The Sonesta Extended Stay Hotel in southwest Charlotte was sold to a New York-based nonprofit on Feb. 12 and is reportedly earmarked to become housing for veterans.

Marcus & Millichap announced it had brokered the sale, representing the private seller. The announcement declined to name the buyer, but Mecklenburg County records lists the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation as the owner.

The 75K SF property sits on 3.39 acres at 7925 Forest Pine Drive off Interstate 77.

WSOC-TV reported last October that the Staten Island-based Tunnel to Towers Foundation was looking to purchase and renovate the hotel site into 117 apartment units for veterans.

The foundation states it offers several programs to assist military veterans and former first responders, including constructing smart homes for those who have been injured, providing mortgage-free homes to families with young children who have lost a parent in the line of duty, and working to end homelessness among the veteran community.

The foundation pulled in revenue of $559M in 2024 with expenses at $381M, according to the organization’s 2024 IRS 990 form, published by ProPublica. Its total assets were $653M at the end of that year.

In mid-2024, the foundation was tied to a post-bankruptcy filing of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani’s lawyers disclosed that he was receiving just over $16K a month in income from his internet show and that the money was coming “mainly” from the nonprofit, according to a New York Times report.

Creditors sought subpoenas to further understand the nature of the financial agreement between the politician and the charity, Law & Crime reported.

The foundation did not respond to multiple requests for comment for this story. 

Rock Hill, South Carolina, 25 miles south of downtown Charlotte, might soon see a dual-hotel project.

On Jan. 6, the Rock Hill Planning Commission recommended approval of a rezoning request from an entity tied to Fort Mill-based Primo Investments, the Charlotte Business Journal reported.

The hotel owner and developer, led by Hitesh Patel, aims to rezone 13.2 acres at 1505 and 1515 Riverchase Blvd., off Exit 82C of Interstate 77, for a project that will construct two hotels on the site.

The Rock Hill City Council, which has final authority on zoning, is expected to make a decision on Jan. 26. 

If the project comes to fruition, the first phase will be an 85,700 SF, 121-room hotel. The second phase will be a 59,300 SF hotel with 116 rooms. The first hotel is expected to be a Marriott-branded Residence Inn, and the second might be a Marriott-branded StudioRes.

Patel’s team is reportedly seeking a master plan-commercial zoning designation. This is designed to allow for a mixture of retail and office uses in a certain parcel or area based on a master plan approved by Rock Hill. The designation allows for some flexibility as the plans progress. 

Patel’s Primo Investments has an active hotel portfolio throughout the Charlotte market, especially in York County, with five hotels in Rock Hill alone. It also boasts two hotels in Fort Mill, two in Charlotte and one in Concord.

Another high-end retail outlet in Charlotte will carry the Simon brand. 

Simon Property Group has acquired the Phillips Place mall in the SouthPark neighborhood of Charlotte, according to a press release.

Phillips Place is a 134K SF, mixed-use, open-air retail center with more than 25 retail shops and restaurants, a 180-plus-room hotel and a multifamily residential property on the grounds.

Simon, a retail REIT that owns over 90 malls in the United States, paid $144.8M for Phillips Place, Charlotte Business Journal reported.

Phillips Place sits on 15.4 acres and was Charlotte’s first mixed-use development when it opened in 1997, CBJ reported.

Berkeley Capital Advisors listed the shopping plaza this past July, marking it as 95 percent leased and noting that the three most recent leases rented at an average of $100 per SF.

Big retail names at the shopping center include Ralph Lauren, Peter Millar and J. Crew.

With the sale, Simon now has five malls and retail outlets in the Charlotte area, including the nearby SouthPark mall, the city’s largest. This comes as Charlotte is seeing a surge of new retail and restaurant openings across its malls. 

The company’s acquisition of Phillips Place comes at a time when quality malls have been making a comeback in the United States following the retail slowdown at the height of the pandemic. 

Nationally, retail foot traffic recovered to prepandemic levels by Q3 2024 and this year is projected to surpass 2019 volumes, according to CBRE’s 2025 U.S. Retail Market Outlook.

