proposal for I-225 line

25 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The Regional Transportation District Board of Directors formally approved a proposal by Kiewit Infrastructure Co. to complete the I-225 light-rail line to Peoria by Noevember 2013. The line would open in mid-2016 after about six months of testing.  With a vote of 14-0 and one member absent, the RTD Board's decision paves the way for the agency to complete another FasTracks rail line.  “The completion of the I-225 line will offer economic growth and employment opp…

Work starts on Moby Arena renovation

24 July 2012 | Posted in Northern Colorado, Construction, Design & Engineering
Pinkard Construction Co. recently started the $3.3 million renovation/addition to Moby Arena on the campus of Colorado State University in Fort Collins. The project, slated for completion in December, involves 6,800 square feet of additions to both the north and south concourses. The additions comprise a new ticketing area on the north concourse and a banquet room with a commercial kitchen on the south. Also included in the scope of work are additional restrooms, renovations to t…

Boulder industrial building goes Upslope

23 July 2012 | Posted in Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Boulder-based Upslope Brewing Co. will open a new brewery and taproom in Flatiron Park. The company signed a lease for industrial space on South Flatiron Court and will retain its existing brewery and taproom in North Boulder. Becky Callan Gamble of Dean Callan & Co. represented the landlord with Dean Callan brokers Dryden Dunsmore and Hunter Barto, along with Scott Garel of Newmark Knight Frank Frederick Ross. Eric Brynestad and Brady Alshouse of Jones Lang LaSalle represente…

AIA Colorado opens new space

19 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
It’s a new space for the American Institute of Architects Colorado Component that will serve the organization for the next decade – and completed at a fraction of typical interior finish costs. “It was an unheard of budget of $42 per square foot,” said Scott Lindenau, FAIA, design principal of Studio B Architects. “Usually, the budget is three times that but we were able to do a lot for a little.” Aspen-based Studio B Architects and Denver-bas…

The changing shape of big-box retail

18 July 2012 | Posted in Retail, Finance & Appraisal
NVC's Reagan Hardwick observes how market conditions and online competition are shaping big-box retail: Clearly there are merchandise categories that are thriving as a result of changing consumer behavior and some that are exhibiting signs of sharp decline. For real estate investors, consideration of tenant composition has become an increasingly important factor. Comparable sales data and market participant interviews indicate that investors will pay a premium for category-dominan…

Waldo Canyon fire to impact Colo. Springs apartment market

17 July 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
In the coming quarter, the effects of the Waldo Canyon fire on Colorado Springs’ apartment market will be evident, according to a recent report on the city’s multifamily sector. Apartments will see a period of increased renting from both those who lost homes and those who arrive to help with the recovery effort and rebuilding, noted Doug Carter of Sperry Van Ness/Doug Carter LLC, co-author of Apartment Insights’ Statistics/Trends report on the Springs multifamil…

Regency breaking ground on student housing

16 July 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
The Regency Student Housing Community on Thursday will break ground on the $12 million, five-building "Villas at Regency" at its student housing community. The Villas will be built on six acres north of its Regency student housing complex at 3900 Elati St., Denver. The Villas, serving students at the Auraria campus, adds an additional 120 units with 360 beds, increasing the total bed capacity at the Regency to 960. The addition will create the largest apartment community in Denv…

AEW pays $405 per sf for 1660 Wynkoop

16 July 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
One of the world’s largest investment advisers paid $26.6 million for a Class A office building across the street from Denver Union Station. AEW Capital Management bought 1660 Wynkoop from Legacy Partners for $405 per square foot, one of the highest prices paid for an office asset in Denver. An 11-story, 65,716-sf building, 1660 Wynkoop has 292 structured parking spaces – a rare amenity in Lower Downtown Denver. Cushman & Wakefield of Colorado brokers Mik…

Antero Resources to anchor One Union Station

16 July 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
            Antero Resources has signed a lease for 67,000 square feet of office space at One Union Station, launching construction of the building at the south end of Denver’s historic Union Station. East West Partners and Starwood Capital Group will break ground on the five-story, 110,000-square-foot building in September. The building, which will include ground-floor retail space, is being built for LEED Gold certification. 

