Skyline Views

CoStar News Scoop: Savannah Firm to Build Element in Downtown Atlanta

Savannah Firm to Develop Element Hotel Near College Football Hall of Fame

Hos. Management Buys Site at Marietta and Mills Streets for 157-Key Hotel

For full story, click here.

Calif. Developer to Transform Forgotten Part of Downtown Atlanta

By Tony Wilbert, CoStar News,  Click here for the full scoop.

409 Whitehall St., Atlanta, is a contaminated site near the Garnett MARTA Station.

San Francisco-based Eagle Environmental Construction (EEC) plans to develop a mixed-use project with 512 apartments, 25,000 square feet of retail and commercial space and a 520-car garage plus additional retail parking.

Connecticut Alternative Investment Firm Acquires Former Equitable Building in Atlanta

ATLANTA (Dec. 17, 2014) - A New England alternative investment and asset management firm is making a decent-sized bet on downtown Atlanta. Five Mile Capital Partners LLC of Stamford, Connecticut, just acquired 100 Peachtree. the iconic downtown Atlanta office tower formerly known as The Equitable Building.

Five Mile Capital bought the black 32-officer tower across from Woodruff Park from America's Capital Realty. ACP of South Florida, which bought the building in 2012 and completed a major overhaul of it, announced the sale late yesterday. 

“As with all our acquisitions, basis was a major factor,” Jude Williams, ACP’s president, told Commercial Property Executive. “We paid only $19 million for a 622,000-square-foot building and three large parking decks. We also saw where the two owners before us failed due to their inability to reposition the property and at our low basis had the ability to justify a $17 million comprehensive renovation program.”

A Five Mile Capital subsidiary - Cayman Hotel Holdings Ltd. - owns one of my favorite properties - The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman, on Seven Mile Beach. It's pictured above.

In February, Five Mile Capital Managing Member James D. Glasgow Jr., will be a speaker at the Cayman Alternative Invesment Summit (CAIS), which will be held at the Ritz-Carlton. Dart Enterprises is a key sponsor of CAIS, which features several of the top minds in alternative investments and finance.

- Tony Wilbert

Downtown Atlanta Will Be Center of Real Estate World This Week

ATLANTA (Nov. 3, 2014) - By mid-week, downtown Atlanta will become the center of the REIT industry, with an unprecedented number of real estate CEOs gathering in the city that never stops building.

The National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, or NAREIT, kicks off REIT World - its "Annual Convention of All Things REIT" - on Tuesday evening at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis. The convention runs through Friday morning.

That Atlanta is playing host to this influential conference that attracts top investors, money managers, bankers, and of course, developers, brokers and real estate press, is impressive. Atlanta has a greast tradition of entrepreneurs creating REITs, including John Williams (Post Properties), Tom Cousins (Cousins Properties) and Ray Weeks and his dad (Weeks Corp./Duke-Weeks). In fact, Atlanta used to be a key player in the retail REIT industry with JDN Realty (defunct), and IRT Property Co.; and in the mortgage REIT industry that dried up during recent downcycles. 

The list of REIT CEOs who heading to Atlanta this week for REIT World is impressive: David Neithercut, presdent and CEO, Equity Residential; Sandeep Mathrani, CEO, General Growth Propertties; Timothy Naughton, CEO, AvalonBay Communities; Jon Bortz, chairman;  Art Coppola, chairman and CEO, Macerich; Donald Wood, president and CEO, Federal Realty Investment Trust; and CEO, Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, which made a splash when it acquired the InterContinental Buckhead Hotel in 2010.

REIT World also marks the first appearance at a major event by PulteGroup President, Chairman and CEO Richard Dugas, who moved his company and himself to Atlanta earlier this year. Dugas (in photo) is a panelist on Wednesday's Session Two, "Gimme Shelter - Housing America."

We're sure Cousins and Post will be well represented as well. 

 

CrowdVested Kicks Off Equity Crowd Funding in Georgia with Real Estate Project in East Atlanta

ATLANTA ((May 16, 2014) - Commercial real estate is the ideal vertical for crowdfunding, according to a new white paper from CrowdVested. CrowdVested, a Georgia-based online crowdfunding platform for real estate, is currently hosting its first campaign, a retail project in East Atlanta with Paces Properties.  

In the white paper, CrowdVested explains why real estate works for crowdfunding, the history of real estate crowdfunding and what potential investors should know. 

CrowdVested and Paces Properties celebrated the start of equity real estate crowdfunding in Georgia Thursday night at The Glenwood in East Atlanta. The Glenwood Pub is part of the Glenwood Avenue Retail property Paces plans to acquire, and CrowdVested will enable Georgia residents to invest in the renovation of the building.

