Horizon West - Florida Trend - October 2011

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Vistancia Commercial Site Marketed - Phoenix Business Journal 8-19-2011

Click here to read the entire article by Jan Bucholz

211 acre Oak Cliff mixed-use development on track - Dallas Business Journal June 23, 2011

A 211-acre mixed-use development at Westmoreland Road and Interstate 30 in Oak Cliff was given approval by the Dallas City Council for the last phase of the project, according to a press release issued by the developer, Stratford.

The multi-phase development — The Canyon in Oak Cliff —is currently being constructed. The final phase includes upgrades in public improvements in North Oak Cliff's Davis Garden Tax Increment Financing District, which Stratford Land will pay the city $1 million to construct, according to a spokeswoman for the developer.

The payment for the upgrades will include the roadway in a tax increment financing district and will allow Stratford Land up to $4 million in TIF reimbursements.

Other details of the plan for the public improvement upgrades were not immediately available.

Stratford Land has worked for nearly two years to reach Wednesday's approval from the City Council, said Ocie Vest, senior vice president for the Dallas firm.

Vest added that Stratford Land has a lot more to accomplish on the project.

Gina Norris named Most Innovative CFO in Dallas - D Magazine, May 2011

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Texas Lawyer - March 7, 2011 - by Jeanne Graham

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Stratford Land Joins Myrtle Beach Development Group in Acquiring 15 Properties - Business Wire January 3, 2011

Going upscale: Former Heep Ranch land being marketed for sale as high-end office, retail park

Going upscale: Former Heep Ranch land being marketed for sale as 

high-end office, retail park. See the full article here.

Stratford Land, Hilton Head Lakes owners acquire Tradition in Hardeeville - Bluffton Today, December 31, 2010

Stratford Land (NREI) by Ben Johnson - November 1, 2010

Stratford Land Opening Colorado Office - Denver Business Journal - October 4, 2010

Stratford Land of Dallas likes the potential of the Denver-area land market. Jason Cooper, director of investments for the company’s Rocky Mountain region, runs the Greenwood Village operation for the Texas land investor and lender. Cooper formerly was president of Stratford Realty Capital, Stratford Land’s first fund offering private land financing through a variety of loan types. “We’re excited about being in this market,” Cooper said. “We have seen several opportunities both on the lending and equity sides … though we have not closed on a transaction yet.” Cooper is Stratford’s only local employee, but the company plans to add a director of lending here in a year. Stratford is a well-regarded firm and known for its savvy investments, according to a June article in the Dallas Business Journal. CEO Phillip Wiggins helped launch what became Stratford Land in 1983. He has more than 30 years of land-investment and brokerage experience, particularly in the Sunbelt region. He and his associates have brokered more than $1.5 billion in land deals and raised more than $500 million in equity through funds, according to the company. Stratford historically expands to markets where population and employment are strong, compared to the nation as a whole, and it sees that strength in metro Denver, Cooper said. Colorado’s unemployment rate in August was 8.2 percent, while the country’s was 9.6 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The company also is active in Texas, Arizona, Southern California, Tennessee and the Eastern Seaboard from Virginia to Florida. “There has been plenty of interest in Denver by land buyers,” said Stew Mosko, senior vice president and land broker at Cassidy Turley Fuller Real Estate in Denver, who knows of Stratford Land. “But opening an office is something I haven’t seen other buyers do.” Stratford generally invests in land it can prepare for development by someone else, including getting entitlements such as government approvals for utilities, zoning and roads as well as figuring out a property’s best use. The Texas company prefers suburban properties, but sometimes buys urban parcels. It also likes sites that are good for mixed-use development, or a combination of uses such as retail, office and residential. In Colorado, the company plans to focus on metro Denver and then possibly expand to Fort Collins and Colorado Springs. “We look for strategically well-located parcels that are entirely or partly entitled,” Cooper said. “We look for an unfinished development with a remaining land component in need of recapitalization, which could be highly leveraged, where the bank is forcing the current owner out and we can negotiate a short sale, or where there’s a dispute between partners.” Stratford’s funding comes from “patient investors” such as pension funds, institutions and high net-worth individuals, according to the company. Earlier this year, the land investor launched a $750 million fund — Stratford Land Fund IV — to invest in real estate in markets such as metro Denver and Jacksonville, Fla., according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. “Through our current fund, Stratford Land Fund IV, we also have the ability to make nonrecourse land loans and to purchase notes,” Cooper said. When it’s time for Stratford to sell a property, its buyers include commercial real estate developers and homebuilders.