Financing options for retail properties improve

16 July 2012 | Posted in Retail, Finance & Appraisal
Ed Boxer of Essex Financial Group says virtually all commercial real estate lending came to a halt in 2009 and began to recover in 2010. Lending on retail centers has taken the longest to regain its footing and lenders remain cautious when it comes to lending on retail properties but it has recovered and stabilized centers in good locations with strong sponsors can obtain nonrecourse permanent financing at historically low interest rates. The most desirable retail centers continue…

Bodnar works on $77.9 million sale of health care portfolio

13 July 2012 | Posted in Medical/Medical Office
Chris Bodnar of CBRE's Denver office and head of the firm's national Healthcare Capital Markets Group closed the largest multistate medical office portfolio sale in the country so far this year in conjunction with the health care group's Lee Asher, who is based in Atlanta. The $77.9 million transaction included 10 buildings totaling 315,179 square feet in Alabama, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, New Mexico, South Carolina and Texas. The assets traded to a health care real estate investm…

Walsenburg motel sells to out-of-state buyer

13 July 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Hospitality
An out-of-state buyer picked up a Walsenburg motel at a price of $5,405 per room. North Carolina-based 125 Walsenburg LLC paid $200,000 for the former Knights Inn, a 37-room motel at 22808 U.S. Highway 160. The buyer is expected to either keep the motel a Knights Inn or rebrand it, and make some improvement, noted Candace Seaton of Grubb & Ellis|Quantum Commercial Group, who listed the property. Read more in the July 18 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Shoe Dept. Encore opens at Town Center at Aurora

13 July 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
Shoe Dept. Encore has opened its 26,000-square-foot store at the Town Center at Aurora. The store, which carries brands such as Timberland, Hush Puppies, Life Stride, K Swiss, Reebok, Nike, Keds, New Balance and adidas, recently opened at the retail center at 14200 E. Alameda Ave. in Aurora. Read more in the July 18 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Brownsfield grant funded for cleanup of abandoned mine site

12 July 2012 | Posted in Western Slope, Green Building
The Colorado Brownfields Foundation recently provided a grant to assist Hinsdale County in the management and cleanup necessary to restore a heritage tourism site. The grant will assist in the cleanup of the Ute Ulay Townsite, an abandoned mine site,  located along Henson Creek, just outside of Lake City. The townsite comprises about six structures that are succumbing to weather and vandalism. The current owner wants to donate it to the community, however, a cleanup is neces…

How does the patient-centered medical home care concept translate?

11 July 2012 | Posted in Medical/Medical Office, Conferences
Read the second in Davis Wince Ltd.'s Sonja Mirksy, LEED GA, posts on the Colorado Real Estate Journal's Heath Care and Medical Office Building Conference and Expo in which she discusses how the patient-centered medical home care concept translates to health care design for architects.     

Charter named first CHPS-certified green school in state

10 July 2012 | Posted in Green Building
Alta Vista Charter School recently was named the first Collaborative for High Performance Schools-certified green school in Colorado. The K-6 charter school in Lamar was certified by CHPS, a national organization dedicated to optimizing K-12 learning environments and improving student performance and the entire educational experience. SlaterPaull Architects designed the school, which was constructed by JHL Constructors. The project includes a 23,000-square-foot building addition…

Hospitals need cash! How will they get it?

9 July 2012 | Posted in Medical/Medical Office, Conferences
Davis Wince Architecture Ltd. Associate Sonja Mirsky, LEED GA, has penned a three-part blog on topics covered at the Colorado Real Estate Journal's recent Health Care and Medical Office Building Conference and Expo. Mirksy's first post, "Hospitals need cash! How will they get it?", discusses how capital constraints tied with broader economic and regulatory improbability continue to plague health care systems.     

Foothills Mall in Fort Collins gets new owners

7 July 2012 | Posted in Retail, Northern Colorado
Affiliates of Walton Street Capital, a private real estate investment firm, and Alberta Development Partners, a Denver-based real estate acquisition, development and investment firm, have acquired Foothills Mall in Fort Collins. The price was not disclosed. The new owners plan to reposition the 753,000-square-foot mall, which is located off College Avenue and anchored by Macy’s and Sears. “The repositioning of Foothills Mall will represent a significant commitment b…

Berglund appointed president, CEO of Upstate Colorado

6 July 2012 | Posted in Northern Colorado, Economic Development
Eric Berglund was promoted to president and CEO of Upstate Colorado Economic Develoment. Berglund has served as the acting president and CEO of the group, founded in 1987 as a public-private nonprofit economic develoment corporation athat provides services to all of Weld County, since October. Read more in the July 4-July 17 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

