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NEWS ARTICLE: The race for space in West Palm Beach

Neil was quoted in the below article, written by Mike Seemuth of The Real Deal.

Real estate executive and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross scored the most recent victory in the battle of billionaires looking to build high-rise office projects in downtown West Palm Beach. Ross was on an apparent collision course with Jeff Greene, real estate investor and former candidate for governor of Florida, but it appears that New York-based Related Companies, led by Ross, has won out — for now.

In reaction to the August news that part of the downtown would be upzoned, thereby allowing Related to proceed with a 25-story office project called One Flagler, Greene shelved his One West Palm project, citing an “uncertain zoning climate.” The city-approved project was a mix of office space, hotel rooms and apartments in two 30-story buildings, designed by Miami-based Arquitectonica.

The cancellation of Greene’s project seems to have exposed limits to commercial development in the central business district of West Palm Beach, despite local efforts to recruit out-of-town employers.

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PRESS RELEASE: Downtown Ft. Lauderdale Office Tower, 1 East Broward, Trades for $108,500,000

–CBRE structures sale and financing of iconic Class A office tower to a joint venture between NAI/Merin Hunter Codman and Pacific Coast Capital Partners–

West Palm Beach, Fla. – 1 East Broward Owner, LLC, a joint venture between affiliates of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman and PCCP, LLC has acquired 1 East Broward, a Class A office tower in downtown Fort Lauderdale for $108,500,000.

The CBRE Capital Markets team facilitated the sale of the 19-story, 351,705 square foot, institutional-quality office building on behalf of the seller, Ivy Realty. Additionally, the CBRE Debt & Structured Finance team arranged acquisition financing of $77,465,500 with SunTrust Bank on behalf of the buyer. Vice Chairman, Christian Lee and Senior Vice President, José Lobón of CBRE oversaw the transaction on the sale effort, and First Vice President, Amy Julian oversaw the financing for CBRE working with Chief Financial Officer Dung Lam and Acquisitions Director Corey Winsett on behalf of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman. The CBRE team also included Senior Financial Analyst, Andrew Chilgren. Rebecca M. Cox, SunTrust Senior Vice President, provided the financing. Kapp Morrison LLP provided legal counsel to the seller and Shutts and Bowen provided legal counsel to the buyer.

The property is located on the northeast corner of Broward Boulevard and Andrews Avenue, in the heart of Fort Lauderdale’s rapidly expanding downtown, across from the new Brightline Rail Station. The 91% leased property includes a 19-story building and a 5-story building that are connected by a covered sky bridge to a 4-story parking structure that provides the office tenants with 772 covered parking spaces. The Property recently received an extensive renovation with over $4.9 million invested since the beginning of 2013 and serves as the new U.S. headquarters for KEMET Corporation, a leading publicly traded global supplier of electronic components. KEMET recently relocated its corporate headquarters from Greenville, SC to 1 East Broward bringing 150 additional jobs to the Fort Lauderdale CBD. KEMET joins several leading law firms who have corporate and regional headquarters at 1 East Broward including Becker & Poliakoff, Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A., McGlinchey Stafford and Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP.

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PRESS RELEASE: Smart, Green and Gold, that’s 951 Yamato

951 Yamato undergoes a series of property improvements, earning the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) prestigious ENERGY STAR rating

West Palm Beach, Fla. – NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, Inc., Palm Beach County’s leading commercial real estate services firm, announced the acceptance of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) prestigious ENERGY STAR on behalf of 951 Yamato, a 146,000-square foot, Class-A office building located in Boca Raton. By meeting these strict standards, 951 Yamato is saving energy, saving money and helping protect the environment by generating fewer greenhouse gas emissions than typical commercial buildings.

Energy efficiency and reducing tenant overhead costs were at the forefront of 951 Yamato’s recently completed million-dollar property improvement program which included environmental sensitive upgrades such as changing all common area lighting to LED and installing electric smart car charging stations for tenant and visitor use. A partial list of additional property improvements include: modern white, gray and striking gold exterior paint, new monument signage, new carpet and furniture in both the east and west entrances, as well as new tables and chairs in the soaring two-story, 8,000-square foot atrium where tenants can be found hosting events, taking informal meetings and gathering for lunch. A state-of-the-art shared tenant conference room is also being constructed at 951 Yamato.