An Atlanta firm run by former Jamestown executives has acquired a landmark portfolio along the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail.

Asana Partners sold Krog Street Market, part of the Krog District.

26th Street Partners purchased The Krog District, a 180K SF portfolio that includes Krog Street Market, for $210M from Charlotte-based Asana Partners, according to records in the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority database.

The properties include Atlanta Stove Works, SPX Alley and the Butler and Gravel buildings, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle. It has a mix of more than 40 tenants in the Inman Park neighborhood, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

The sale comes seven years after Asana paid $45M for Krog Street Market and Atlanta Stove Works, according to the AJC. Asana subsequently bought SPX Alley for $19M, according to the publication. 

This isn’t 26th Street’s first purchase from Asana Partners. In January, the firm bought both Plaza on Ponce, which is home to Majestic Diner and Plaza Theatre, and Morningside Village for $67.5M.

26th Street Partners is run by CEO Shak Presswala, Chief Investment Officer Andrew Shaw and Chief Operating Officer Noah Peeters, who are Jamestown alums.

SALES

Greenwood Star Holdings purchased the 281-unit Parkside Apartments and the 96-unit Creekside Apartments in Doraville for a total of $47M, according to a press release. 

LHNH Parkside Apartments LLC sold Parkside Apartments, and LHNH Creekside sold Creekside Apartments. Both entities are tied to the same New Jersey address, according to records in the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority database.

LHNH Creekside purchased the Creekside Apartments in 2019 for $12.3M. Bisnow couldn’t locate property records for Parkside Apartments.

Greenwood Star bought both properties through its Greenwood Star Income and Growth Trust fund, according to a press release. Greenwood assumed a 3.6% Fannie Mae loan that is set to mature in August 2029, according to the release. 

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Atlanta-based Penler purchased Trace Midtown, a 290-unit apartment tower off Peachtree Street, for $94.3M in August, according to records in the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority database. Bisnow previously reported Penler’s acquisition spree in the Southeast, which included Trace, but the price wasn’t disclosed at the time. 

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GSL Properties picked up the 347-unit Manor Barrett apartment complex in Kennesaw for $106M and the 360-unit Town Laurel Crossing apartments in Buford for $110M. 

Both properties were developed and sold by Miami-based Related Group. The sale included a $137M Freddie Mac loan.

FINANCING

Courtesy of JLL

Highlands at Sweetwater Creek apartments in Duluth

Greystar refinanced a three-property multifamily portfolio owned in a joint venture between Myers Apartment Group and Torchlight Investors. The properties include the 290-unit Highlands at Sweetwater Creek off Satellite Boulevard in Duluth and the 200-unit Symphony at Suwanee Creek off Peachtree Industrial Boulevard in Suwanee. 

A third apartment complex in Austin was part of the $125.5M floating-rate loan.

JLL’s Gerard Sansosti, Peter Rotchford, Nicco Lupo and Clayton Ross arranged the financing on behalf of the owners. 

PERSONNEL

Retail brokerage firm TSCG tapped Kris Murphy as vice president of landlord services in Atlanta. She had been working for Columbia Properties, where she served as director of leasing and totaled more than $75M in transactions during her career. 

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Duke Realty alumnus Chris Brown has joined the industrial developer Dermody as senior vice president, tasked with hunting for new investments in the Southeast. Brown, who spent more than 26 years at Duke before joining Constellation Real Estate Partners in 2023, will also assist in leasing and asset management for Dermody.

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Avison Young tapped Jay Johnson as principal and executive managing director of the firm’s healthcare services. A 30-year CRE vet, Johnson will lead Avison Young’s healthcare division and is tasked with growing its market share across the U.S.

Johnson was formerly the national director of healthcare markets for JLL. 

DEVELOPMENT

Thompson Thrift is developing Autry at Tulip Grove, a 300-unit apartment community in Buford. The 10-acre property at 1325 Laurel Crossing Parkway will include two fitness centers, a heated swimming pool, an outdoor pavilion with a gas fireplace, a golf simulator, a pet spa and a 24-hour social club, according to a press release. 

The developer expects to open units to residents in January.

