2015: A Big Year for Pensacola
With Stirling Properties’ having an office in Pensacola for just over a year now, I can say it is exciting to experience first-hand the revitalization of downtown Pensacola and the economic energy happening along Florida’s “western gate”. 2015 was a vital year for economic development, job creation and community vitality in Pensacola, Florida.
The most significant single event that is shaping the future of Pensacola’s economy, by creating the most jobs and bringing in the largest investment, is Navy Federal Credit Union’s $850 million two-phase expansion of its Pensacola Campus. Phase 1 of the expansion began in early 2015, and both buildings are expected to be ready for occupancy in June 2016. These buildings will house an additional 2,000 employees. Phase 2’s ground breaking is expected to begin in November 2016 and will bring an additional 5,000 work stations. By 2020, the Pensacola campus will total 2 million square feet of space and $1 billion in capital investment; employing 10,000 people.
Downtown Pensacola saw several major projects that either began or were completed in 2015.
- One Palafox Place is a complete renovation of historic Brent and Blount Buildings. The restoration and redevelopment will transform it into a new live, work play community.
- The Pensacola News Journal building at 101 E. Romana Street was demolished and construction for a $51 million, 260-unit apartment and retail building will begin in early 2016.
- Adjacent to the apartments is a new 52,000 square foot, $15 million YMCA that will be competed in late 2016.
- The Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition’s Alcaniz Street headquarters will be ready in March 2016. This expansion will take their office and workspace to 30,000 square feet.
- One51 Main at the Community Maritime Park is complete and ready for occupancy. This 27,000 square foot, mixed-use development on Pensacola Bay will house office, retail and condominium space.
- A 100-room Holiday Inn Express located on Main Street is under construction and will open in late 2016 or early 2017.
The Bluffs, an industrial park near Cantonment, Florida, will host up to 60 individual industrial sites and bring 5,000 new jobs.
A contract with VT Mobile Aerospace to build a $38 million aircraft maintenance and overhaul facility at Pensacola International Airport is setting Pensacola up as an aerospace hotspot. The large hanger facility will begin construction during the second half of 2016 and is expected to create 300 jobs.
Hosted by the University of West Florida’s Center for Entrepreneurship, EntreCon, a two-day conference for entrepreneurs at the Rex Theater, was successfully launched in November 2015. Over 225 people attended and EntreCon 2016 is already scheduled for November.
2016 brings big economic growth opportunities in entrepreneurship, cybersecurity and aviation. I can’t wait to see what else is in store for Pensacola in 2016.
President’s Message: We Are Ready!
We are ready!
The New Year celebration has come and gone. The world has taken a moment to reflect on the past year and now we redirect our attention to goals for the new one. As we close out the first month of 2016, this is usually the time that most people abandon those well-intentioned New Year’s resolutions they so ambitiously made.
Nevertheless, I think there is still a real purpose for continuing these rituals each year. It presents a new set of opportunities to make ourselves better and to strive for loftier goals. Here at Stirling Properties, that reason is for us to try to prepare ourselves as best we can to deal with what the future holds: uncertainty.
Every day, we hear and read of crises, turmoil and drama in the news. And in times of greatest uncertainty, it is more critical than ever to prepare for opportunity.
Stirling Properties’ goals for 2016 have been finalized. Our pipeline is full and we have many exciting prospects in our future. However, the only thing I can really be certain of is that the year will provide uncertainty.
Basketball coaching legend John Wooden said, “When opportunity comes, it’s too late to prepare.” If his players were not prepared for the game, they would not be able to take advantage of the opportunities within it. His point was that opportunity comes to those who are ready for it.
With that in mind, we ended 2015 and begin 2016 with many great opportunities.
- Turtle Creek Crossing in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, is the largest retail acquisition by Stirling Properties in its 40 year history! The transaction occurred last week for the 295,000-square-foot shopping center at a purchase price of $48.1 million. Anchor tenants include Target, Kohl’s, Ashley Furniture, Bed Bath & Beyond, Ross Dress for Less, Old Navy and PetSmart.
- Our Mobile Office is experiencing remarkable growth throughout South Alabama. New restaurants, shopping and retail expansion — including Alabama’s first plaza-type development — is in the works with new tenant leases being announced often. From 2014–2015, total commercial volume for sales and leasing in Alabama increased by 169% and total transactions increased by 113%.
