Ocean Aire
. Spring Lake Heights, NJ
Pitcairn won the management contract for Ocean Aire Apartments, an 82 unit residential property in Spring Lake Heights, NJ in October 2008. Pitcairn embarked on a significant undertaking to reposition the property in the market. The property was renamed Ocean Aire, indicating that a change in management as well as property upgrades were underway.
Pitcairn identified substantial deferred maintenance and capital needs, and a significant amount of exterior enhancements have profoundly impacted curb appeal. Projects completed include new exterior property lighting, redesigned signage, and new iron railings. In addition, the pool area was extensively rehabbed to enhance the amenity package at the property.
Remarkably, Pitcairn was able to tackle a large delinquency problem at the property while not just maintaining, but significantly increasing occupancy. In fact, occupancy has gone from 80% to 99% in the time since Pitcairn has taken over management. Pitcairn also implemented a unit renovation program, taking dated units and updating appliances, lighting, windows, and doors in order to realign the units with the market. Renovations have been well received by the market, and a decrease in inventory has allowed for rental increases on both renovated and non-renovated units. Pitcairn’s complete rebranding of the property has also included a newly launched internet marketing campaign. A significant increase in traffic has stemmed from the new name, a new logo, and marketing collateral material.
In less than one year, Pitcairn has managed to stabilize property occupancy while enhancing the quality of apartment exteriors, interiors, and amenities for current and future residents and enhancing value for ownership. |
Regency on Elm
. Morristown, NJ
Pitcairn won the management contract for Regency on Elm, a 79-unit residential property located in downtown Morristown, NJ in October 2008 and immediately began a complete repositioning of the property in the market. The property was renamed Regency on Elm, signaling that a change in management and significant property enhancements were on the way.
Pitcairn identified and began extensive work to address the property’s significant deferred maintenance issues and capital needs. Projects currently under way include the installation of a new state of the art HVAC system, modernization and replacement of the elevators, as well as a complete renovation of the lobby and hallways. In addition, Pitcairn has begun a comprehensive unit renovation project as leases rollover, updating appliances, lighting, windows, doors, and balconies in order to make units not just relevant, but best in class in the market. Renovated units have seen high demand and are achieving 30% higher rents.
Pitcairn undertook a complete re-branding of the property, including new name, logo, and marketing collateral. With the re-branding complete, Pitcairn launched a new advertising campaign utilizing the latest internet-based technology. As a result, traffic to the property has increased significantly. This campaign utilizes several marketing channels to effectively showcase the property, more than doubling weekly traffic to the property since taking over management last October.
Pitcairn’s customer service style of business has also proved to satisfy existing tenants not just with renovations, but also with an online work order system to more efficiently meet their needs. In less than a year, Pitcairn has already begun to recognize and demonstrate the exciting potential at Regency on Elm. |
 The Magellan. New York, New York
In early 2001, a private family came to Pitcairn Properties with an intriguing proposal: Would we, this family wondered, be interested in joining it in the development of a parcel of land located adjacent to the Empire State building? The idea was to create a multi-family residential high-rise within Manhattan's garment district. The challenge was to make sure that the project delivered in every respect from quality of design and construction to value generation.
Ground was broken for 168- unit 36 story high-rise project on June 3, 2002. Structured so that it would receive a 22-year abatement of real estate taxes, 10 years of direct tax credits, an exemption from New York City's 2.75% mortgage recording tax, and low-interest mortgage financing via bonds issued by the New York State Housing Finance Agency, the project benefited from significantly enhanced net cash flow from the property.
By the fall of 2003, The Magellan had opened to great acclaim, subsequently achieving 100% lease-up within six months. In the end, only one other tower has ever been built as quickly as The Magellan, and that is its neighbor, the Empire State Building.
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 The Ellington. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
At 1500 Chestnut Street, we engineered a $12 million renovation of a former apartment complex located near Philadelphia's City Hall - converting the circa-1922 20-story building into one of the most successful residential condominium projects in the city. Featuring an elegant lobby and fitness center, newly finished hallways and stairwells, operable floor-to-ceiling windows in every living unit, completely renovated living spaces, and 11 ultra-luxury penthouses, the 160-unit building will be completely sold out by December 2007.