RTD staff recommends Kiewit for I-225 light-rail line

5 July 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The Regional Transportation District staff recommended to the RTD Board of Directors to move forward with a proposal from Kiewit Infrastructure Co. to complete the I-225 Light Rail Line all the way to Peoria. The proposal also commits to completing construction of the line by November 2015, around the same general timeframe as completion of the East Rail Line. The Kiewit team also includes Mass. Electric Construction Co., AECOM, and RBC Capital Markets.Highlights of the Kiewit pro…

Texas group plans apartment community

5 July 2012 | Posted in Multifamily, Denver Market
       Forestar Group, a real estate and natural resource company based in Austin,  recently formed a venture with Guggenheim Real Estate LLC to develop a two-building, four-story community in the the Greenwood Plaza Business Park, the fifth largest business park in the metro area, It will be a few blocks from the Arapahoe Light Rail Station. The development, within the Denver Tech Center submarket, is called 360.° 

W.W. Reynolds retrofits nearly 1 million square feet

3 July 2012 | Posted in Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor, Green Building
Nearly one million square feet in Boulder is a little greener these days. The W.W. Reynolds Cos. has retrofit almost one million sf of its commercial properties over the past 18 months throughout Boulder County through EnergySmart and Xcel Energy commercial rebates. Read more in the July 4-July 17 issue. 

Hospice opens doors to new HQ

2 July 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Medical/Medical Office
Pikes Peak Hospice & Palliative Care recently opened the doors on its new headquarters facility, which marks the first time in the organization's 32-year history it has owned its headquarters facility. Read more in the July 4-July 17 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

REIT buys Sprint Nextel building in Inverness

2 July 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
Newton, Mass.-based Select Income REIT bought the Sprint Nextel building in Inverness Business Park for $18.9 million, according to public records. Square Six Partnership LLP sold the approximately 140,200-square-foot building at 333 Inverness Drive S. in Englewood. Jones Lang LaSalle investment brokers Mary Sullivan and John Jugl handled the transaction. Sprint Nextel has operated a call center in the building for several years. See the July 4-17 issue of CREJ for more details…

Levine stepping down as DU director

29 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
Mark Lee Levine is voluntarily stepping down as the director of the Burns School of Real Estate & Construction Management at the University of Denver, a post he has held since 1995. Levine will continue as a full professor at the Burns School, teaching real estate tax law, real estate securities, real estate concepts and other topics. He also will hold the Mark Lee Levine Chair and undertake other special projects. Levine could not immediately be reached for comment. The Bu…

King Soopers opens Marketplace in Commerce City

29 June 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
More than 500 customers were waiting in line for the opening of the new King Soopers Marketplace in Commerce City this week. The 120,000-square-foot King Soopers Marketplace is designed to offer one-stop shopping for its customers. Located at 15051 E. 104th Ave., the store concept is the fourth of its kind statewide.  “Commerce City has seen its population double in the last 10 years and more rooftops meant more expectations for services and retail,” said Co…

What would you do with $50 million?

28 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market
Kim Koehn of K2 Ventures received some insightful responses when he asked panelists at the South Metro Denver Real Estate Breakfast how they would place $50 million. • Ray Pittman, senior managing director of CBRE, would buy build-to-suit development sites at Broadway and Interstate 25, Lower Downtown Denver and near Denver International Airport. • Justin Rayburn, managing partner of iCore Global, concurred and added he’d be talking to big employers like Arrow El…

RTD breaks ground on Northwest Rail Line

28 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The Regional Transportation District has broken ground on the first segment of the FasTracks Northwest Rail Line. With approval this month of an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between RTD and the city of Westminster for a new station design near 71st Avenue and Lowell Boulevard. The 6.2-mile segment runs from Denver Union Station to south Westminster (71st Avenue and Lowell Boulevard).

Re/Max building achieves LEED Gold rating

27 June 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Green Building
Re/Max's 14-story Denver headquarters building recently achieved the LEED Gold certification for existing buildings. The office building is one of 62 Colorado facilities certified under the Existing Building rating system and 322 total LEED projects in the state. Read more in an upcoming issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.

Yard House on tap to open July 1

27 June 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
The Yard House Restaurant is on tap to open its doors July 1 in The Vistas at Park Meadows. Read more about the opening and other openings and events at Colorado retail centers in the Shopping Center News section of the July 18th issue. 

Colfax coalition receives nearly $1m brownfields grant

26 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Green Building
The Colfax Mainstreet Coalition, a partnership among the city of Denver, the city of Lakewood and the Denver Urban Renewal Authority, recently announced it received a $900,000 brownfields grant. The Environmental Protection Agency provided the funding that will be used to study the Colfax Avenue corridor to foster redevelopment of the street. Read more in the July 4 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.

