Real Estate Daily News Buzz is designed to give news snippets to readers that our (yet to be award winning) editors thought you could use to start your day. They come from various business perspectives, real estate, government, the Fed, local news, and the stock markets to save you time. Here you will find the headlines and what the news buzz of the day will be.

Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average picked up 35 points, or 0.2%, to 17,576.96. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 5.69 points, or 0.3%, to 2,047.60. The NASDAQ composite index eked out a gain of 2.32 points, or less than 0.1%, to 4,850.69.

Benchmark U.S. crude rose $2.46, or 6.6%, to $39.72 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained $2.51, or 6.4%, to $41.94 a barrel in London. Wholesale gasoline rose 8 cents, or 6%, to $1.46 a gallon. Heating oil jumped 7 cents, or 6.6%, to $1.20 a gallon. Natural gas slipped 3 cents to $1.99 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Yellen, Alongside Former Fed Chairs, Says Rate Hikes on Track “The U.S. economy is on a solid course with some hints of inflation so the Federal Reserve is on track for further interest rate hikes, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said on Thursday in a defense of her decision to tighten policy late last year. In a rare spectacle, Yellen spoke on a New York panel alongside her three predecessors who ran the world’s most powerful central bank. She said that, seven years after the brutal financial crisis, the U.S. labor market was now ‘close’ to full strength, again arguing that inflation would not be held down much longer by the strong dollar and low oil prices.” (Fortune)

Fed’s George says commercial real estate a potential asset bubble “The commercial real estate market is a potential asset bubble that ‘bears watching,’ said Kansas City Fed President Esther George on Thursday, pressing her case for the U.S. central bank to ‘stay the course’ and gradually raise interest rates.‘ In the long run, a failure to keep interest-rate policy in line with improving fundamentals can distort the allocation of capital toward less fruitful—or perhaps excessively risky—endeavors,’ George said in a speech to an economic forum in York, Nebraska.” (MarketWatch)

U.S. Will Appeal Metlife Ruling, Saying Yes it Is ‘Too Big to Fail’ “Federal regulators’ decision to designate insurer MetLife Inc as ‘too big to fail’ was ‘arbitrary and capricious,’ the U.S. judge who struck down the determination last month wrote in an opinion that was unsealed on Thursday. The U.S. government plans to appeal the court decision, a Treasury spokesman said in a statement late on Thursday. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said he strongly disagreed with the decision and the government would vigorously defend the work of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), made up of several U.S. regulatory agency chiefs, which designated MetLife as a systemically important financial institution in 2014.” (Fortune)

Can Commercial Real Estate Maintain Momentum? “Two new data reports on the commercial real estate sector offer very different visions regarding the sector’s vibrancy, with one detailing a healthy 2015 and the other forecasting a bumpy near-term future. First, the year that passed: 2015 saw commercial and multifamily mortgage bankers closing $503.8 billion in loans, according to the 2015 Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Annual Origination Volume Summation published by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). Last year’s level was 26 percent higher than 2014, while dollar volume of closed loans rose by 17 percent year-over-year.” (National Mortgage Professional)

Multifamily REITs Hold Strong Despite Softening “Multifamily fundamentals are beginning to soften, after several strong years, with apartment completions expected to peak in 2016. This peak should result in an increasing vacancy rate over the next two years. Notwithstanding these early indicators, multifamily REITs are expected to outperform REITs in other sectors, given ongoing preference to rent versus buy within the markets in which they operate, limited development exposure, and good rent and same-store NOI growth. Of the seven traditional multifamily REITs that we rate, five have a positive outlook and two are stable, reflecting continued earnings growth and solid balance sheet and cash flow metrics in the sector.” (Commercial Property Executive)

There are too many sporting goods stores and not enough customers “An oversaturation of brick-and-mortar sporting goods retailers could pose a problem for Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc., even with another competitor on the brink of bankruptcy, say Credit Suisse analysts. Vestis Retail Group, which owns Eastern Mountain Sports, Bob’s Stores and Sport Chalet, is exploring a bankruptcy filing, Bloomberg reports, citing a person familiar with the matter. The three chains have about 146 stores combined. This report comes just weeks after rival Sports Authority filed for bankruptcy protection. It plans to shut about 140 locations.” (MarketWatch)

Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands to restructure business “Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands reported March sales at established stores above analysts’ expectations and said it would restructure its business to focus on core categories. L Brands said it would create three units within its Victoria’s Secret business — Victoria’s Secret Lingerie, Pink and Victoria’s Secret Beauty — and eliminate certain merchandise categories. The changes are aimed at narrowing the company’s focus and simplifying the operating model, Chief Executive Leslie Wexner said on Thursday.” (CNBC)

How much longer will the love affair last? “It’s no secret that New York City developers have over the past few years been tapping the EB-5 spigot. Giant builders like Macklowe Properties, Extell Development, the Witkoff Group and the Related Companies have all helped themselves to the relatively cheap capital they can access through the program. But now, the relative affordability of EB-5 cash compared with traditional financing—the main draw of the program—is being compromised by strong developer demand, increased competition for Chinese investors and a rise in the fees charged by intermediaries, sources told The Real Deal.” (The Real Deal)

Manhattan rents finally went down “The median rental price in New York City’s most expensive borough dropped 2.8% to $3,300 in March from the same time a year ago. This is the first annual decline in 24 months, according to the latest report by real estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel for Douglas Elliman Real Estate. ‘The rental market is sitting within the city’s robust economy so that drives demand,’ said Jonathan Miller, CEO of appraiser firm Miller Samuel. ‘But there has been this disconnect with the type of housing we are bringing to market and the wages that are being paid.’ The rental market has been tapping the brakes since August, but Miller doesn’t expect rents to continue to decline.” (CNN)

