Posted: Jul 02, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 1, 2008
Contact: Sydney Townsend or Dana Latson
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Sunwest Communications
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KDC ADDS INVESTOR GROUP AS PART OF LONG-TERM STRATEGIC GROWTH PLAN
Investment will result in additional KDC offices, data center and medical office building expansion
DALLAS – (July 1, 2008) – – Dallas-based commercial real estate firm KDC today announced plans for aggressive growth and introduced new corporate partners. KDC CEO Steve Van Amburgh said the firm expects to open new offices in Chicago, Washington, D. C. and the San Francisco Bay area by the end of the year, as well as expanding its Houston operations.
E2M Partners, a private equity firm investing in real estate companies and assets on behalf of individual and institutional investors, and Sammons Enterprises, one of the largest privately owned companies in the United States with assets approaching $40 billion, have formed a joint venture to make a capital investment in KDC. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“Our core business of corporate office and industrial development remains strong with more new proposals on the table than ever before, even during these challenging economic times,” said Van Amburgh. “Our long-term growth plans stimulated interest from a number of potential investment partners and the transaction with E2M and Sammons is a perfect fit for KDC. We have known and worked with the partners of E2M before and have long admired their expertise. Together, with Sammons, we will have significant financial strength to support our growth.”
“This was a unique opportunity to invest side-by-side with a talented, seasoned, and committed management team to continue the growth of one of the nation’s leading real estate development firms,” said Paul Rowsey, managing partner of E2M. “KDC has a strong reputation and demonstrated track record of consistently delivering institutional quality properties, both on budget and on schedule, as well as being a pioneer in creating high quality, productive, and healthy work environments for its clients, having adopted the principles of sustainable ‘green’ development.”
KDC has completed more than 90 corporate build-to-suit office and industrial projects valued in excess of $2.5 billion and totaling more than 13 million square feet. Clients include Blue Cross Blue Shield, Citigroup, Denbury Resources, EDS, FedEx, Fluor, Intuit, Prudential, Rent-A-Center, Sally Beauty, and many other leading companies.
“We continually look at ways to strengthen our business model. Our current portfolio is more than 90 percent leased and we see great opportunities in several new markets and industries,” said Tobin Grove, KDC president. “We have identified what we believe to be strong growth areas, both geographically as well as in targeted industries, including data centers and medical office buildings.” Grove said the investment partnership will expand the KDC platform over the next five years, including more strategic acquisitions.
According to Van Amburgh, adding an entity level equity partner and forming partnerships to increase acquisitions is a natural move because of KDC’s successful track record. In October 2005, KDC and three other real estate investment groups purchased 2.75 million square feet of real estate assets from EDS for $217 million. The acquisition was one of the largest transactions worldwide that year involving multiple office properties.
KDC partnered with Prudential Real Estate Services to develop Intellicenter – a branded, high-performance “green” office building program in multiple markets across the United States. Phase 1 and Phase II of Intellicenter will result in 4 million square feet of speculative office buildings with a projected commitment of $400 million. KDC currently has seven Intellicenter buildings totaling more than 1 million square feet in various phases of development.
KDC’s most recent partnership was launched in February. KDC and Harbert Management Corporation are investing $120 million in an industrial development program. Five industrial locations will break ground by the end of 2008 with the first two projects under construction in Austin and Houston.
The 1-million-square-foot headquarters project for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, currently under construction in Richardson, Texas, is another example. KDC is developing and will own the headquarters, and is assuming BCBSTX’s existing leasing obligation at its current location. KDC has land available and entitlements in place to develop the headquarters to a total of 2.3 million square feet for future growth.
About Koll Development Company
Koll Development Company (KDC), one of America’s leading commercial real estate firms, provides a full range of commercial real estate services including corporate build-to-suit development, acquisitions, corporate facility project/construction management, project financing, asset and land management, and marketing and leasing. KDC is headquartered in Dallas and has offices in Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C.; and Detroit. For more information visit www.kdc.com
About E2M Partners
E2M Partners is a private equity firm investing in real estate companies and assets on behalf of individual and institutional investors. Based in Dallas, Texas, E2M has a team of more than 20 investment professionals focused on sourcing investments and generating returns for its investors. E2M pursues a broad range of real estate investments that offer the opportunity for highly attractive risk-adjusted returns. For more information visit www.e2mpartners.com
About Sammons
Sammons Enterprises is a multi-facted, global holding company that owns and operates businesses across a diverse range of industries. Headquartered in Dallas, with assets approaching $40 billion, Sammons is ranked among the largest privately owned companies in the United States. For more information visit www.sammonsenterprises.com