Final piece to West rail line under way

25 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
RTD has broken ground on the final structure on the West Rail Line that will serve Denver, Lakewood, Golden and Jefferson County. The groundbreaking on the five-story, 800-space parking garage at Sheridan Boulevard and 10th Avenue puts RTD one step closer to opening the 12.1-mile line in April - eight months ahead of schedule.The structure was designed by Gensler and is being built by Swinerton Builders Colorado.

Alliance Construction completes Gateway hotel

25 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Hospitality
Alliance Construction Solutions has completed the $6 million TownePlace Suites by Marriott Hotel in the Gateway Business Park near Pena Boulevard in Denver. Read more in the July 4 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Office building becomes broadcasting facility

25 June 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
A Denver office building that was redeveloped by its owner is being turned into a state-of-the-art radio and television broadcasting, and media entertainment facility. See details in the July 4 issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal.

Pinkard pops the top on Coors expansion project

22 June 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
The pop's been topped on Pinkard Construction Co's latest expansion project, an approximately 40,000-square-foot addition for Coors Distributing Co. The tilt-up concrete and structural steel expansion was completed at the brewer's existing 210,000-sf facility in northwest Denver. Read more in the upcoming July 4 issue of the CREJ.

Springs apartment property trades hands

21 June 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range
A California-based buyer added to its Colorado Springs portfolio with the acquisition of the Fireside Apartments. WIP-Fireside LLC paid $3.95 million, or $36,574 per unit, for the 108-unit apartment building at 610 N. Murray Blvd. The community, which traded at a 10.3 percent cap rate, is situated directly across from a new Wal-Mart, a location that factored into the acquisition, noted Kevin Higgins of the Unique Apartment Group of Unique Properties LLC-TCN Worldwide, who handle…

Outlet centers growing

20 June 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Conferences
An audience member attending the 2012 Retail (and Restaurant) Conference sponsored by the Colorado Real Estate Journal on Tuesday, asked what panel members thought of the future of mixed-use developments. "Outlet centers are the new mixed-use developments," answered Michael Staenberg, prewident of THF Realty, which builds giant retail centers, anchored by stores such as Walmart and Target. He said in St. Louis, where he is from, there were now outlet centers and suddely three ar…

Construction starts on Loveland senior project

20 June 2012 | Posted in Northern Colorado, Construction, Design & Engineering, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
Construction manager/general contractor Pinkard Construction Co., with Aller Lingle Massey Architects, recently broke ground on an $8.9 million independent living facility for the Housing Authority of the City of Loveland. The Mirasol Phase II Apartment Building project is a 60-unit, three-story building part of the 25-acre Mirasol Senior Community campus which already comprises a 49-unit apartment building, 36 single-family and paired homes for seniors and a 5,600-square-foot ev…

Retailers can survive Internet

20 June 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market, Conferences
I ran into retail consultant Robin Salvagia-Lowder moments after she addressed a packed audience attending the Colorado Real Estate Journal's 2012 Retail (and Restaurant) Conference at the Inverness Hotel and Conference Center on Tuesday. I told her I really enjoyed her insights, but I was wondering how she thought stick-and-brick retailers could compete with buying online? Salvagio Lowder, CEO of CLC Assocaites, said she was glad I asked, because she really wanted to address th…

CREJ Retail Conference draws top-notch speakers

20 June 2012 | Posted in Retail, Conferences
The 2012 Retail (and Restaurant) Conference sponsored by the Colorado Real Estate Journal at the Inverness Hotel and Conference Center on Tuesday, drew a Who's Who of industry leaders. The Development Strategist panel alone, included: Michael Staenberg, president of THF Realty; Mark Sidell, president of Gart Properties; Chuck Woods, principal of Chandelle Properties; David Goldberg, principal of Alberta Development Partners; and Jon Hauser, president of Drake Real Estate Services.…

Work nears completion on mental health facility

19 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Medical/Medical Office
The Mental Health Center of Denver is wrapping up renovations to its new flagship adult services clinic. General contractor and construction manager Taylor Kohrs is leading the redevelopment of the 110,000-square-foot (including basement) building at 4455 E. 12th Ave. in Denver, which will consolidate several smaller clinics in the surrounding community into the property, formerly owned by University of Colorado Health Sciences. Read more in the June 20-July 3 issue. 

