IFM Efector to Relocate HQ in Malvern

by Natalie Kostelnie, Staff writer for the Philadelphia Business Journal

IFM Efector will relocate its headquarters to a new building that will be constructed at the Atwater Corporate Center in Malvern, Pa.

Trammell Crow Co. will construct the $15 million, two-story, 45,000-square-foot structure.

“We’ve been in the United States since 1985 and really excited about the next chapter for our company,” said Roger Varma, chief executive officer for IFM Efector.

IFM Efector, which designs and builds sensors used in a range of industries, currently leases 35,000 square feet at 782 Springdale Drive in Exton, Pa., and is nearing the end of its lease. It used the lease expiration as a trigger to explore its options for new office space and how it will use that space to position itself for the future.

“We’re a technology company and we worry about our brand and image in the market,” Varma said. “As a tech company, we want the right image.”

The company also found that it was increasingly using its space with its customers.

With the new Pennsylvania Turnpike interchange at Route 29, IFM Efector decided to look for new space in the Malvern area and took into consideration the driving distance of its employees. The company also wanted the design of its new offices to be contemporary with an open space concept that allowed more natural light to come in and more room where employees can gather, Varma said. It also features added amenities for employees, such as an exercise facility and cafe.

“We wanted to give employees an environment where they could thrive and have shared spaces that will encourage movement in the building for collaboration,” he said.

Bernardon Haber Holloway Architects designed the structure while Nelson is designed its interior.

Full story: http://tinyurl.com/l4fgaxg

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$85M could breathe new life into Chesterbrook shopping center

by Natalie Kostelni, Staff writer for the Philadelphia Business Journal

A partnership that owns the forlorn Chesterbrook Shopping Center has an $85 million plan to breathe new life into the property.

That work calls for razing a large portion of the existing center and constructing a mixed-use development with a community of townhouses with just a small retail strip. It’s what the partnership believes the site can sustain and, after struggling for so many years, also make it thrive.

“When we bought the property, we wanted to figure out why it was broken and how we could fix it,” said Robert F.Whalen Jr. of RW Capital Partners Inc., a Plymouth Meeting, Pa., real estate investment company.

The conclusion was that it no longer worked as a pure retail outlet.

When the 122,216-square-foot center was constructed in 1981, Genuardi’s was its anchor and the grocer had a devoted following throughout the region. For a time, the center held its own in spite of just 9,600 vehicles passing along Chesterbrook Boulevard on a daily basis. The grocer’s sales were just about $200,000 a week.

As time went on, competition ate into those meager sales. Trader Joe’s moved into the Gateway Shopping Center, which isn’t too far away. Wegman’s, Whole Foods, and even other retailers that incorporated groceries into their stores (such as Wal-Mart and Target) took business away. Then, Safeway bought Genuardi’s and the once-family-owned chain of grocers lost much of its luster.

The lack of pedestrian and vehicular traffic combined with poor visibility also hurt the center. Its design didn’t help either, Whalen said. It was no secret that a courtyard that was incorporated into the center’s original design hid stores and deterred shoppers from milling around.

The economic downturn was the final nail. The recession wore on and Genuardi’s vacated in 2010 its 38,502-square-foot store. Some of the other retailers closed up and many of its vacancies were never re-leased. A total of 78,960 square feet was empty and 21 of its 41 store fronts were vacant at the time Whalen’s partnership bought the property last fall.

Full story: http://tinyurl.com/mgsdpjn

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Fairview Plaza Trades for Nearly $12.5M

By John Jordan, a contributing writer for Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com 

The Fairview Plaza shopping center here has been sold by Cedar Realty Trust of Port Washington, NY to Cincinnati, OH-headquartered Phillips Edison-ARC Shopping Center REIT Inc. for $12.45 million.

This transaction that calculated out to $172.97 per square foot for the 71,979-square-foot shopping center anchored by Giant Food Stores. The grocer currently occupies 59,237 square feet and has been the anchor tenant at Fairview Plaza since 1992.

The property at 120 Old York Road, constructed in 1992, was 100% leased at the time of sale. Other retail tenants at Fairview Plaza include PA Wine & Spirits, Fulton Bank, Holiday Hair and Subway.

 “This property attracted regional and national buyers and was heavily bid because of its high historical occupancy with no tenant turnover since 2005. Having a well-established tenant like Giant Food Stores, who is performing well above their industry average, occupy over 82% of the GLA made the property especially attractive, which allowed us to seek premium pricing for the seller.”

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Three Tenants Renew at North American Bldg.

Antoinette Martin, the New Jersey and Philadelphia editor for GlobeSt.com

three lease renewals we negotiated at the North American Building at 121 South Broad St., for a total of 18,206 square feet.

In the largest of the lease extensions at the 21-story tower, the Urban League of Philadelphia renewed for 9,700 square feet on the 9th and 10th floor.  The aggregate rent sum of the lease extension exceeds $1.4 million.

Shein Law Center extended its lease of 6,610 square feet on the 21st floor of the building.  They are a legal firm that specializes in representing clients suffering the consequences of asbestos exposure,

The Philadelphia Musicians' Union Local 77 of the American Federation of Musicians extended its lease of 1,726 square feet on the third floor of the building. 

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