It's The Heart That Keeps I-95's Economy Pumping by Kathy Lohr - August 22, 2010

Interstate 95 isn't just a road crowded with travelers; it's part of the global transportation system. Just a small part of I-95 runs through Georgia, but it's a vital part of a pipeline that hauls goods to and from the Port of Savannah. Some call the port "The Quiet Giant," and its economic impact is enormous. Every day, 25,000 tons of cargo is funneled through the Port. It's the largest single container facility of its kind in all of North America and the second busiest on the East Coast, after the New York/New Jersey port. It's also the fourth busiest in the nation. The Georgia Ports Authority's Robert Morris says 7,000 to 9,000 trucks move onto and off of this facility every day. They're loaded with goods heading for retail stores across the Southeast, the Midwest and along the Gulf Coast. "This is a major hub for, of all things, imported beer," Morris says, "and many of your Christmas goods are beginning to come in." Enlarge Courtesy Port of Savannah Some call the Port of Savannah "The Quiet Giant." About 80 percent of the freight unloaded at the Port will travel on I-95 for at least some part of the journey to retail stores across the country. Courtesy Port of Savannah Some call the Port of Savannah "The Quiet Giant." About 80 percent of the freight unloaded at the Port will travel on I-95 for at least some part of the journey to retail stores across the country. The Roar Of The Quiet Giant While some ports along the East Coast have struggled amid the economic slowdown, the Port of Savannah continues to attract more freight. Last year, it handled 2.6 million containers. About 80 percent of that freight ends up on I-95. Truck traffic rumbles constantly along one particular area of I-95 near Savannah, where another important interstate also intersects, I-16. This is a major transportation logistics point along the East Coast. "It's critical. It's what makes one of our assets like the port as competitive and fast-growing as they've been for the past 8 or 10 years," says Page Siplon, head of Georgia's Center of Innovation for Logistics. He says Georgia's ports at Savannah and Brunswick provide nearly 300,000 jobs in the state. "Having that infrastructure and having that connectivity connects us into other parts of the world that have huge population centers like New York and California," Siplon says. "It's about [being] the most efficient, and most importantly, most reliable route to get your cargo where you want it to be." Room For All Sizes To Compete Some of the largest companies have set up distribution centers at this junction on I-95, including Home Depot, IKEA and Wal-Mart. But smaller companies have also built their business around this corridor. "We're a public warehouse, so unlike a Home Depot or a Target, we deal with anybody's stuff," says Billy Robinson, CEO of Port City Logistics. Robinson says his company has three warehouses — nearly one million square feet of space — to store merchandise. Paper products, boxes of flavoring to be added to Starbucks coffee and Heineken beer are some of his latest shipments from the Port. All of it is unloaded, repackaged and shipped out as needed to southeastern states — and most of it travels at least part of the way on I-95. "Yeah, 95's key. It's a huge key," Robinson says. His business is dependent on both I-95 and I-16. "Our customers wouldn't come here without 'em. Our business wouldn’t work without 'em." But freight traffic isn't the only reason Georgia's made I-95 a priority. The interstate is crucial for tourism, plus it's a vital evacuation route that funnels people out of Florida in case of a hurricane. In the next few months, Georgia will be the first state in the Southeast to finish its expansion of I-95. It will accommodate three lanes of traffic in each direction from South Carolina to Florida. Todd Long with the Georgia Department of Transportation says the state has spent over a billion dollars in the last 15 years to widen I-95.

Sea Island Co. Sells 20,000 acres to Dallas Company - Florida Times Union - July 19, 2010

Sea Island Co. sells 20,000 acres to Dallas company Tracts include tracts in Glynn and Camden counties Posted: July 19, 2010 - 10:49am By Terry Dickson BRUNSWICK — Sea Island Co. has sold 20,000 acres of land to a Dallas-based investment company, the buyer said in a prepared release. In a deal that closed Saturday, Stratford Land bought Altama Plantation in northern Glynn County, the Sinclair Plantation tract on St. Simons Island and, in Camden County, the Big Pasture at Cabin Bluff and the Little Pasture at Cabin Bluff. Altama Plantation was the private retreat for the Jones family, the owners of Sea Island Co., and is on the west side of Interstate 95 bordering the Altamaha River. The Big Pasture at Cabin Bluff is near Woodbine on the eastern side of Interstate 95 and the Little Pasture in on the western side of the highway. The Sinclair property is east of Lawrence Road near the northern tip of Sea Island. It is across the road from exclusive Frederica Township, an exclusive golf community. Stratford Land said that the property contains no operating resorts or occupied residential areas. "We are very excited about adding these properties to the portfolio of land that we manage across the United States,'' said David Moore, director of investments for Georgia, Tennessee and northern Florida for Stratford Land. "Our business model and capitalization allow us to acquire and hold valuable land, even holding for years if it is advantageous to our patient investors.'' Even as this sale is complete, Sea Island is continuing to work with Goldman Sachs to review its strategic alternatives including a possible sale of the company, said David Bansmer, president and chief operating officer for Sea Island.