St. Anthony enters contract to sell former campus

19 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Medical/Medical Office, Land
St. Anthony Hospital has entered into an agreement with EnviroFinance Group LLC for the purchase and sale of the former St. Anthony Central Hospital Campus in Denver. The project will be managed by EFG Brownfield Partners, EnviroFinance’s Denver-based development arm. The agreement calls for redevelopment of the campus while preserving uninterrupted medical services. Redevelopment plans have focused on a largely residential mixed-use neighborhood with a variety of housing ty…

Tenant signs big industrial lease in Montbello

19 June 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Denver Market
OnTrac, an overnight delivery company, leased a 151,929-square-foot industrial building in Montbello Industrial Park in Denver. The owner bought the building a couple of years ago and put in nearly $1 million worth of improvements. CBRE broker Paul Kluck represented the tenant in the lease, and Tom Myers of Unique Properties LLC-TCN Worldwide represented the landlord. See details CREJ's June 20-July 3 issue.

Avon mixed-use property scooped up by investment group

18 June 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Mountain Towns/Gambling Towns
Local investment group Avon Mountain Center LLC paid $9.8 million for a mixed-use property in the heart of the Vail Valley.  Avon Mountain Center LLC purchased the Mountain Center of Avon, an 80,000-square-foot office/flex/self-storage building at 910 Nottingham Road in Avon in a cash-flow play, according to transaction broker Mike Pearson of NAI Mountain Commercial. Read more in the current issue of the Colorado Real Estate Journal. 

Veteran lenders join CBRE Group

18 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Finance & Appraisal
Michael A. Cantwell and Brady O’Donnell, two of the region’s top commercial mortgage brokerage professionals, have joined CBRE Group Inc. as executive vice presidents, based in Denver. They both are coming from Johnson Capital of Colorado. Cantwell was one of the founding partners and O’Donnell was a principal of JCOC. Also joining CBRE from Johnson Capital is David Treadwell,  a former place kicker for the Denver Broncos. Treadwell has an electrical enginee…

Walmart's Neighborhood Market Coming to Arvada

16 June 2012 | Posted in Retail, Denver Market
A Walmart Neighborhood Market will open on Wednesday in the Arvada West Town Shopping Center at 14605 W. 64th Ave. in Arvada. The grocery store will have 57,600 square feet in a former Albertson's that has been vacant for almost five years. Also on Wednesday, a Walmart Neighborhood Market will open at 16746 E. Smoky Hill Road in Centennial. On June 29, Walmart Neighborhood Markets will open at 3615 W. Bowles Ave., Littleton and 5141 Chambers Road, Denver.

Bal Seal breaks ground on $45m facility

15 June 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Construction, Design & Engineering
Bal Seal has broken ground on its $45 million, 155,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Colorado Springs.  The U.S. provider of custom-engineered, high-perfromance electical contracts and seals, is building its facility on approximately 17 acres at the southwest corner of Voyager Parkway and Republic Drive in the InterQuest buisiness park. The new facility represents an expansion and relocation for Bal Seal Engineering Inc. in the Colorado Springs market.  Bryan C…

Investors buying Class B office buildings

14 June 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
Local investors have acquired several Class B office buildings in Denver recently with plans to add value through capital improvements. The most recent deals ranged in price from $1.8 million to $6.85 million and included buildings that were anywhere from 58 percent to 95 percent leased. CBRE broker Riki Hashimoto, who handled one of the deals with partner Dan Grooters, said he’s surprised at the level of activity. You can read about three of the latest deals in the Great…

BRS celebrates opening in Brighton

13 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Green Building, Assisted Living/Senior Housing
The Eagle View Adult Center - a facility 10 years in the making - recently held its grand opening. Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture was hired by the city of Brighton in 2003 to complete a feasibility study assessing the needs of Brighton residents, creating a development/operational plan and designing the concept for a new senior center. See the June 20 issue of the CREJ for more details. 

Saunders Construction breaks ground on hospital

12 June 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Medical/Medical Office
Saunders Construction Inc. recently broke ground on the new Children’s Hospital South Campus in Highlands Ranch. The firm, the project’s construction manager and general contractor, was joined in kicking off the construction of the 175,000-square-foot facility with the architectural team of Davis Partnership and FKP Architects, owner’s representative Balfour Concord as well as Shea Properties and PrimeWest. See more in the June 20 issue of the CREJ.