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Underwood Ammo plans to develop a $41M manufacturing facility in Effingham County, a development that could create 120 new jobs, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced this week. 

The rifle- and handgun-ammunition maker will break ground next year and develop the facility at the Savannah Portside International Park. The size of the facility wasn’t disclosed. 

Georgia Department of Economic Development Project Manager Connor Hall led incentive negotiations on behalf of the state.

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Atlanta-based RangeWater Real Estate broke ground this month on The Greene, a 300-unit apartment complex in Downtown Lawrenceville. The 21-acre site at 1032 Buford Drive is just north of the Gwinnett County Jail complex.

RangeWater is partnering with Brazil-based Kinea on the project. The Greene will offer one-, two- and three-bedroom units and will feature a resort-style pool, biergarten, coworking spaces and a dog park, among other amenities, according to a press release.

The Greene is scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2027.

LEASES

Global pediatric healthcare system Shriners Children’s has leased 159K SF at Science Square Labs in Midtown, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported. The nonprofit healthcare operator will manage its research institute and occupy several floors of the facility, according to a press release.

Shriners will bring more than 470 jobs to the facility.

The deal brings the 368K SF lab and office tower to 83% leased. The facility, developed in 2024 by Trammell Crow Co., is part of Georgia Tech’s Science Square innovation district. At full build-out, the district can house 1.6M SF of lab and office space. 

CBRE’s Eric Ross, Jessica Doyle and Graham Little brokered the deal for Trammell Crow. 

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Burger purveyor Shake Shack leased 3K SF with CIM Group for space at Centennial Yards, the $5B, 50-acre mixed-use development rising on the former Gulch site in Downtown Atlanta. The eatery is expected to open in 2026 at Centennial Yards’ 470K SF entertainment district. 

CORRECTION, OCT. 9, 5:30 P.M. ET: A previous version of this story contained an incomplete sales price for the Krog District. The story has been updated.

Tishman Speyer has completed its first office acquisition in its hometown since before the pandemic.

The New York City office giant, which owns Rockefeller Center and The Spiral, spent $105.5M on a fully leased, 12-story office building in Lower Manhattan.

148 Lafayette St., a fully-leased office in Lower Manhattan, which became Tishman Speyer’s first NYC office acquisition in more than half a decade this week.

Tishman Speyer acquired the 153K SF building, which was built in 1913 and renovated in 2017, from EPIC, it announced Monday. The boutique office tower is Tishman’s first U.S. office purchase since 2021 and its first in New York since 2019. 

Current tenants in the building include venture capital firm General Catalyst and cosmetics and beauty company Charlotte Tilbury. The acquisition was partially funded by a $68.3M loan from Blackstone Real Estate Debt Strategies.

 

A Newmark team led by Adam Spies and Avery Silverstein represented EPIC. It’s unclear who represented Tishman Speyer. 

TOP SALES

The Hotel Bossert has changed hands for $100M, Commercial Observer reported. The 282-key, 1909-built hotel at 98 Montague St.’s new owner is Nashville-based developer SomeraRoad, which plans to convert it into housing. The trade marks the end of a chapter for the historic, troubled Brooklyn property, which Chetrit Group lost control of in February after lender Beach Point Capital acquired it in a foreclosure action. Chetrit had owned the Hotel Bossert since 2012, when it bought it in a joint venture agreement with Clipper Realty before buying Clipper out in 2019. But Chetrit then defaulted in 2022, eventually leading to the foreclosure. Beach Point acquired the $112M note for the building last year.

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Clipper Equity has acquired 1800 Park Ave., a vacant Harlem lot owned by The Durst Organization since 2017, for more than $50M, The Real Deal reported. The 680K SF plot has changed hands four times in recent years: Vornado Realty Trust bought it for $39.5M in 2007 and sold it to Continuum Cos. for $66M in 2013. But Continuum, which had planned a 700-unit apartment building, fell behind on its loans, leading to the Durst Org. swooping in and buying $100M of the building’s debt. The Dursts then acquired the lot itself for $91M a few years later but failed to kick off its own plans to build housing before the 421-a tax break expired. 

