Durham, North Carolina.  Colvard Farms Developer At It Again.  Neal Hunter, who developed Colvard Farms, co-founded Cree and is now CEO of LED Lighting Fixtures, is set to develop another major project.  He owned the property in question and sold it to the two men who will now co-develop it with him, Alex Mitchell and Tyler Morris.

The site is off of N.C. 751 between Stagecoach Road and the Chatham County line.  The project calls for 500,000 square feet of commercial space, 1,200 to 1,300 residences, a YMCA, fire station, elementary schoo and civic building.  The Colvard Farms site that Hunter developed is only a mile from this property so you would have to say that he knows the area and what it can handle.  However, the property will have to get rezoing approval and there are environmental concerns by residents in the area.  As the project is designed to be environmentally friendly Neal should be able to handle those objections.

John Fish (919) 696-3474   Email: Marvmax@mindspring.com   Website: www.JohnFish.com

Durham, North Carolina.  Global Investors Sells Buildings for $115 Million.  The sale of Triangle homes is cooling off but there is still sizzle in the commercial steak.  The 1.6 million square feet of Imperial space Crown Realty & Development purchased is their first investment in the Southeast.  Imperial, a California company out of Irvine, sold an office park in California to generate the funds for the purchase.  They spent a year identifying growing, affordable markets all across the country and Raleigh-Durham came out on top.   Sales of Triangle apartment, office and industrial properties are running 18% ahead of last year with more to close prior to year end.

HASENTREE - Continued from Wednesday’s post.  On the second floor you step up into the playroom, media room, second floor family room, music room area - use it how you will.  On the lower level the feast overflows.  You see the billards and card table area with the kitchen in the back-ground.  Looking back toward the stairway you see the recreation area with its fireplace and flat screen TV.  To view these photos full size please click on each one.  To return to next photo click on - Back.

John Fish (919) 696-3474   Email: Marvmax@mindspring.com   Website: www.JohnFish.com

Durham, North  Carolina.  Heritage Square sold to Scientific Properties for $4 million.  The Durham shopping center at Lakewood Avenue and Fayetteville Street has 9 1/2 acres which Scientifice Properties intends to redevelop.  Their plans call for 780,000 square feet of offices, shops and residences.  They would like a retail development partner so, if you are looking for a way to enter the Triangle commercial market with a local experienced partner this might be an avenue to investigate.

John Fish (919) 696-3474    Email: Marvmax@mindspring.com    Website: www.JohnFish.com

BPG Properties purchased four Triangle Business Center buildings.  Yardley Pa. investment group BPG Properties paid $36.7 million for office and light industrial space in Triangle Business Center.  The 399,000 total square feet of the four buildings is equal to $92 per square foot.  The seller, New Boston Fund, received 28% more than they paid for the building in 2000.  Flex space which, for some time, has been the bane of a real estate investors existance in the Triangle, has now become a high demand darling.  BPG will spend several million improving the buildings.  Then, they plan to raise rates by $8.50 per square foot.

John Fish (919) 696-3474   Email: Marvmax@mindspring.com   Website: www.JohnFish.com

Durham, North Carolina.  America’s Capital Partners, a Miami investment group, purchased nine office buildings at the Meridian Business Campus.  The price they paid Prince Properties for the 612,000 square feet involved was $93.75 million or about $153 per square foot.  Buildings in Meridian are about 65% leased.  However, the strong demand for office space throughout the area and increasing rent rates make the availability of space a commodity to be desired.

John Fish (919) 696-3474   Email: Marvmax@mindspring.com   Website: www.JohnFish.com

Durham, North Carolina.  TME Associates sold a 182,165 square foot warehouse to Meridian Development Group.  The sale price was $6.2 million or $34 per square foot.  The warehouse is on 14.3 acres at 4400 Emperor Blvd. at Imperial Center.  The warehouse is fully leased.  The sale price was 51 percent more than TME paid for it in 2002. 

John Fish (919) 696-3474   Email: Marvmax@mindspring.com   Website: www.JohnFish.com

Durham, North Carolina.  Grosvenor Investment Management paid $105.5 million for 1.5 million square feet of space of Research Triangle Center buildings.  That equates to about $70 per square foot and is about double what the seller, Transwestern Investment of Chicago paid for it two years ago.  The space Grosvenor purchased  is 82% leased.  After the dot com bubble burst a few years ago, the Triangle became one of the nation’s worst areas for empty warehousing.  Now, it is a red hot area and premium prices are being paid for space.  In just over a year the Triangle has seen a 17% vacancy rate decline to just above 10%. 

John Fish (919) 696-3474   Email: marvmax@mindspring.com   Website: www.JohnFish.com

Cary, North Carolina - BDR Realty paid $1.5 million for a 20,000 square foot warehouse in Cary at 901 Sheldon Drive.  That’s nearly twice the price that the seller, Presspart, paid for it in 1992.

Durham, North Carolina - A 138,000 square foot warehouse at 323 Distribution Drive was purchased by Keystone Park Associates of Raleigh for $5.7 million.  

Raleigh, North Carolina - Custom Glass & Doors will occupy the 11,520 square foot building it just purchased at 6909 Glenwood Avenue.  The purchase price was $1.3 million.