Beninati accuses Kalikow of ‘calculated scheme’ to take over Sutton Place project “It seems the battle for control of one of the city’s most talked-about development sites has only just begun. Bauhouse Group chief Joseph Beninati plans to take legal action against lender Richard Kalikow for allegedly conspiring to wrest control of his planned residential tower at 3 Sutton Place, he said in documents filed with the United States Bankruptcy court Wednesday. Beninati alleges that Kalikow, his lender on the $1 billion condo project via his company Gamma Real Estate, engaged in a 15-month-long ‘calculated scheme’ designed to sideline him from his own development, using insider information obtained from Beninati’s own lawyer, who also happens to be Kalikow’s cousin.” (The Real Deal)

With the goal of improving the passenger experience at Tucson International Airport (TUS), the Tucson Airport Authority (TAA) Board of Directors has approved a multi -phase terminal improvement project to expand the security checkpoint areas, open up more choices in the post -security area and improve critical infrastructure.

The Board approved a construction services agreement with Sundt Construction at its meeting on Wednesday, April 6. Construction is expected begin this June and be completed in November 2017.

“This project provides us with the opportunity to enhance the customer experience through improved space utilization,” said TAA President/CEO Bonnie Allin. “The larger security checkpoint allows for newer security technology and better passenger flow. The improved concessions will provide a greater variety of food and retail opportunities. This is going to take our airport to another level of excellence, and we’re excited to begin construction.”

Key elements of the project being called “A Brighter TUS” will take under -used space in the ticketing lobby and repurpose it for the expanded security checkpoints. This space will take advantage of windows and will open up the space to more natural light and views of the airfield. Meanwhile, the space on the concourses currently being used for checkpoints will be redesigned for retail shops, food and beverage outlets and other services, such as business centers and children’s play areas.

Majority funding for the multi-phased $28.3 million project comes from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) passenger facility charge program and the remainder from the Tucson Airport Authority. No tax dollars will be used to fund this multi-million dollar project.

To start off the construction and moving, two airlines will move their ticket counters. American Airlines will relocate to the far west end of the terminal. United Airlines will move from its current location to the far east end of the terminal. This will occur at the end of May.

Some of the phases for A Brighter TUS will overlap. Phase 1 of the project includes construction in the central terminal area. From June 2016 to October 2017, new concessionaire locations will be prepared. Old concessions and the Flybar will be demolished, including the stairway and escalators at the center gallery.

Phase 2 of A Brighter TUS focuses on the relocation of the security checkpoints. From June 2016 to February 2017, the security checkpoints for Concourse B will be relocated to the far west end of the terminal and will be expanded from three lanes to four, allowing for additional TSA equipment. Security checkpoints on Concourse A will be relocated and expanded from October 2016 to August 2017. These new expanded checkpoints will allow for better queuing and the passenger screening experience.

New composure areas will be created beyond the new checkpoints. These areas will provide seating and airside views for passengers after security. Space will also be included for a business center and children’s play area on each concourse beyond the composure area. New carpet and patterned terrazzo flooring will also be installed throughout the terminal and will capture the desert colors.

From the composure areas, passengers will be directed toward the ramp leading to the concourse, which will be developed to host new concessions.

Concession construction will be ongoing throughout the project, but is not expected to open up new concepts until construction is complete. Retail is expected to open in December 2017 while food and beverage should begin operating in January 2018.

While construction is ongoing, critical infrastructure will be upgraded to maintain the longevity of the terminal.

As construction progresses, we will have updates and more information posted to the Tucson International Airport’s website (flytucson.com) and social media.

For a gallery of project renderings for download and to stay up-to-date with construction updates, visit our “A Brighter TUS” page HERE.  You must use the desktop version of our website to view

PHOENIX (April 7, 2016)  – LGE Design Build has completed construction on Video West Inc.’s new 40,000-square-foot office/warehouse headquarters in Phoenix.

Video West Inc., a national audio visual rental and staging company, moved from Tempe to the new location at 1050 N. 52^nd Street, doubling the size of its former space. The new building provides expedited shipping and receiving capabilities, additional office space for their growing workforce of 65 employees and a 2,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art demo room.

Near Loop 202 and 52^nd Street and also Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, the building has steel canopies over the main entry and windows, as well as a steel balcony area off the mezzanine.

“Since our last move in 2003 we have doubled our number of employees and significantly increased our equipment inventory. This current move is definitely overdue,” said Jack Waitkus, Video West Inc. president. 

The new facility has energy efficient features such as LED lighting and the use of reclaimed vegetable oil for elevator operations. Eventually, Video West Inc. plans to install solar panels over most of the 100 parking spaces located on the property.

LGE Design Group served as the architect.

“The building design speaks to the digital nature of the business with the contemporary tile pattern, modern banding and colors, and shade features for the east facing windows.  The outdoor patio on the second level takes advantage of the views toward Papago and Camelback and integrates steel detailing that is exposed as part of the entry design,” said Vince Dalke, LGE Design Group principal.

Video West Inc. has recently served as a vendor on US Department of State Summits, national auto show installations for Porsche and Volvo, and the Pope Francis Papal Mass in Washington D.C. Video West Inc. enjoys the privilege of serving local clients including Arizona State University, the Arizona Dental Association, and American Express.

“We enjoy helping clients propel their businesses to the next level. Video West Inc.’s new headquarters accommodates the growth of their company and will enable them to continue expanding operations,” said Dave Sellers, LGE Design Build president.