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A Midtown office building has sold from one Milanese family to another for $22.4M, Commercial Observer reported. Pierluigi Tortora, founder of PLT Energia, bought 30 W. 56th St. from Massimo and Alberta Ferretti, who own luxury fashion brand Ferrim USA. The sale price is a whopping $19M above the $3.8M that the Ferretis paid for the 22K SF office building in 1994, PincusCo reported. PLT Energia plans to take over the building and use it for its own offices.

TOP LEASES

Atlantic Terminal, where Nike signed a 16K SF retail lease this week.

Nike has signed a 16K SF retail lease at Atlantic Terminal and Center adjacent to the Barclays Center, according to a release. The retail space with a street-facing entrance adds the athletic apparel maker to the roster of brands nearby, including Sephora, Uniqlo, and Dave & Buster’s. Inline Realty’s David Alani represented Nike, while Atlantic Terminal and Center ownership was represented by Cushman & Wakefield’s Alan Schmerzler, Diana Boutross and Ian Lerner.

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Consulting engineering firm Jaros, Baum & Bolles has signed a 68K SF lease in the Financial District at 55 Water St., Commercial Observer reported. The firm will relocate to the 53-story tower, which is owned by Retirement Systems of Alabama, from 80 Pine St., according to Colliers’ May Manhattan office report. The tenant roster at Jaros, Baum & Bolles’ new digs includes The Legal Aid Society, the New York City Board of Education Retirement System and human resources service Justworks. 

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Fisher Brothers signed tenants to 67K SF at 299 Park Ave., a 1.3M SF office tower in Midtown East, according to a release. Investment firm One William Street Capital Management has added 15K SF to its existing 30K in the 42-story building, bringing its total footprint to 45K SF. One William, which relocated from 1290 Sixth Ave. in 2018, was represented by Scott Gottlieb, Andrew Sussman, Ben Friedland and Lewis Gottlieb of CBRE. Private equity investment firm P10 Intermediate Holdings, expanded its space by 9K SF with representation from CBRE’s Silvio Petriello. Consulting firm Tailwind Management is moving to the building in a 14K SF deal. Tailwind was repped by Savills’ Greg Taubin. Newmark’s David Falk, Peter Shimkin, Andrew Sachs and Eric Cagner repped the landlord in all three deals, along with Fisher Brothers’ Marc Packman and Clark Briffel.

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AI-driven marketing intelligence firm AlphaSense is moving its NYC headquarters to the Hudson Yards neighborhood, New York Business Journal reported. The firm, which supports tech companies, signed a 10-year lease for 50K SF at CommonWealth Partners’ 441 Ninth Ave., relocating to the 25-story office building from its current home at 24 Union Square E., Commercial Observer reported. Savills’ Allyson Bowen and Erik Schmall repped AlphaSense.

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Elderserve Health, a senior care nonprofit that does business as RiverSpring Health Plans, renewed its 15K SF Midwood office lease, Commercial Observer reported. The nonprofit first moved into the Brooklyn office space at 1630 E. 15th St. in 2020. Asking rents in the new deal were $45 per SF. The building was owned by Urban Edge Properties, but the property was put into foreclosure in 2023 and last year was handed over to the special servicer of the CMBS trust that holds the mortgage. The tenant was repped by Cresa’s Bert Rosenblatt, Peter Sabesan and Alex Gerome. Ownership was represented by Michael Taylor of Lincoln Property Co. 

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Law firm Foster Garvey has signed a 10-year, 11K SF lease at Jack Resnick & Sons’ One Seaport Plaza, according to a release. The landlord intends to renovate the 1.1M SF tower later this year. Other tenants include WeWork, Seaport Entertainment and insurance firm Allied World Insurance. Foster Garvey was repped by Savills’ Nicholas Farmakis and Steve London. The landlord was repped in-house by Brett Greenberg and Adam Rappaport and by John Cefaly, Ethan Silverstein, Stephen Bellwood and Rachel Rosenfeld of Cushman & Wakefield. The law firm plans to relocate from 100 Wall St. to the 35-story 199 Water St. building in the fall, Commercial Observer reported.

