$18M Buy Marks Crown West's Market Entrance

By Natalie Keith
June 13, 2007
GlobeSt.com

ATLANTA, GA - Crown West Realty, LLC, with offices in Denver and New York City, has entered the market with the $18.1 - million acquisition of the 196,000 - sf Cobb Corporate Center office park. The property, located at 350-450 Franklin Road immediately northwest of the South Marietta Parkway exchange on Interstate 75, consists of five single-story flex office buildings.

Among reasons for the acquisition is its location. The property has access to Interstate 285, Interstate 75, US 41 and GA 120 and is located in Cobb County, which is home to more than 100 Fortune 500 companies.

Crown West Realty Eastern US asset manager Ed Gargiulo tells GlobeSt.com that the property is 73% occupied. "We're a value-add buyer that looks for properties that are capital constrained of where there is significant vacancy," he says.

Resource Management Partners will handle leasing and management of the property. Crown West is planning to improve the appearance of the property with capital improvements, such as improvements to the building's exterior and upgrades to the landscaping and parking lot. Current tenants include Ford Motor Co., Avnet Inc. and Acuity Specialty Products Group Inc.

Gargiulo adds that Crown West plans to acquire more property in the Atlanta area. "We look at markets that have struggled in the past but are showing signs of turning around," he says. "Other markets where we've had success are Phoenix, Denver and Raleigh/Durhan."