NEWS

NEW YORK, March 6, 2023

Burton-Katzman, LLC announced a new $240 million joint venture with DRA Advisors for the recapitalization of 24 infill light industrial properties in the Midwest, and to work together to locate industrial acquisition opportunities in the future.

The 24-property industrial portfolio spans over 2.2 million square feet, is 99% leased with a five-year weighted average lease term (WALT) and features a diversified national tenant roster. With over 40 tenants on the rent roll, no tenant occupies more than 15% of the portfolio’s square footage, mitigating rollover risk.

Future opportunities for the new JV will target value-add returns by acquiring industrial assets across the Midwest where rents are below market. DRA Advisors and Burton Katzman can create value through

strategic leasing via their extensive relationships in the automotive industry. Additionally, Sponsorship will be developing and expanding the space of several assets in the seed portfolio.

The Burton-Katzman team has successfully operated the Portfolio historically and developed extensive relationships with the existing tenancy, allowing them to create strategic leasing transactions as the preeminent operator of light industrial across the Detroit Metro.

“The Portfolio represents a highly compelling opportunity to acquire a dynamic, well-occupied, and cash-flowing light industrial portfolio at an attractive basis with a best-in-class joint venture partner,” explained Brett Gottlieb, Managing Director for DRA Advisors.

Peter Burton noted “Building on our over 100 years of industry experience, we’re looking forward to a long and prosperous relationship with DRA Advisors, one of the most dynamic and intelligent teams in our industry. The future looks very exciting.”

About Burton-Katzman

Burton-Katzman is a fully integrated real estate company with extensive experience and expertise across property acquisition, planning and development, project and construction management, strategic planning and asset management. With over 110 years of history in the real estate industry, with an emphasis on the industrial market, Burton-Katzman has become well versed in effectively building and managing properties across various asset classes.

About DRA Advisors

DRA Advisors is a registered investment advisor specializing in real estate investment and management services for institutional and private investors. As of September 30th, 2022, our team has approximately $13 billion in gross assets under management. Founded in 1986, DRA has unlocked success for its clients by focusing on conservative, value-added real estate investments in the office, retail, multifamily, and industrial sectors within the United States. Since its inception, the firm has acquired more than 1900 properties valued at over $37 billion.

on 12.94 Acres of land in Sterling Heights, MI. The BKG – DOMINION development team will renovate the premises to suit and lease it to a long-standing client. Newmark Knight Frank through Christopher Dowell and Jack Coury represented on behalf of the sellers in the transaction.

Congratulations to the team!

May 15, 2019

Crain’s Detroit reports that Hans Power and Water, LLC is poised to make a significant impact on the consumer water purification market, and around the world.

Dominion Realty Services, LLC was hired to provide development services related to coordination of the site plan approval process and governmental entitlements for their proposed 500,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Lyon Township. The property was sold to 54500 Grand River Avenue, LLC by BKG Dominion Lyon LLC, a private investment group comprised of principals of Burton-Katzman, LLC and Dominion.

The low-profile billionaire behind energy shot brand 5-Hour Energy longs to solve the world’s fresh water shortage. Manoj Bhargava, founder and CEO of the Farmington Hills maker of the highly caffeinated drink maker Innovation Ventures LLC, has poured a substantial sum of his reported $1.5 billion net worth into creating a desalination device that could turn seawater into fresh water. The low-profile billionaire behind energy shot brand 5-Hour Energy longs to solve the world’s fresh water shortage.

But his latest venture, Hans Power and Water LLC, is aiming smaller — at consumers concerned with drinking water contaminants such as lead, arsenic, PFAS and chlorine. The company’s product, the Hans Premium Water Appliance, is a whole-home water purifying system.

Last month, the company secured township board approval to construct a 500,000-square-foot plant to build the systems in Lyon Township on a 30-acre plot of land on Grand River Avenue near I-96. The plant is expected to initially employ 200 when it opens next year. Bhargava has installed former Chrysler CEO Tom LaSorda as CEO of Hans Water and Power. LaSorda co-founded with Bhargava Stage 2 Innovations LLC in 2012, a then $100-million investment fund that was dedicated to creating sustainable water initiatives and manufacturing improvements when LaSorda was still serving as CEO to struggling electric vehicle maker Fisker Automotive.