TOP FINANCING DEALS

222 E. 34th St., in Kips Bay, where owner the Hakim Org. scored a $99.8M refinancing deal from Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. this week.

The Hakim Organization nabbed a $99.8M refi for 222 E. 34th St., a 480-unit residential building in Kips Bay, from Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., PincusCo reported. The capital replaces a loan for the same amount from the same lender, with an extended maturity date of June 15, 2030. 

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Rockrose Development scored an $80M loan for 110 Horatio St., a 10-story, 94K SF West Village multifamily property, according to a release. The financing — a 10-year, fixed-rate loan — was provided by investment manager AXA IM Alts, which was acting on behalf of its clients. The 152-unit property, which is a mix of studios, one- and two-bedroom units and five penthouses, is 99% occupied. A JLL team that included Geoff Goldstein, Steven Klein and Chris Pratt arranged the financing.

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Pro-H Development notched a $77M loan from Urban Standard Capital to finance a 101-unit condo project at 842 Sixth Ave., Commercial Observer reported. The vacant lot was once expected to become a 26-story hotel, but last year 842 Enterprises sold the lot to Pro-H for $30M after the planned hotel wound up facing a $33M preforeclosure action from lender Avana Capital. Now, the 27-story condo tower that will take the would-be hotel’s place is slated for completion late next year. A Ripco Real Estate team of Adam Hakim, James Murad and Alexander Korolik arranged the financing.

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New York Life Insurance Co. has loaned $60M to Altitude Capital Management for the 273-room Courtyard by Marriott New York Manhattan hotel at 135 W. 30th St., PincusCo reported. The sum replaces a previous $60M loan from Voya Financial.

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Community Preservation Corp. provided a $44.1M mortgage to Lemle & Wolff Cos. for a residential development in Sunnyside, PincusCo reported. Lemle & Wolff is in partnership with nonprofit Elmcor Youth & Adult Activities for the 42K SF development, which will deliver 55 units at 43-12 50th St. The construction loan also replaces a previous $6.6M loan on the property from Webster Bank.

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John Catsimatidis’ Red Apple Group refinanced its 86-unit residential building at 670 Pacific St. for $38.1M with M&T Bank, PincusCo reported. The loan on the 84K SF Prospect Heights property replaces a $49.5M sum from the same lender that matured May 30. Red Apple was required to make a $5.1M principal payment and a note modification fee of $190K. Its new loan has to be no more than 80% loan-to-value based on a new appraisal, and has a new maturity date of Sept. 1, 2027.

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Elmord Management netted a $34.3M construction loan for a nine-story multifamily rental project in Astoria, Commercial Observer reported. The two-year bridge loan for 34-20 38th St. came from BridgeCity Capital. Elmord bought the five-parcel development site for $12M from the Pinto Family, PincusCo reported. The development, which is expected to deliver at the end of 2026, will include 89 units and 31 parking spaces.

The ride is nearly over for the Six Flags America and Hurricane Harbor amusement park in Prince George’s County, Maryland. 

An aerial view of Six Flags America in Prince George’s County, Maryland

The park is planning to close after this year’s operating season on Nov. 2, Six Flags Entertainment Corp. announced Thursday. 

Six Flags CEO Richard Zimmerman said it determined the park is “not a strategic fit” in its long-term growth plan. The company said it retained CBRE to market the 500-acre property for sale as a redevelopment play.

“After reviewing a number of options, we believe that marketing the property for redevelopment will generate the highest value and return on investment,” Zimmerman said in a statement. “We anticipate strong interest in the property and will continue to strategically pursue portfolio optimization opportunities as we work to unlock the full value of our portfolio.” 

The park sits just off MD-193 in Bowie, about 14 miles east of D.C. It opened as a Six Flags park in 1999, but the property had previously operated as a wildlife preserve since 1974, The Washington Post reported. 

The park has 70 full-time employees who will be laid off when it closes, with severance and benefits, Six Flags said. Zimmerman called it a “difficult decision” and said the company will work to support its employees. 

The Charlotte-based company said in November it would consider selling some parks after its $8B merger with Cedar Fair Entertainment. Six Flags operates 27 amusement parks, 15 water parks and nine resort properties across North America. 