- Stirling Properties and CBL & Associates Properties, Inc., celebrated the Grand Opening of Phase II of Fremaux Town Center in Slidell, Louisiana, adding 283,000 square feet to the existing shopping center. Anchored by Dillard’s, the second phase allowed us to add even more great retail and restaurant options that will further solidify Fremaux Town Center as a premier regional shopping and entertainment destination, as well as a vital economic contributor to the area.
- We welcomed our first tenants to the recently completed Offices at Mid-City Market, a 54,000-square-foot, mixed-use complex in New Orleans. Orangetheory Fitness joined previously-announced Gallo Mechanical, LLC, Exceptional Dental and H-3 Aesthetics & Dermatology. We are anticipating new tenant announcements soon.
- Stirling acquired the 384-multi-family-unit “Retreat at Acadian Point” (formerly South Point Apartments) in Lafayette, Louisiana, bringing Stirling’s total number of units under management to 1,512. Upgrades are in progress and we are providing Lafayette residents with affordable luxury at a time when the local economy faces some challenges.
- Last year, Stirling Properties leased or sold nearly 4 million square feet of properties. From 2014–2015, our total transactions increased by 13%. Equally exciting, we are thrilled to welcome 45 new members to our Stirling family.
We’ve accomplished so much over the past year, and the best is yet to come. Stirling Properties continues to substantially increase our portfolio and expand our footprint across the entire Gulf South region, shaping us to be one of the most diversified full-service commercial real estate companies in the country.
So I don’t know when or where more opportunities will come, but I know that our Stirling Properties team is equipped, eager and more prepared than ever to meet them. Even John Wooden would be proud.
Therefore, when, where and how opportunity knocks, we are ready!
Stirling Properties Announces Recent Activity In South Alabama
Alabama’s 1st plaza development & new area tenants
Stirling Properties is excited to announce recent activity in the South Alabama areas of Daphne, Gulf Shores, Mobile and Orange Beach. For more information, please contact Jeff Barnes, listing broker with Stirling Properties in Mobile.
DAPHNE COMMONS (Daphne)
- Daphne Commons will be a signature development on the Eastern Shore of Baldwin County. The new shopping center will consist of approximately 27,000 square feet and construction is anticipated to start in early 2016. The initial phase of the center will feature 2 buildings. Expansion space and an out parcel will also exist.
- National tenants are in the works and will be announced soon!
WAHOO PLAZA (Gulf Shores)
- Located along Foley Beach Expressway at Highway 8, Wahoo Plaza will be Alabama’s first plaza-type development! Infrastructure and underground retention is under way with 3.77 acres available for sale/lease.
- A Shell gas station and convenience store will be included in the development.
ONE ST. LOUIS CENTRE (Mobile)
- Birmingham-based Oakworth Capital Bank is opening its first Mobile location occupying 4,700 square feet at One St. Louis Centre. The company intends to establish a full-service office, including commercial and private banking in the near future.
THE WHARF (Orange Beach)
- Stirling Properties was retained to re-evaluate and develop a revised master plan for the 65 acres of undeveloped land at The Wharf, a mixed-use waterfront development in Orange Beach.
- Stirling Properties is excited to announce new tenants to The Wharf, including Sea la vie Design, a 5,497-square-foot furniture and design studio, Orange Grove, a 1,597-square-foot gift shop and Montego’s Caribbean Cafe’ and Bar, a 9,301-square-foot waterfront restaurant, expected to open in February 2016.
- Several significant new tenant leases will be announced in the coming weeks!
Stirling Properties is located in One St. Louis Centre, 1 St. Louis Street, Suite 4100 in Mobile. For more information regarding our services, please visit us at www.stirlingproperties.com.
Ambassador Town Center Job Fair Today!
With the Grand Opening only a few months away on March 23, Ambassador Town Center is hosting a job fair today at the Wyndham Garden Lafayette on 1801 West Pinhook Road in Lafayette. 17 companies will interview applicants from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Ambassador Town Center is bringing over 1,500 jobs to the Lafayette area. This will be a huge economic boost to Lafayette, during a time when the local job market has been bleak.