Hans Power and Water plans a soft opening of a storefront in downtown Birmingham at 239 Pierce St. this week.

The Hans Premium Water Appliance starts at $9,800 but with a leasing option that starts at $120 a month, said Matt Rouhan, head of insides sales and showrooms for the company. The company also plans to launch a system for light commercial buildings, such as small offices and restaurants, Rouhan said.

The reverse osmosis system can remove certain levels of contaminants, such as PFAS and hardness, that plague homes with wells and city water, Rouhan said. While other systems exist on the market that can greatly reduce contaminants, there are very few whole-house systems like Hans’, he said.

Click here to view the Crain’s article: www.crainsdetroit.com

May 6, 2019

Continuing their business model of identifying performing assets in strong markets with low vacancy, BKG-Dominion, LLC has purchased 119,265 square feet of commercial real estate comprised of a 95,265 square foot light industrial/showroom building in Northbrook, Chicago and a 24,000 square foot retail showroom in Westmont, Chicago. Both are 100% occupied by Ultimo Motors, a regional dealer of pre-owned luxury vehicles, with four locations in the Chicagoland area.

Originally founded in 2004, Ultimo Motors has a long list of loyal customers and is a recognized brand with a strong internet presence.  Ultimo Motors derives a majority of their sales from the internet.  Their locations host inventory from a variety of manufacturers, such as; Bentley, Jaguar, Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Tesla, and others.  Their website www.ultimomotors.com has helped drive their explosive growth.

The overall Chicago industrial market consists of over 1.2 billion square feet with a total vacancy rate of 3.5%.

The larger Ultimo building is located in a desirable industrial submarket known as Northeast Cook County, the submarket contains more than 61 million square feet of industrial space, and as of the third quarter 2018, has a vacancy rate of only 2.6%.  Industrial buildings located in the City of Northbrook are in even higher demand than the overall submarket. The City of Northbrook has an astonishingly low vacancy rate of only 1.31%.

Ultimo Motors Westmont has frontage on Ogden Avenue, a major east /west thoroughfare.  Roughly four miles from Interstates 294 and 355, the building is ideally located in the western suburbs.  Ultimo Motors Westmont is uniquely positioned along a portion of Ogden Avenue that is highly concentrated with luxury automotive retailers, such as; Audi, BMW, Lamborghini, Porsche, Tesla, and others.   According to CoStar, Ultimo Motors Westmont is located in the Eastern East/West Corridor Retail Submarket.  The Eastern East/West Corridor Retail Submarket has a vacancy rate of 5.8%.

April 10, 2019

Several principals and key executives of Burton-Katzman, LLC and Dominion Realty Services, LLC have formed a private equity group, BKG-Dominion, LLC, to identify and acquire performing commercial real estate assets in strong regional markets with low vacancy and increasing rental rates. Their business model takes advantage of the stronger economy and constrained construction of new product, by focusing on acquiring sale-leaseback light industrial and other types of commercial buildings at or below replacement cost, with long term tenants in place.

March 18, 2019 | by R.J King | dbusiness.com

Burton-Katzman in Bingham Farms, which invests, develops, and manages industrial, commercial, and residential properties across the country, has announced it has site-plan approval for 66 acres of land within an existing business park along I-94 in Chesterfield Township. The property can accommodate almost 1.2 million square feet of space.

Along with a sister company, Dominion Real Estate Advisors, the companies say available parcels start at 50,000 square feet and go up to 758,000 square feet for permitted uses that include distribution, industrial, and light manufacturing operations. An Amazon distribution center is nearby, while Ashley Capital, a multi-faceted real estate firm, has sold neighboring parcels in the Chesterfield Commerce Center.

The Burton-Katzman property is available in three separate parcels — up to 177,920 square feet on 10 acres; up to 215,000 square feet on 16 acres; and up to 758,000 square feet on 41 acres. The Chesterfield Commerce Center is located on the south side of I-94, between 23 Mile and 24 Mile roads. Construction is scheduled to start in the fall.