Dozens of neighbors and friends packed the pub to talk about how they could own a piece of their neighborhood. The local residents who attended included Sibley Fleming, national real estate editor of Bisnow, and former Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Kristi Swartz, now Southeast bureau chief of EnergyWire. 

In the photo above, Bisnow's Sibley Fleming interviews CrowdVested founder and CEO Grady Thrasher outside The Glenwood.

 

Energy Efficiency from Georgia Pacific, JLL Brightens Atlanta's Skyline

Very cool infographic from Georgia-Pacific about how its sustainable practices at Georgia-Pacific Center are paying off. Jones Lang LaSalle manages the iconic tower that Invest Atlanta also calls home.

The Wilbert Group is honored to have just completed a project on behalf of the Georgia-Pacific Foundation.

Bisnow Nails Big Scoop About Coca-Cola Moving 2,000 Jobs to Downtown Atlanta

Gotta give credit to Jarred Schenke of Bisnow Atlanta. On April 24, he broke the news Coca-Cola was eyeing SunTrust Plaza in downtown Atlanta for a multi-floor lease. On June 10, the company confirmed it will move 2,000 IT workers from suburban Cobb County to the Portman-designed SunTrust Plaza on the northern edge of downtown. In photo, SunTrust Plaza stands tall on the right border. The soon-to-be-former home of the Coke workers is to the northwest, under the clouds.

Atlanta Mayor Signs Off on Funding for Critical Real Estate Project

Invest Atlanta Board Approves Funding for New Multi-Purpose Stadium

NFL’s Atlanta Falcons Will Begin Play at New Facility in 2017

(Note: The Wilbert Group issued the following release on behalf of client Invest Atlanta)

ATLANTA (April 4, 2013) – Invest Atlanta’s board of directors today approved two resolutions to help fund a new multi-purpose stadium and spur economic development in the neighborhoods surrounding it.

The board approved a bond inducement of $200 million, to be paid with revenue from the city’s hotel-motel tax, to help fund the $1 billion retractable-roof stadium. The hotel-motel tax revenue is the only public funding source for the stadium, which is planned to be built adjacent to the Georgia Dome. The remaining cost of the construction of the new stadium, including any cost overruns, will come from the Falcons and other private funds.
Invest Atlanta’s board also approved the allotment of $15 million in Westside Tax Allocation Funds for economic development projects that leverage private sector investment in English Avenue, Vine City and Castleberry Hill neighborhoods that surround the site of the new stadium.
“We are going to build a new best-in-class facility that will help us attract new events and keep the Atlanta Falcons downtown for the next 30 years,” said Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, who is also Chairman of the Invest Atlanta Board of Directors. “I am pleased that the Invest Atlanta board approved the bond resolution for a new stadium by 8-1, following a very strong 11-4 vote of confidence in this project by the Atlanta City Council in March. The new stadium will be a key anchor for the city's $10 billion annual tourism and convention business, and I look forward to the economic development activities that will occur in the nearby historic Vine City, English Avenue and Castleberry Hill neighborhoods as a result of this transaction."
The Invest Atlanta votes mark the final steps in lining up financing for the new stadium, which will be home to the Falcons for at least 30 years after it opens for the 2017 NFL season.

“We thank Invest Atlanta and its board of directors for their vote of support today. We are grateful for their thoughtful consideration, not only of the agreements they are party to, but of the overall new stadium project,” Atlanta Falcons Owner & Chairman Arthur M. Blank said in a statement issued following the meeting. “The approval of this project is the result of strong collaboration between a number of significant contributors: the Mayor’s office, Atlanta City Council, Invest Atlanta, the Governor’s office, the Georgia World Congress Center and the Atlanta Falcons.

“We believe the final agreements put in place over the last several weeks represent a solution that serves the best interests of all involved, including the neighborhoods surrounding the new stadium.”

The stadium will spur redevelopment in adjacent neighborhoods and help the city’s economic development effort that results in the creation of new jobs, Invest Atlanta President and CEO Brian P. McGowan said.

“Invest Atlanta is proud to have played a key role in the funding of the new stadium,” McGowan said. “A world-class city such as Atlanta needs world-class amenities, and the new stadium will be just that.”

In addition to the $15 million in TAD funding to revitalize neighborhoods surrounding the new stadium, The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation also will contribute $15 million toward community enhancements.


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About Invest Atlanta

Invest Atlanta is the official economic development authority for the City of Atlanta. Its purpose is to strengthen Atlanta’s economy and global competitiveness in order to create increased opportunity and prosperity for the people of Atlanta.

