by Jill Jamieson-Nichols
An affiliate of KBS Real
Estate Investment Trust II
has sold Crescent VIII, one
in a series of Denver Tech
Center buildings that curve
around the intersection of
East Belleview Avenue and
DTC Boulevard.
KBSII Crescent VIII LLC
received $17.25 million for
the 82,265-sf building at
8350 E. Crescent Parkway
in Greenwood Village. KBS
acquired the building for
$12.5 million in 2010 and
spent $2 million on capital
improvements, lease com-
missions and other expens-
es, according to a U.S.
Securities and Exchange
Commission filing.
The sale price, net of con-
cessions and credits, but
excluding closing costs and
expenses, was approxi-
mately $199 per sf, com-
pared with a cost per sf of
$176, the filing states.
American
National
Insurance Co., advised by
PM Realty Group, bought
the four-
s t o r y
b u i l d -
ing in a
deal that
d r e w
“ v e r y ,
v e r y
robus t ”
activity,
a c c o rd -
ing
to
Mike Winn of CBRE.
Deals like Crescent VIII
– a newer-vintage, high-
quality, Class A building
under $20 million – don’t
come around often, he said,
adding most DTC proper-
ties are either on the small
side and older, or newer
and larger.
“It’s very difficult to find
a high-quality property
like that in the Denver Tech
Center,” said Winn. “Sev-
eral institutional investors,
including the one that pur-
chased it, were eager, eager
to buy it. It’s a little jewel
box.”
Crescent VIII was built in
1996. Its tenants are Veri-
zon Wireless and Clear-
Choice Dental Implant
Center. Occupancy was
approximately 90 percent
at the time of the sale.
Located at a gateway to
the DTC with quick access
to Interstates 25 and 225,
the building is right next to
the Crescent Amphitheater.
It has immediate access
to restaurants, hotels and
retail, including Belleview
Promenade and Marina
by John Rebchook
TheARAteam inDenver recent-
ly sold twoDenver-area apartment
communities that reflect two dis-
tinct aspects of the market.
Combined, the two communi-
ties sold for $124.55 million.
One community was new and
the other was 1990s vintage.
What they have in common is
that they are both suburban com-
munities and they both generated
a lot of interest from prospective
buyers.
Of the two, the Vue at Ridgegate
was the smallest andwas themost
expensive.
The ARA team of Jeff Hawks,
Doug Andrews, Terrance Hunt
andShaneOzment sold it toAMLI
Residential of Chicago for $67.8
million.
That equates to$241,281perunit.
The seller was Martin Fein Inter-
ests of Houston, which developed
the community at 10020 Trainsta-
tion Circle in the Ridgegate com-
munity in Lone Tree.
“It was a new build, just deliv-
ered in late 2013,” Hunt said.
“There was a great deal of inter-
est in it from institutional buyers
that want a newer property,”Hunt
said.
“I think we ended up getting 15
or 16 offers,” he said.
AMLI, which has a big presence
in the Denver area and is develop-
ing new communities, as well as
buying selected ones such as the
Vue, was drawn to it because of its
location and quality of construc-
tion, Hunt said.
“You tend to see more interest
from buyers for the urban proper-
ties than the suburban properties,
but institutional buyers really liked
by Jill Jamieson-Nichols
David Hart has fostered
the success of office build-
ings in San Francisco, Chi-
cago and Denver, but his
most important deal always
lies ahead.
“Finding a new opportu-
nity is what excites me,” said
Hart, executive managing
director at Newmark Grubb
Knight Frank. “I try to find
something new to work on
every day. That is one rea-
son I chose NGKF: It offers
world-class services and ben-
efits of a national platform,
yet its culture is incredibly
supportive of business devel-
opment, and the leadership,
both at a corporate and
regional level, promotes a
transparent and autonomous
environment, which really
fosters unbridled collabora-
tion.”
Hart has completed more
than 5 million square feet
worth of transactions involv-
ing new development proj-
ects. Being involved from
project inception to comple-
tion, from raw land through
construction to lease-up, is
his forte and what initially
drove him to commercial
real estate.
“It’s something you can
put your mark on. It’s there
forever, a testament to the
vision for that particular
owner or property, and
something I’m especially
proud of,” he said.
As fond as he is of new
development, he’s been
known to advise against it
– because of market condi-
tions, product type, competi-
tion, etc. Hart evaluates an
opportunity by considering
whether he’d put his own
money into it. “I’m giving
advice from that frame of
reference and really looking
to build long-term relation-
ships,” he said. “Honesty is
key because you are selling
your word and your reputa-
tion.”
When Hart joined NGKF
in August, he brought a
wealth of experience, and
a bit of a family legacy,
with him. His grandfather
worked in commercial real
estate in Chicago, and it
was there that the Univer-
sity of the Pacific graduate
began his career in the early
1980s. He handled leasing
for downtown office towers
including 200 W. Monroe,
a 535,900-square-foot struc-
ture, and 2 N. LaSalle, which
comprises 629,000 sf, before
returning to his native Bay
Area to continue his career.
At Lincoln Property Co., he
was involved in 100 Spear,
222 Kearny, 33 New Mont-
gomery St. and 455 Market,
all ground-up construction
projects in downtown San
Francisco.
Hart was with Cushman &
Wakefield in San Francisco
when quality of life – and the
company – brought him to
Denver in the early 1990s. In
2002, he and longtime part-
ner Chris Phenicie formed
Commercial Colorado, which
was acquired by Insignia,
which in turn was acquired
by CBRE. Hart spent several
years at CBRE and, prior to
joining NGKF, worked with
Hannay Realty Advisors. He
continues to advise Hannay
Realty on new opportunities.
Hart has worked alongside
developers of build-to-suits,
speculative buildings and
repositioning projects in
Colorado. They include the
600,000-sf Lucent/Avaya
campus in Highlands Ranch,
the Boston Market and
Coleman Co. headquarters
buildings in Denver West,
1900 Sixteenth St. in down-
town Denver, and numerous
buildings in Broomfield,
including Eos at Interlocken,
Mountain View Corporate
Center, Eldorado Ridge, and
360, 370, 380, 385 and 390
Interlocken Blvd. The 51,000-
sf building at 360 Interlocken
got off to a rocky start when
a health care company that
planned to take the entire
building negotiated a lease
buyout. “It went from 100
percent leased to zero per-
cent, and it really became the
first spec building up there,”
said Hart, adding “the leas-
ing success that followed
led developer Prime West
to continue with additional
buildings.” Hart and Pheni-
cie handled leasing for all 1
million sf.
“David is one of the best
brokers I’ve ever worked
with,” said Steve Clarke,
Prime West president and
CEO. “He really has a good
understanding of the land-
lord’s perspective, and that’s
rare. He is an excellent nego-
tiator – very fair, sees both
sides of the equation – and is
generally able to reach con-
sensus with all parties.”
Hart, 53, is competitive;
however, his pastimes have
more to do with exercise
and relaxation. “I love to
bike. I love to ski. I love to
golf. I love to do yoga,” he
said, adding his favorite
pastime is hanging out with
his daughters: Elizabeth, 25,
Daisha, 23, and Savannah,
14. Hart resides in the Union
David Hart
SECTION AA
DECEMBER 17, 2014-JANUARY 6, 2015
The Vue recently sold for $67.8 million.
Mike Winn
