Shorenstein Bets On Troubled Skyscraper
One of the West Coast giants in commercial real estate is taking over the tallest skyscraper in the Southeast. Shorenstein Properties confirmed this week that it was buying Bank of America Plaza, the 55-story iconic Midtown skyscraper that has doubled as the poster child for the excesses and losses of the credit crunch and recession.
Shorenstein did not reveal its purchase price. But Commercial Real Estate Direct pegs the price at more than $200M, or $160/SF. Shorenstein purchased it through its $1.22B Shorenstein Realty Investors Eleven fund launched in 2014.
Shorenstein reports it plans “to make immediate improvements” to the lobby and amenity areas, as well as further “cosmetic upgrades and deferred maintenance,” officials state in a release. Regardless, Shorenstein has its work cut out for itself, given the tower is only half leased to such tenants as Bank of America (still in 183k SF), and law firms Troutman Sanders and Frazier Deeter.
The sixth-tallest building in North America was lost by BentleyForbes to creditors in 2012 on the Atlanta courthouse steps for $235M. It has since been operated by special servicer CW Capital, responsible for more than $350M in two loans in a CMBS.