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Need a big box? Four empty PBC retail spaces fit the bill

Article by Jeff Ostrowski – Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Entrepreneur Hannah Wickins scoured Palm Beach County for space suitable for the indoor pet park that she calls “Disney World for dogs.” She settled on the long-empty Home Depot Expo at Woolbright Road and Interstate 95 in Boynton Beach. Wickins signed a bargain lease for 20,000 square feet for her Dog Activity World Group.

“It was a very desolated plaza,” Wickins said. “But the location had potential. I knew it was only a matter of time before that plaza turns around.”

Indeed. The former Home Depot Expo space has sat empty for nearly a decade. But in a recent flurry of activity, Wickins leased the 20,000 square feet at the south end of the property, and Illinois-based retailer Camping World this spring bought the other 88,000 square feet for $8.25 million.

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PRESS RELEASE: NAI/Merin Hunter Codman Takes Six CoStar Power Broker Awards

West Palm Beach, Fla. – NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, Inc., Palm Beach County’s leading commercial real estate services firm, takes Six 2017 CoStar Power Broker Awards. Each year commercial real estate firms and professionals who achieve the highest volume of sales and leases are recognized with prestigious power Broker Awards by CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ — CSGP). For the past 15 years NAI/Merin Hunter Codman has been consecutively recognized in CoStar’s Power Broker Awards, this year’s awards include:

  • Top Sales Firm
  • Top Leasing Firm
  • Top Leasing Broker – Chairman, Neil E. Merin, SIOR, CCIM
  • Top Leasing Broker – Principal, Jason L. Sundook, SIOR
  • Top Industrial Broker – Principal, Jason L. Sundook, SIOR
  • Top Retail Leasing Broker – Managing Director, Bruce Corn

Jordan Paul, CEO of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman said, “We are proud that NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, its partners, and many of our outstanding brokers have been consecutively recognized as industry leaders by CoStar. This recognition reflects our market expertise and dedication to providing the highest quality service for our South Florida clients. Congratulations to Neil, Jason and Bruce on their much-deserved recognition.”

CLICK HERE to view the full press release.

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NEWS PICK-UP: Jeff Greene set to break ground for West Palm’s first new office space in a decade

“The Palm Beach Post reported that billionaire Jeff Greene is ready to hire a general contractor to build a 30-story office, hotel and apartment complex in West Palm Beach.

Neil Merin, chairman of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, told the Palm Beach Post that Greene and Related Cos. will need at least five years to lease the office space at both One West Palm and 360 Rosemary if they open simultaneously.”

CLICK HERE to view the full article link | CLICK HERE to view as PDF

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NEWS PICK-UP: Related plans new office tower at CityPlace’s north end

The Related Cos. plans to build an 18-story office building on the north end of CityPlace, a move that could boost efforts to link the West Palm Beach mixed-use center to the rest of downtown and further develop the city’s core urban district.

360 Rosemary is slated to rise at the corner of Rosemary Avenue and Evernia Street, the first in a series of steps designed to expand and update CityPlace, a shopping, dining and residential center built by Related.

The 285,000-square-foot tower will be across from Publix. The supermarket was courted for the ground floor space, but a Related official said this week that Publix is staying put at CityPlace. The office tower instead will feature another retailer.

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“It’s a big building for our market,” said Neil Merin, chairman of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman in West Palm Beach.

Related tried to build another office tower next to CityPlace a few years ago, but it was unable to obtain enough tenants willing to pre-lease space in the project, dubbed Gateway Tower.

In 2014, Related pulled the Gateway Tower plan. The next year, it unveiled a different idea: The Restoration Hardware furniture gallery, which opened last year.

Merin said Related, at some point, will need to decide whether it’s going to rely on pre-leasing to clinch a decision to build 360 Rosemary, “or if they’re going to build it anyway.”

CLICK HERE to read the full article.

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EVENT: Honda Classic Broker Luncheon

Tacos, cold drinks, good company and the Honda Classic – what better way to spend a Friday afternoon? NAI/Merin Hunter Codman and Fairway Office Center hosted the Honda Classic Broker Luncheon, a highly anticipated annual event, on February 23rd. Guests enjoyed a delicious catered lunch while rubbing elbows with other top area brokers. After lunch, brokers are bused to the course and receive Bear Trap access.

The event showcases available space at Fairway Office Center, a 224,000 SF office park consisting of three Class-A office buildings situated on a 16-acre campus within the PGA National Resort and Spa Community. The buildings provide first-class amenities, ample parking and security. Click here for more information and to view current availability.

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