Prince George’s acting County Executive Tara Jackson and the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corp. didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The closure is the latest in a series of blows to the economy of one of America’s richest majority-Black counties. 

Earlier this week, the NFL’s Washington Commanders announced the team plans to leave the county’s Northwest Stadium, which is located about 7 miles west of Six Flags, in 2030 to play in a new stadium at D.C.’s RFK Stadium site. Jackson said the county will work on a “bold vision” to redevelop the Northwest Stadium site. 

In March, President Donald Trump said he would halt the planned move of the FBI headquarters to Greenbelt. 

The county also lost a major private employer in tech company 2U, which had occupied more than 300K SF in New Carrollton before going into bankruptcy and then moving to a smaller space in Northern Virginia. And it has more than 30,000 federal jobs and additional contracting jobs that could be at risk from Trump’s cuts to federal agencies. 

After claiming the third spot in 2024’s pipeline, Savannah leads the pack this year with 24.7 million square feet of space currently under construction, that’s according to the latest industrial survey by Commercial Edge. The current pipeline will expand the market by almost 17%, making it the leader in that metric as well. A majority of the pipeline can be attributed to Hyundai’s 17-million-square-foot electric vehicle plant, and it’s also worth noting that the market still saw a drop of around 18% compared to the start of last year in terms of space under construction.

As the fifth-largest port in the entire U.S. and home to the single largest terminal nationwide, its significance to the East Coast’s logistics network is key. A $200-million expansion of the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport has greatly expanded its capabilities. The market’s significance was best underlined when Hyundai chose it as the site of a brand new, $7.6-billion electric vehicle plant, driving local employment as well as further development of Savannah industrial space through the multiplier effect.

The $200 million plan to add significant new development to Birkdale Village has received a critical approval. The Charlotte Business Journal reports Jamestown received an okay from the Huntersville Board of Commissioners for a rezoning that will allow them to develop a 125-room hotel, 150 multifamily units, 26,715 square feet of retail space and a new, seven-story office building at the center.

Birkdale Village currently includes around 250,000 square feet of retail space, 50,000 square feet of office space and 320 apartments.

The new office building at Birkdale Village will total 175,000 square feet, including around 13,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space. The six-story apartment building is targeted for the site of the existing Dick’s Sporting Goods store. The seven-story hotel would be near Birkdale Village’s entrance off Sam Furr Road.

Development firm Gateway Jax will restore the Ambassador Hotel with the partnership of The Indigo Road Hospitality Group. Gateway Jax, made up of DLP Capital and JWB Real Estate Capital, manages a private equity fund focused exclusively on Downtown Jacksonville development.

Gateway Jax plans to redevelop the 100-year-old hotel into a minimum of 100-key concept with a restaurant and bar, conference space and other amenities. The Ambassador Hotel site will be integrated into Gateway Jax’s inaugural project, Pearl Square. The eight-block, multi-use development will also include 1,250 new residential units and approximately 200,000 square feet of grocery-anchored retail space, with abundant outdoor dining opportunities. The project’s first building, located at 515 Pearl Street, broke ground in October 2024 and is on track to deliver in 2026. Several other projects within Pearl Square will begin construction in 2025.

Gateway Jax is expected to invest over $2 billion into the Pearl Square development.

Atlanta hotel developers are working double time to ensure they get their projects done before the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches, which are just 15 months away. A Moxy by Marriott is nearing a construction milestone after finishing prepping the lot just six months ago. Urbanize Atlanta reports that as of this week, the 329 Marietta St. Moxy project has about two more stories to rise before topping out. When completed, the hotel will be 10 stories tall. 

Nexera Capital and Emerge Hospitality Group are part of the hotel’s development team, which is being built by Winter Construction. The 183-room hotel will stand next to Hyatt Place Atlanta hotel in a location easily walkable to Centennial Olympic Park, the Georgia Aquarium, Georgia World Congress Center, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium, among other attractions.

Designs call for a rooftop lounge, a bar at street level, a speakeasy, and several other gathering spaces around the property. It’s the towns second Moxy by Marriott.