“The supply of new industrial property, along with the opportunity to renovate closed manufacturing centers, has been going down as the result of what is a robust economy,” says Eric D. Banks, group president of brokerage and advisory services at Dominion. “We are in a good position in that we have property that is ready to go.”

According to a January report by Newmark Knight Frank, a full-service real estate firm with offices in Farmington Hills, the region’s industrial vacancy rate was around 3.3 percent during the fourth quarter of 2018. Investments in electric and autonomous vehicles continue to spur construction and expansions in the market.

In addition, Burton-Katzman and Dominion are close to completing a 110,000-square-foot industrial building in Auburn Hills, just north of the former Pontiac Silverdome site. The space is close to being fully leased.

In Wixom, the companies have 85,000 square feet of industrial space along Beck Road on the market (north of I-96), and they recently completed work on industrial space for Tremec Corp., which manufactures automatic transmissions and drivetrain components.

Burton Katzman also plans to offer a new industrial park in Lyon Township that would accommodate up to 505,000 square feet of space.

For more information, contact Andrew Boncore, vice president of business development and brokerage at Dominion Real Estate Advisors, 248-399-9999 or aboncore@dominionra.com.

The City of Troy Planning Commission approved a new 9,844 square foot mixed-use retail center at their regularly scheduled hearing on January 22, 2019. The development project is located at the south-east corner of Tower Drive and Crooks Road in a portion of the parking lot of the 901 Tower office building.

“This new development will certainly add to the excitement and desirability of the North Troy office area, and our adjacent office tower,” said Larry Goss, Dominion/BK Executive Vice President of Development Services, who represented the owners of the 901 Tower office building at the Planning Commission hearing.

The property was rezoned in late 2017 to the OM Office Mixed Use District, which is intended to bolster this high-traffic business and employment hub along Crooks Road with an attractive and vibrant mix of convenient amenities for residents and office users in the area. The 2017 Troy Master Plan designated this corridor as part of the “Northfield/north troy” area, encouraging this type of development. Since the zoning update, several new developments are under construction along this busy thoroughfare.

Eric Banks; Principal and Group President, Brokerage Services at Dominion adds; “Today’s workers expect greater connectivity, convenient amenities, and local vitality that comes from these types of uses, clustered in beautiful, pedestrian-friendly scale. That’s exactly what is being delivered here.”

The stunning architecture was designed by NORR Architects, Engineers, and Planners, and offers an elegant yet modern motif with clean lines and a bold mix of building materials, featuring a color palette of greys and browns with split face CMU and siding designed to look like wood, with metal accents. Both the highly visible front elevation on Crooks Road and the east facing rear elevation, are architecturally attractive.  The nearly 10,000 sq. ft are currently envisioned for up to 3 “fast-casual” restaurants, 2 with outdoor dining areas, and an additional commercial services tenant. The project was also granted a coveted drive-thru serving one of the fast-casual tenants after meeting the Planning Commission’s high standards required for the Special Land Use approval of the drive-thru. Parking for customers is conveniently located in both the front and behind the building. A new pedestrian path along Crooks Road will connect from the retail center to the existing sidewalk, as well as to the 901 Tower office building.

Now that the center is approved, pre-leasing efforts will begin. Construction could start as early as Summer 2019.

On July 12, Parkside Lofts celebrated its grand opening celebration with a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber. Attendees were given an exclusive look inside the units.

These new and luxurious lofts reside at 1193 Floyd St. in Birmingham. For additional information, call (248) 281-1007 or visit http://www.rentparksidelofts.com.

Park-side luxury living in Birmingham with an urban edge. There are two different floor plans available at this development.

View article on BBCC Daily: http://www.bbcc.com/bbcc-hosts-ribbon-cutting-for-parkside-lofts/

The principals of Dominion are Peter Burton, Robert Katzman, Larry Goss, Eric Banks and Andy Boyce. This group comprised a majority ownership of CORE Partners Associates and CORE Construction Services, both of which are winding down because of differences in strategic vision and alignment among the former principals.

The new firms will provide brokerage, consulting, property management, asset management, receivership, construction and development advisory services.

Dominion operates a more than 7-million-square-foot commercial, industrial, multifamily, retail and association management portfolio. This ranks Dominion as one of the largest privately held full-service platforms in the metro Detroit market.