Chaired by the Mayor of Atlanta, and governed by a nine-member board of directors, Invest Atlanta’s programs and initiatives focus on developing and fostering public/private partnerships to create jobs, grow the economy, revitalize neighborhoods, attract investment, spur innovation, and encourage entrepreneurship. To achieve these goals, Invest Atlanta leverages the benefits of bond financing, revolving loan funds, housing financing, tax increment financing (TIF), and tax credits.

For more information on how Invest Atlanta can provide solutions for you or your business, contact us at: 404-880-4100, e-mail: [email protected] or visit us at: www.InvestAtlanta.com. To get the latest updates, follow us on Twitter @InvestAtlanta, and Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/investatlanta.



For More Information, Contact:
Tony Wilbert
Wilbert News Strategies
404-965-5022 (O)
404-405-3656 (C)
[email protected]

“The amount of information this conference offers is incredible." - #NAREE13 in Atlanta

The Wilbert Group is proud to provide PR and communications services for NAREE's 47th Annual Conference, to be held June 5-8 in downtown Atlanta.

BOCA RATON, Fla. (March. 20, 2013)—Hundreds of real estate journalists, freelance writers and communicators will gather in Atlanta June 5-8 at the National Association of Real Estate Editors (NAREE) 47th Annual Real Estate Journalism Conference.

 
Each year, the conference highlights important topics and emerging trends in the real estate industry – both residential and commercial. Urban planners, economists, architects, builders and developers will discuss current issues affecting real estate finance, development and sales.
 
NAREE University, one of the conference’s main elements, will offer journalism workshops and discussion groups focusing on the new age of journalism from social media sources and outlets to multimedia blogging.
 
“The amount of information this conference offers is incredible,” says Kris Hudson, 2013 NAREE president and Wall Street Journal reporter. “When writing about real estate, one has to cover several facets of the industry, and the NAREE Journalism Conference touches on them all.”
 
Conference chairman and NAREE board member, Matt Valley, says the annual conference is a great resource for real estate journalists. “Reporters and editors who attend will leave Atlanta with several stories and many story ideas on national trends,” says Valley, editorial director of France Media's regional commercial real estate magazines and a journalist who has been covering the industry for 18 years.
 
Conference sessions will include topics such as the housing market and sustainability, multi-family development, walkability, vacation homes, mortgages, residential brokerage, hotels, shopping center development, and more.
 
Atlanta, home to the busiest airport in the world, boasts CNN Studios, the World of Coca-Cola Museum, Centennial Olympic Park, as well as other landmarks and global corporations.
 
Mary Doyle-Kimball, executive director of NAREE, said Atlanta’s active development scene and lively atmosphere make the city an ideal host. “I’m thrilled experts in the field will be able to exchange ideas in such a vibrant city,” says Doyle-Kimball. “The conference offers a networking experience for journalists and communications professionals that is unmatched in the industry. NAREE is a network beyond its name, and that can truly be seen in this event.”
 
One of the conference’s highlights will be NAREE's 17th Annual Meet the Press held Friday, June 7. The event matches editors and journalists with publicists and freelancers to discuss topics in real estate reporting during quick, three-minute interviews. Winners of the 63rd Annual Real Estate Journalism Competition and the Bruss Real Estate Book Awards will also be unveiled during the conference.
 
NAREE is open to all journalists, authors, editors and communicators covering the broad field of real estate. Register for the conference online at http://www.NAREE.org.
 
The NAREE Conference will be headquartered at the Hilton Atlanta in downtown, 255 Courtland St NE Atlanta, GA 30303. For hotel reservations call 800-HILTONS and ask for the low "NAREE Rate" of $149.
 
The conference will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 5 and end Saturday, June 8 by noon.
 
About NAREE:
Celebrating 84 years of service to journalists—covering residential, commercial and financial real estate, home and urban design, and green building—NAREE helps members advance their careers as editors, staff writers columnists, freelancers, bloggers and authors. Founded in 1929, the organization has 650 members nationwide.
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CONTACTS: Mary Doyle-Kimball, 561-391-3599, [email protected]
Tony Wilbert, 404-965-5022, [email protected]

MetLife Looks to Refinance Georgia-Pacific HQ

ATLANTA (March 23, 2012) - MetLife and Georgia-Pacific are close to picking one of three banks to refinance the partners' $112 loan on Georgia-Pacific Center, Commercial Mortgage Alert says. Cushman & Wakefield is advising the MetLife-Georgia-Pacific team. The 1.1 million-square-foot pink-granite tower is 88 percent occupied with G-P taking up three-quarters of the space, CMA says.

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