Opportunity:

Corus Bank, the Chicago lender that staked its fortune on the condominium boom, was teetering on collapse.  The Bank provided loans to some of the highest profile condominium conversion projects through the state of Florida.

But for the significant market downturn in the condominium conversion project marketplace, Corus loans were generally secured by outstanding real estate backed assets.  Christian Tyler Properties (“CTP”) identified the loan secured by the Palms of Monterrey multi-family apartment project as a potential investment opportunity.  The note had a face amount of $69.0 million.  CTP believed it could acquire the note at a significant discount.  The problem was that during the negotiations, the FDIC issued a cease and desist order against Corus Bank.  The opportunity was to work through this loan document purchase at a fair, but significant discount.

Action:

Christian Tyler Properties (“CTP”) sought and negotiated the purchase of the underlying note secured by the property at a significant discount from Corus Bank, an FDIC controlled bank.  CTP coordinated capital investments to form a purchase group for the note that consisted of Behringer Harvard, a commercial real estate company (Behringer Harvard Opportunity REIT II, Inc., a public non-listed real estate investment trust) and DeBartolo Development, LLC (“DeBartolo”).

Result:

CTP, together with Behringer Harvard and DeBartolo, acquired the senior mortgage debt, at a significant discount, secured by the Palms of Monterrey, a 408-unit, resort-style, multi-family community situated on a 28-acre site in Fort Myers and is now fee title owner of the asset.   The Property boasts larger than average floor plans that are ideal for single or family living and are also suitable for future condo conversion.  Apartment amenities include unparalleled views, alarm systems, controlled access, extra storage, vaulted ceilings, dishwasher, garbage disposal, washer/dryer, walk-in closets, cable ready and screened patios and balconies.  This 408 unit Apartment Complex includes amenities such as a club house, covered parking and detached garages, gated access, fitness center, business center, playground, indoor racket ball, tennis court, two heated pools with hot tub and poolside WIFI.  The Palms of Monterrey is less than a mile from Health Park Medical Center, an area employment center that includes a 270-bed acute care facility and the only comprehensive children’s health care center between Tampa and Miami.  Residents are also only minutes from the gleaming white sands of Fort Myers Beach and the Sanibel and Captiva Islands, as well as many hospitality-industry employers.

Opportunity:

Before the recession of 2008, Westshore Beach Club Land Investors bought the land commonly referred to as “Georgetown” including all entitlements, and had invested approximately $155 million.  The owner was a joint venture between Walton Street Capital and Rockpoint Group.  The Georgetown site encompasses approximately 162 acres of land and is surrounded by water on three sides.  The site’s pristine white sand beachfront and internal canal system provide direct access to Tampa Bay.  Its unique location also offers unobstructed views of downtown Tampa and Tampa Bay.  Bank of America, together with several other participant banks, foreclosed out the owners and then proceeded to market the property for ultimate sale.

Action:

Christian Tyler Properties (“CTP”) and partner DeBartolo Development, LLC (“DeBartolo”) went under contract to buy the Georgetown project.  Simultaneously herewith, our partnership entered into a contract to sell approximately sixty acres to the Trust for Public Lands, a non-profit organization charged with assisting local municipalities in acquiring environmentally sensitive lands for preservation for future generations.  CTP and DeBartolo then assembled the capital stack required to pay cash for the Georgetown site.  Avanti Investment Advisors, Inc. (“Avanti”), the US’s largest investment firm exclusively dedicated to land investment, development and finance, utilized its Avanti Strategic Land Investors VI Fund, together with the Validus Group, a central Florida real estate investment group, partnered with CTP and DeBartolo.  The land was purchased at an approximate 80% discount from the “all-in” number, a significant discount from the fair market value of this asset.

 Result:

The demand for waterfront property and high-end communities in a well-established neighborhood position this site to take advantage of the market recovery.  With its stunning location and view, with desirable water access to Tampa Bay and Gulf of Mexico, with a Westshore address in an upscale, established neighborhood, this is an extraordinary development opportunity on a site offering white sand beaches, a beautiful lagoon, canals and a marina.  The site is already vested for 1,235 residential units.The site contains 162.3 acres including undeveloped lands, submerged lands, jurisdictional wetlands and an improved portion of the site for the Georgetown Apartments.  The site will be developed as a mixed-use residential waterfront development.