Dominion’s principals are currently involved in more than 2 million square feet of ground-up light industrial, mixed-use and multifamily developments in the Detroit area.

Floyd Street is a joint venture of Peter Burton, Robert Katzman and Larry Goss, and private equity firm Juniper Capital Partners LLC based in Los Angeles.

The $2.5 million development at 1193 Floyd St. is slated to be completed in the fall, said Jennette Smith Kotila, Core Partners LLC spokeswoman. Michael Poris of Birmingham-based McIntosh Poris Associates Inc. is the designer and Core Construction Services LLC, the brokerage and construction services arm of Bingham Farms-based Core Partners, is the general contractor.

The Park will offer four 811-square-foot one-bedroom units and four 1,140-square-foot two-bedroom units costing $2,000-$3,000 a month. The one-bedroom units will be on the ground floor and feature a patio, while the two-bedroom units will feature a balcony and a mezzanine that overlooks the living room, Core Construction Services Vice President of Project Development Dane Truscott said. Each unit will have high-end finishes and modern architectural features, he said.

The 8,905-square-foot project will not include any common space as each unit will have its own front door, Truscott said.

The luxury apartments will be across from the Birmingham YMCA, overlook St. James Park and be in walking distance to downtown Birmingham

The property, located at 1426 Pacific Drive, sits on 10.54 acres in a prominent industrial park visible from Interstate-75. It is a single-tenant light industrial manufacturing facility currently occupied by BAE Industries. BAE Industries provides metal manufacturing services. The company has been at this location for 15 years.

The acquisition of this property builds upon the CORE-BKG Investment portfolio. CORE Partners Associates LLC has been engaged by ownership to manage the property.

CORE-BKG acquired 21001 and 21111 Van Born Road. The site includes a 415,606-square-foot Class-A office building and a 141,000-square-foot technical building and warehouse. The purchase price was not disclosed. Masco, a home- and building-products manufacturer, recently relocated to a smaller facility in Livonia, Michigan.

The former Masco campus was built in phases starting in 1966 and expanded into the early 1990s. The campus includes an auditorium, wellness center, full-service cafe and fitness center.

Rusty Bucket’s Bingham Farms location is 5,500-square feet with seating for 78 guests in the main dining room and a bar area which seats 58. There is a 770 square foot four-season patio with a stonewall fireplace, which seats an additional 54 guests. This marks the 19th location for the growing Columbus, Ohio-based restaurant company.

Deferred demand for high-quality new rental housing in western Wayne County, following a long construction drought, has spurred the first all-new apartment complex there since 2004, with 93 luxury units expected to land in Plymouth, at 333 Plymouth Road near Holbrook, via Starkweather Lofts by next August.

Targeting millennial and baby boomers as prime tenants, project co-developers DevMar Development LLC and Burton-Katzman LLC of Bingham Farms say higher incomes in Plymouth, Northville and Livonia now support rental rates topping $2 per square foot, which makes traditional lenders more willing to finance projects.

That would usher in new construction for the first time since the 111-unit Hidden Cove Estates project wrapped in 2004 as the latest high-occupancy residential development in those communities. Renters both young and old are in the market for high ceilings, wood floors, granite countertops and other features.

The first phase of the project is currently underway with land development activities on the site. The first building will be a 112-bed rehabilitation facility owned and operated by Wellbridge. Burton-Katzman and Wellbridge will co-develop the first phase as well as the two additional planned phases for assisted living and independent living apartments. CORE Construction Services is the construction manager of the land development activities.

The recent change in the local zoning ordinance to M-2, and the upgrading Wahrman Road to a Class A road, has opened up the opportunity to provide logistics facilities on this property. Plans call for site development to begin in Summer 2016.

The event, one of the largest and most widely attended in the Detroit Metropolitan area, features top names in the Commercial Real Estate Industry.

Called River’s Edge of Auburn Hills, the new development by Burton-Katzman, LLC will consist of a four-story building with approximately 9,300 square feet of commercial space and 31 apartment and loft units.

The Planned Unit Development is slated to begin construction in late 2014 or early 2015.