The Ellington has won acclaim within the local real estate community, earning five William Penn Awards of Excellence by the Building Industry Association of Philadelphia for 2006, including Best Condominium Home of the Year under $500,000, Best Conversion of the Year under $500,000, and Best Adaptive Reuse of the Year.
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 Ocean Rio Resort and Residences. Wildwood, New Jersey
In 2005, Pitcairn entered the recently rezoned, vital new Wildwood, New Jersey, market with a planned ocean-front, 25-story condo-hotel. Occupying the site of the former Rio Motel, the Ocean Rio Resort and Residences will offer a mix of upscale living spaces when it opens. Constructed of glass and granite and offering balcony views of both the bay and the ocean, the tower will also feature a generous lobby, indoor parking, swimming pools, spas, restaurants, retail, and a fitness area.
Throughout the development of this project, strong local government support has lead to expedited local approvals. Value has been created by securing entitlements while at the same time encumbering adjacent properties at pre-approval values for future phases. Financing will involve state-sponsored trust funds and bond programs.
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 201 Old Country Road. Melville, Long Island, New York
This class "A" office building located in Suffolk County, New York, was a single-tenant building when we first acquired it - a 217,000 square-foot building with first-class finishes located in a prime Long Island submarket. It just so happened to be vacant and in neglected condition.
We saw potential - believed that this asset could be converted into a multi-tenant building with the kind of amenities that would attract a loyal tenant base and elevate the building's value over time. We executed on this vision - commissioning architects, engineers, and a construction team to revamp the building with a new infrastructure, fiber optic communication cable, a brand-new cafeteria and gym, and new landscape treatments, while hiring brokers to begin to lease the space even before the acquisition deal had formally closed. When we sold the building in 2006, occupancy was above 95%.
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 Skymark Corporate Center. Village of Ridgefield Park, New Jersey
In October 2000 we obtained a 50% partnership interest in the last large parcel of undeveloped land in the entire metro New York City office market for a 25% equity investment. Christened the Skymark Corporate Center, the 33-acre site presented the sort of special conditions in which we specialize - challenging site logistics, the requirement for intensive local government negotiations and approvals, and the need for creative financing through federal highway funds and state-sponsored bond programs.
Within short order we gained local government support of access improvements and site development. We also obtained first-phase preliminary master plan approval and final land development approvals from NJDEP, NJDOT, and NJTA, and have worked in partnership with the local government to secure state agency approvals. Given the recent office market demand and resultant lease rate increases in the Midtown and Financial districts in New York City, we anticipate a high demand for Skymark upon its completion.
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 Chesterbrook and Glenhardie. Wayne, Pennsylvania
Located on former rolling farmlands, the Chesterbrook and Glenhardie office complex, with its asset quality, prime location, and innovative development, has long had a superior brand image in the Philadelphia MSA and northeast region. With the purchase of this complex in 2006, we took an aggressive approach to stabilizing the portfolio and refining the management model. Tenant occupancy soon grew from 82% to 95%, with more than 200,000 square feet of positive leasing absorption. Annual savings of $300,000 were achieved through a management restructuring. Plans were made for a new development project that could add 60,000 square feet of office space to the complex by 2008.
At Chesterbrook and Glenhardie, Pitcairn has created a stable, core, low-risk asset with a hold period of 10 years.
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 Bell Atlantic Tower. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Bell Atlantic Tower project called for the construction of a 55-story, 1,370,000-square-foot tower at 1717 Arch Street - an enormous undertaking by any standard. Begun in 1988 and completed in 1991, the project added an important new feature to the Philadelphia skyline and provided new corporate homes to Bell Atlantic and the law firm of Dechert Price & Rhoads, among others.
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 Glenview Corporate Center. Lower Bucks County, Pennsylvania
In 1989, Pitcairn entered into a syndicated fifty-fifty partnership with First Westinghouse Equities Corporation (FWEC), the purpose of which was to acquire a 78-acre tract in Lower Bucks County. Acquired for $7.5 million (with an additional $2.5 million for closing, infrastructure, and site improvement), that tract would ultimately become the Glenview Corporate Center.
As the project's developer, Pitcairn oversaw all entitlements and the early construction of three buildings totaling approximately 215,500 square feet. In 1990, 3.52 acres were sold to State Farm Mutual Insurance Company, and three years later, a 60-year ground lease was signed with Outback Steak House; construction of a new 25,000 square-foot building began soon after that.
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