Student Housing Business is the voice of the student housing industry.
Issue link: https://studenthousingbusiness.epubxp.com/i/616872
NE WS IN BRIEF NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 14 300 Plaza Drive, Box 678 | Vestal, New York 13851-0678 Phone: 607.444.2202 | Fax: 607.348.1470 info@ndgliving.com | www.ndgliving.com FIRST CLASS, NEXT TO CLASS TM ACQUISITION | DEVELOPMENT | MANAGEMENT CORE SPACES NAMES BRIAN THOMPSON DIRECTOR OF ACQUISITIONS Chicago — Brian Thompson has joined Chicago and Austin, Texas-based Core Spaces as the company's new director of acquisitions. Thompson was most recently with Harrison Street Real Estate Capital, where he helped lead the company's investments in the student housing sector. The addition of Thompson allows Core, whose efforts to date have focused primarily on development, to expand its business lines by creating an acquisitions plat- form. Core Spaces' managing partner, Marc Lifshin, and Thompson have been acquainted for a number of years, says Thompson, through transactions with their previous organizations. In an interview with SHB, Thompson said Core's acquisition program will focus on both core assets and value-add properties in the student housing sector. "In terms of volume," says Thompson, "we expect three to seven deals per year on the acquisitions side, and we expect to increase the number of developments we are building to three or four deals a year." According to Thompson, Core will take an opportunity-based approach with its acquisi- tions platform, targeting properties in the 200-bed to 600-bed range, and not limit itself by the size of deals. "In markets where there are fundamentals within the university or demographic trends we like, we¹ll jump," he says. The new acquisitions program is a major move for Core Spaces, comple- menting its existing development and management platforms. The addition pushes the company into a direction of becoming one of the larger compa- nies in the space. PEAK CAMPUS TO MANAGE CAMPUS CIRCLE NEAR UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS Urbana, Ill. — Peak Campus has been awarded and assumed management for Campus Circle, located in Urbana near the University of Illinois. The 524-bed student housing project is currently under construction. It will be completed in spring of 2016 and will be ready for students to move in for the fall 2016 semester. Peak Campus has begun its leasing efforts for Campus Circle, which will offer one-, two-, and four-bedroom, fully furnished apart- ments with bed-to-bath parity. The property's amenities will include a roof- top space that offers a bar with outdoor television, fre pits, a sundeck with resort-style furniture, dining and study tables, and a covered lounge area. The property will also feature a two-story ftness center with Matrix cardio equipment. The community will also include a two-story clubroom with a 90-inch entertainment wall, pub-style seating with personal HDTVs, theater and virtual classroom with digital surround sound and an 80-inch display, tanning facilities, two game rooms, and 18 study rooms with large fat- screen TVs equipped with Apple TV, Chromecast and Microsoft Wireless Display Adapters for collaborative projects and presentations. VESPER BUYS STUDENT HOUSING PROPERTY NEAR IOWA STATE FOR $18.5 MILLION Ames, Iowa — Vesper Holdings has purchased a 540-bed student housing property, University Plains, near Iowa State University in Ames, for $18.5 million. Vesper purchased University Plains from a group of tenant-in- common owners. Vesper plans to completely renovate University Plains and invest $2 million in capital expenditures. Property improvements will include a renovation of the units and amenities, as well as enhancements to the property's exteriors and technology upgrades throughout the complex. Completed in 2001, University Plains is comprised of 12 three-story resi- dential buildings and a clubhouse spread across a 10-acre site. University Plains' unit mix consists of three- and four-bedroom foor plans. Apartments feature large fully equipped kitchens, full-size washers and dryers, as well as a high-speed Internet connection in every bedroom. University Plains' amenities include a swimming pool, hot tub, ftness center, computer center, game room, study area, tanning beds, volleyball court, basketball court and a location on the university's shuttle route. The property currently main- tains a 99 percent occupancy rate. With the acquisition of University Plains, Vesper's student housing portfolio now totals approximately 10,500 beds. Thompson