Alpharetta, Ga. — The $600 million Avalon will hold its grand opening in October 2014.
Alpharetta, Ga. — North American Properties Ltd. (NAP), through a joint venture with Sarofim Realty Advisors, has secured $126.5 million in construction financing for Phase I of Avalon, a 2.4 million-square-foot mixed-use project in the affluent Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta. Phase I of the $600 million development will include more than 350,000 square feet of retail, 100,000 square feet of office space, 101 single-family homes and 250 multifamily units.
The construction financing includes an $86.5 million syndicated senior loan from Wells Fargo Bank and Bank of America, in addition to a $40 million mezzanine loan provided by JP Morgan Asset Management. Eastdil Secured arranged the financing.
Phase I of the project is 75 percent leased. The 86-acre development will be anchored by Whole Foods and a 12-screen Regal Cinemas. Recently secured tenants for the retail component include Giovanni Di Palma’s Antico Napoletana, Bantam + Biddy by Chef Shaun Doty, Tommy Bahama, Vineyard Vines, Exhale Spa, West Elm, Kinnucan’s Specialty Outfitter, Sage Boutique, Free People, Janie and Jack, C. Wonder and L’Occitane.
“The collection of restaurants and retailers we have assembled is phenomenal,” says Mark Toro, managing partner of NAP. “Avalon is the first project of its scope to start construction since The Great Recession in the entire United States.”
Vertical construction on the project has begun one month ahead of schedule. Avalon will hold its grand opening in October 2014, with Phase II of the master-planned development scheduled to open in fall 2015. The multifamily units will be available for occupancy in January 2015.
More than 50 percent of the office space has been leased to tenants including Integrated Care Management and Wakefield Beasley & Associates. There is an additional 750,000 square feet of build-to-suit space planned in Phase II. Greenstone Properties is overseeing leasing for the Phase I office space, and will develop and oversee leasing the Phase II office buildings.
The project will also feature boutique and full-service hotels in Phase II. The boutique hotel will be located above a retail component. In addition, the city of Alpharetta has requested a public/private partnership for a conference center and full-service hotel.
Hoar Construction is the general contractor for Avalon, with Plateau Excavation serving as site-work subcontractor and Precision Concrete as concrete subcontractor. Benning Construction will build Regal Cinemas, and Young Contracting will build Whole Foods. NAP’s construction division, NAP Contracting LLC, will build the multifamily component.
Founded in 1954, Cincinnati-based North American Properties is a privately held real estate company that has acquired, developed and managed more then $4.5 billion in properties across the county. The company has developed 19 million square feet of retail and 13,000 apartment units in 13 states.
— Brittany Biddy