Opportunity:

The useful life of 100,000 square feet of Grade B- office space located on 10 +/- prime acres in the West Shore business district in Tampa, Florida had expired. Two anchor tenants were not expected to extend their leases beyond their expiration dates.

Action:

Christian Tyler Properties (“CTP”) sought out the owners of the property (Clear Channel), and being diligent for well over a 2 year period, finally entered into a contract to purchase the office project. CTP, after undertaking significant due diligence efforts, determined that the highest and best use of the land was to raze the existing project and create a Class A office project. CTP then entered into a joint venture (“JV”) with Rubenstein Partners, a preeminent Class A office developer from Philadelphia, PA. The JV’s development plan has proceeded according to plan and has obtained all development entitlements required to build a 580,000 square foot Class A waterfront office space.

Result:

The property will become one of the premier business addresses in the Tampa Bay area. West View Corporate Center is a notable example of CTP’s ability to see the potential of a distressed property and harness its potential. West View has great potential for success with (i) approximately 130,000 vehicles per day passing directly by the property on I-275, (ii) excellent visibility, (iii) above average access to the site, through the $204.5 million Tampa Airport Interchanges construction project, and (iv) incredible water views of Old Tampa Bay from most offices in the development. The remainder of the offices will have fantastic views of Tampa’s central business district and Raymond James Stadium, home of the NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the City of Tampa’s award winning Tampa International Airport.

After the construction of the project is complete, the challenge for the partnership will be to create the optimal tenant mix. The long term strategic focus and hard work of our ongoing redevelopment of the West View Financial Center, together with the ongoing construction management and leasing teams in converting the functionally obsolescent Class B office project into one of Tampa’s premier Class A waterfront office projects in the West Shore Business District of Tampa, Florida, is another example of the vision of Kirk Eicholtz in creating additional value that others could not see.

Opportunity:

Single tenant office building in North Tampa 100% occupied with a tenant (NCO Financial) that desired to terminate the remaining 13 years on its lease term. Christian Tyler Properties was notified that the commercial paper securing this property was in a non-performing status.

Action:

Christian Tyler Properties (“CTP”) bought the distressed property and promptly subdivided the excess land from the existing single tenant office building, thereby creating an additional thirty-five thousand square feet of fully entitled office development opportunity. CTP then reworked the lease of the single tenant office building clarifying certain ambiguities.

The raw land property, together with its development entitlements, was then sold to a local development company. The single tenant office building was later sold to a German investment group.

Result:

Within three years after the building was purchased, the raw land component and existing office component were sold for extraordinary returns. In addition, a Bank of America Parcel contiguous to this property was acquired by CTP and immediately sold to a local lending institution that has a professional relationship with CTP. This turn-around of the NCO Financial Center property again exemplifies Kirk Eicholtz’s gift for identifying value in overlooked properties and his ability to execute a focused management and redevelopment plan.

Opportunity:

Glendale Federal Savings and Loan had merged with Barnett Bank of Florida. The old Glendale Federal Savings and Loan Building located in the Central Business District (“CBD”) of Tampa, Florida sat vacant, a victim of the merger and the fact that Barnett’s corporate offices were also located in the CBD of Tampa. The owners, a parking lot operator from Canada, had acquired a demolition permit to knock down the 6-story, 30,000 square foot historic structure to make room for additional surface parking in downtown Tampa. The owners planned to demolish the building within thirty (30) days.

Action:

CTP uncovered the fact that an historic building located in the CBD of Tampa was granted a demolition permit. CTP contacted the previous owners and, through an ability to have a “quick close” on the property, was able to acquire the building and the half city block on which it resided.

Result:

CTP, through relationships with principals of Northern Trust Bank, entered into a long term lease with Northern Trust for the first three full floors of the facility. A significant renovation of the building, including a full asbestos abatement, was undertaken. The final three floors of the facility were leased to a prominent local law firm. As noted by the pictures below, it is quite evident that the City of Tampa, as well as CTP, are proud of CTP’s redevelopment efforts and the results thereto in preserving a historic landmark in the City of Tampa.  For 10 years, the Northern Trust Bank Building was the corporate home to the operations of Christian Tyler Properties, LLC.