Oakwood acquires Banning Lewis Ranch

7 June 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Land
Oakwood Homes, in conjunction with Mountain Real Estate Funding Corp., acquired the 2,600-acre Banning Lewis Ranch in northern Colorado Springs. The master-planned community was sold by a syndicate of former lenders, who took ownership last year. The property has “significant” infrastructure improvements in place and 251 permit-ready finished single-family lots, 88 paired-home lots and a development-ready pad for multifamily product. Oakwood Homes, one of five b…

Westfield buys Mountain View Corporate Center

4 June 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
Westfield Company Inc. acquired Mountain View Corporate Center from an investment fund controlled by Hines for $92 million. The four-building Class A office park on the U.S. Highway 36 corridor consists of 461,438 square feet. Tenants include WhiteWave Foods Co., TransFirst and Time Warner Cable. Dave Tilton of Newmark Knight Frank Frederick Ross Co. represented the seller. See the current issue of CREJ for more details.

Broadmoor preps for $60 million renovation

31 May 2012 | Posted in Colorado Springs & Southern Front Range, Construction, Design & Engineering, Hospitality
The Broadmoor is readying for a $60 million, multiphased renovation over the next two years designed to elevate the overall guest experience. Work includes the expansion and redesign of guestrooms and suites and extensive updates to food and beverage outlets and meetings, events and activity facilities. The initial phase of renovations was completed recently and included the re-opening of the Southlake building guestrooms and suites and a new look for the 6,300-square-foot Cheye…

Gaylord to 're-examine' Aurora hotel & convention center

31 May 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Hospitality
Gaylord Entertainment Co. has agreed to sell the Gaylord Hotels brand and rights to manage its four hotels to Marriott International Inc., and says it won't pursue a new hotel and convention center in Aurora "in the form previously anticipated." The company said it will no longer view large-scale development as a means for growth and will "re-examine" how the project could be completed with minimal financial commitment by Gaylord during the current development cycle. Mar…

Trimble breaks ground on Westminster campus

30 May 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering
JE Dunn was named general contractor for Trimble’s Westminster project. Trimble recently held a ceremonial groundbreaking for construction of the 125,000-square-foot, four-story campus.  The building represents the firm’s, which specializes in applying technology to make field and mobile workers in businesses and government more productive, new Rockies campus. See the June 6 issue of CREJ for more details.  

Medical tenants fill space in traditional office, retail

29 May 2012 | Posted in
Dann Burke, senior director at Newmark Knight Frank Frederick Ross, says that economic downturns motivate building owners to look for creative ways to keep their properties occupied until recovery brings increased leasing activity. An attractive option for traditional office and retail landlords seeking to fill space in the Front Range region is medical users. Look for the complete article in our June 6 issue.

McWhinney to develop 165,000-square-foot build-to-suit

23 May 2012 | Posted in Industrial, Northern Colorado
McWhinney is developing a 165,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution facility for Fiberspar, which provides composite, spoolable pipe to the oil and gas industry. The building will be located on 17 acres at McWhinney's Iron Horse Business Park at U.S. Highway 34 and Interstate 25 in Johnstown. CBRE broker Murray Platt, Mike Camp, Jim Bolt and Bill Thompson represented the tenant. See the June 6 issue of CREJ for more details.

Denver Animal Shelter earns LEED certification

18 May 2012 | Posted in Denver Market, Construction, Design & Engineering, Green Building
The Denver Animal Shelter recently achieved Platinum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification.  The designation makes DAS the first and only animal facility in the country to achieve Platinum LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The shelter was completed in June 2011. “This is an amazing accomplishment that shows not only our commitment to sustainability but also to the health and welfare of the animals at the shelter,” D…

CREJ launches newly redesigned website

18 May 2012 | Posted in
My first blog post on our new website. In fact, my first blog post ever! We've made many improvements to our Colorado Real Estate Journal website, making it more readable, more useful, more "like"-able (we're on Facebook now, too - but didn't bite on the IPO today). In its 20-year history, the CREJ has evolved in its newspaper design; hosted highly informative conferences; and embraced the digital world. We are continuing on that path of progress with the new website. Enjoy!In the…

Cassidy Turley Fuller closes flurry of deals in April

18 May 2012 | Posted in Office, Denver Market
Cassidy Turley Fuller Real Estate had a busy April, closing a flurry of sales and lease transactions, including some blockbusters. Many of the deals, including the 555,000-square-foot United Natural Foods Inc. build-to-suit handled by CTF brokers Alec Rhodes and Tyler Smith, were in the works for months. But there was a noticeable overall pickup in both industrial and office leasing activity that Cassidy Turley Fuller President and CEO Greg Morris says is continuing into the seco…