Project could bring apartments, offices and more to southern Travis County - Austin American Statesman - June 4, 2010

A Dallas-based land investment fund is proposing an ambitious mixed-use project on 599 acres in southern Travis County. Estancia Hill Country could become the largest new planned development proposed for the South Interstate 35 corridor.

Over the next 10 to 15 years, the Stratford Co. envisions nearly 10 million square feet of development at Estancia, including a 1.9-million-square-foot corporate office campus; another 1.5 million square feet of general office space; a hospital; a hotel; nearly 1,600 apartments and townhomes; and almost 277,000 square feet of shops and restaurants.

Steve Sanders, a consultant for Stratford, said 130 acres would be set aside for parks, open space and trails.

Stratford is talking to a hospital and to a potential corporate user for the campus tract, Sanders said. The company bought the land, part of the Heep Ranch, in 2007.

Sanders said he could not identify either prospect yet but said the corporation is in the tech sector and would be relocating from another state.

That company is considering other locations besides the Austin area, said Sanders, a senior vice president with Jones Lang LaSalle, a real estate services firm.

The land is in southern Travis County at Interstate 35 and the Texas 45 Southeast toll road.

The recession and credit crunch knocked the wind out of large-scale commercial developments in the past 2½ years, and the realization of Stratford's plan will require developers to buy parts of the site and get the financing to start building.

"We've got a lot of user demand today," Sanders said. "The question is, can the users get financing? The lending environment hasn't changed. The project will happen at such point as banks begin normal lending practices. But the demand is now."

Sanders said Stratford expects to be ready within six to nine months to start selling sites to specific users — either a master developer for all 599 acres or individual developers who would take on specific components.

Stratford does not develop projects itself; it acquires land and then finds developers to carry out the master plans

Sanders said at least three master developers have expressed interest in Estancia, as have some apartment developers, though he said Stratford is not yet ready to start selling the multifamily tracts.

Stratford controls several thousand acres in Texas, Arizona, Georgia and the Carolinas. In Central Texas, the company also has 200 acres at I-35 and Yarrington Road in Kyle and 259 acres at McCarty Lane and I-35 in San Marcos.

Sanders said Estancia is in the path of Austin's southward growth and seeks to follow what he called the "almost unprecedented" success of Southpark Meadows, Endeavor Real Estate Group's sprawling South Austin shopping center.

Estancia is at the next major I-35 intersection south of Southpark Meadows.

He said developers have largely ignored that part of the region because it lacked water and wastewater services. That's changing as Austin extends utilities southward to accommodate future development, Sanders said.

Water will be available at the site by December, he said, and sewer service will be available by the end of 2011.

Sarah Sumner, a planner with Travis County, said an application has been approved to extend water services to the project, which is outside Austin's city limits but within its regulatory authority.

In addition, Stratford has submitted preliminary plans for the project with the city and county, Sumner said.

Sumner said other approvals would be required, including final plat approvals and construction plans.

Sanders said construction could start as early as next year, although Sumner said "that would be an ultimate best-case scenario" because of the size and complexity of the project.

Brian Kelsey, principal of Civic Analytics, an economic development consulting firm, said that though "we're clear of the recession, it will take some time for confidence to return to the real estate markets, even in Austin."

"The recession derailed a lot of the projects that were announced over the past few years, and I think many investors are in a holding pattern right now," Kelsey said. "However, the I-35 corridor is a pretty safe long-term bet. \u2026 I think a master-planned, mixed-use development could do quite well."

Kelsey said there are an estimated 123,000 households with 315,000 people within a 15-minute drive of the Onion Creek area, near Estancia.

Household growth in the area is expected to be nearly double the state rate and nearly four times the national rate during the next five years, Kelsey said.

Charles Heimsath, a real estate consultant, said he likes several aspects of the Estancia plan, including the "significant greenbelt and water features" and the concept of residential units above ground-floor retail, which he said "is a very attractive retailing concept and an emerging trend in the region."

Said Sanders: "South Austin's time has come. We're excited about the project."

VISTANCIA LLC ANNOUNCES NEW PARTNER - August 2009