Opportunity:

The Citrus Park Mall was in early stages of planning when an opportunity to acquire land contiguous to the soon-to-be regional mall became available. The land had petroleum contamination issues that made the property problematic for most development companies, but our early due diligence showed the costs of remediation to be quantifiable and reasonable.

Action:

The property was acquired and placed into a land trust. The owners held a purchase money mortgage during the time necessary to clean up the petroleum contamination and mitigate any additional legal issues. Within 12 months of the acquisition date of the property, JMB Development made official announcements that construction would commence on what is now known as the Westfield Town Centre, Citrus Park, in Tampa, Florida. In order to mitigate the resulting transportation impacts from the mall’s perimeter roads, JMB created a CDD (Community Development District) to acquire land through a bond offering in an effort to widen the roadways in and around the regional mall. To do so, the CDD was required, through an eminent domain proceeding, to condemn and take a large portion of the tract of land now known as Citrus Park Crossings.

Result:

The condemnation resulted in the remaining acreage being owned free and clear. The result was that there now exists on the site a long-term ground lease with Mobil/BP, and a small retail strip center. AmSouth Bank and Bridgestone Firestone purchased the other two outparcels outright. By addressing the environmental contamination on what was considered to be an untouchable property and working through the State of Florida’s Environmental amnesty protection programs and various other environmental issues, the site continues to generate significant cash flow from the outparcels.

Opportunity:

Owners of the property in North Hillsborough County defaulted on a land loan. The savings and loan that held the loan on its books became part of the Resolution Trust Corporation/FDIC. This site, although deemed “green” at the time of acquisition, was part of the transportation development plans for the Veterans Expressway in Tampa, Florida, making travel to and from the two core business districts, West Shore Business District and the Central Business District in downtown Tampa, readily accessible for residents of this to-be-built community.

Action:

The property was acquired at a deep discount from the RTC/FDIC. Within months, the property went through the subdivision process and was sold to large national and regional home builders, a national multi-family apartment complex developer and a retail developer.

Result:

The equity invested in this transaction was returned to the investment group within twelve months. Although this property appeared too large for any regional development groups to take down, by being aware of the five year TIP plans (Transportation Improvement Program), and by working with home builders, the decision to acquire the entire subdivision was made, resulting in almost immediate profits. Another unique difficulty with this site was the existence of numerous legal issues remaining from the previous owner that related to expired permits and the land development approval process, including substantial deviations to the Development of Regional Impact (“DRI”) granted by the State of Florida for the Calusa Trace development. The extraordinary returns were due to members of the management team having knowledge of the development process.

Christian Tyler Properties, LLC (“CTP”), together with its partner, Buffalo Tampa Bay, L.P., purchased the UHG/Optum building for $10.5 million in late December 2017.

The UHG/Optum Building in Tampa, Florida includes a single story suburban office building totaling 60,000 square feet (“sf”). It is 100% leased to United Healthcare Services, Inc. on a triple net basis. Built in 2002, the Property serves as a high-end, Class A call center, and features tilt wall construction with eleven-foot interior ceilings and storefront glass with premium exterior landscaping and mature trees.

This exceptional property provides the option to expand the current building footprint by up to 39,000 sf while still maintaining an excellent market best parking ratio. The UHG/Optum Building offers an unprecedented parking ratio of 10.15 spaces per 1,000 sf and is only one of two buildings over 50,000 sf in Tampa Bay with a parking ratio above 9 per 1,000 sf.

The Optum Building is strategically located in the geographic center of the I-75 Corridor submarket, which is ideally suited for companies wanting to draw from Tampa Bay’s key labor markets. The Property is situated within Pinebrooke Commerce Center, a premier mixed-use park, allowing for easy access to I-4, I-75, the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway, US-301, and SR-60. Equally as convenient, the Tampa CBD and Tampa International Airport are just a 10 and 20-minute drive from the Property.

With a superior location, amenities, and access, the UHG/Optum Building will continue to appeal to companies requiring functional, moderately priced, well-located call center office space.

Because of its unparalleled parking ratio, central location and Class A amenities, this property is ideally suited to meet the office requirements of corporate America. With a stable tenant in place and room to expand, this asset has strong potential for return, which resulted in significant interest from investors.

Christian Tyler Properties is currently undertaking a major capital expenditure refurbishment at the facility in collaboration with United Health Group.