Nearly 1,700 people were lined up first thing this morning to interview for jobs ranging from entry level to management positions. The 17 companies participating in the job fair are: BJ’s Restaurants, Blaze Pizza, Costco, Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Dickey’s Barbecue Pit, Field & Stream, Five Below, Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, Homegoods / Marshalls, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Panera Bread, Panda Express, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews, Subway, Verizon Wireless, and World of Beer.
The job fair is sponsored by LEDA and Louisiana Workforce Commission. For a more detailed list of positions available visit http://www.lafayette.org/Jobfairs
To download a copy of the job fair directory and floor map click here.
2015: What a year for Mobile
With all the various ranking and awards Alabama received throughout 2015, it’s no surprise Mobile, Alabama had an amazing year!
As Stirling Properties’ Vice President & Regional Manager for Alabama/Florida, a member of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Chamber’s Board of Advisors, I was thrilled with all that Mobile accomplished this past year. Here are just a few of the more notable moments from 2015.
Airbus’s U.S. Manufacturing Facility at Mobile Aeroplex opened its first U.S. manufacturing facility on September 14, 2015. By 2018, the facility will produce between 40 and 50 single-aisle aircrafts per year.
GulfQuest National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico opened on September 26, 2015 and provided a huge impact to the area’s tourism economy.
The Alabama Department of Transportation awarded the I-10 Mobile River Bridge design/engineering contract to Thompson Engineering. This will increase the capacity of I-10 and meet the existing and predicted future traffic volumes.
The Manufacturing Communities Grant was implemented and Mobile was named one of only 12 federally-designated manufacturing communities in 2015. Over the past 5 years, manufacturing jobs in Mobile have increased by 38%, with a 22.9% increase in manufacturing wages.
1702, a group of chief executive officers and business leaders, was established to create an entrepreneurial community that showcases Mobile as one of the best cities for groundbreaking companies. The St. Louis street innovative corridor for tech savvy startups is becoming a reality.
The city executed a 13 month contract for the return of Carnival Cruise Lines starting in November 2016. This promises a huge economic impact to the city.
Mobile Chamber of Commerce surveyed their Partners for Growth Investors. The results showed that between January 2014 and June 2015 2,148 new jobs were created and during that time $936 million was invested in capital.
Stirling Properties is committed to serving Alabama and the Gulf South and we are proud to be one of Mobile’s top commercial real estate firms. We are excited about the great things to come in 2016 to Mobile!
First Tenant Opens at the Offices at Mid-City Market in New Orleans
Additional Tenant Announcements Coming Soon
Stirling Properties is excited to announce the opening of the first tenant at Offices at Mid-City Market, a 54,000 square foot, mixed-use complex in the burgeoning Mid-City neighborhood of New Orleans.
Orangetheory Fitness, a fitness studio that specializes in hour-long group interval training workouts, has opened their first Louisiana location at Offices at Mid-City Market. Orangetheory is currently open and will celebrate their Grand Opening on December 31st. For more information, visit www.orangetheoryfitness.com/new-orleans.
Joining the previously announced Gallo Mechanical, LLC corporate headquarters and Orangetheory Fitness, are Exceptional Dental and H-3 Aesthetics & Dermatology.
Gallo Mechanical, LLC, a leading mechanical contracting company in the Gulf South, will be the first office tenant to open in the building, occupying 15,448 square feet. Gallo has relocated their corporate headquarters from Metairie to New Orleans.
Exceptional Dental, providing restorative and beautifying dentistry to patients across Louisiana is scheduled to open spring 2016.
H-3 Aesthetics & Dermatology, offering general and cosmetic dermatology services, along with a juice bar, is also scheduled to open spring 2016.
New tenant announcements coming soon!
Located adjacent to Stirling’s recently completed Mid-City Market development, this building was originally constructed in 1954 and was most recently the home of Loubat Foodservice Equipment Company. Throughout the course of this development, Stirling Properties has maintained the historic integrity of the existing structure while renovating the interior into a combination of office and retail space and consequently brought a prominent neighborhood building back into commerce.
For more information and leasing opportunities for Offices at Mid-City Market, contact Joe Gardner at jgardner@stirlingprop.com or 504-620-8140.
