PITTSBURGH McKnight Pays $89.5M for Cranberry Woods Office Bldgs. By Andrew Deichler In the largest office sale in Western Pennsylvania this year, McKnight Realty Partners has acquired four buildings in the Cranberry Woods office park for $89.5... [View the article here]

Medical and healthcare-related projects -- murmurs of activity in the otherwise flat-lined development and construction market -- dominate this week's issue. In Denison, TX, PM Realty is building the Texoma Medical Plaza, a 120,000-square-foot facility... [View the article here]

In this week's issue: SL Green makes two major deals on Lexington Avenue Plus we give you new property finance deals and a valuable leads list of lenders on recent acquisitions SL Green Lightens the Load on Lexington SL Green continues to find... [View the article here]

Wentworth Webb Postal LLC purchased 3439 E. University Drive in Phoenix from Acorn Asset Management for $3.89 million, or $128 per square foot. The property was reportedly purchased as an investment, and according to CoStar information has been vacant... [View the article here]

Arrowhead Health Office Properties sold the Arrowhead Professional Park in Glendale, AZ, to The Realty Group for $12.12 million, or $303 per square-foot, with an actual capitalization rate of 7.75 percent. The four buildings are located at 16222... [View the article here]

This week's People of Note includes the following markets: Atlanta, Baltimore, Denver, Minneapolis and Orange County. DENVER JLL Hires New Senior VP By Tajuana Richardson Jones Lang LaSalle hired Mitchell Zatz as senior vice president of the Denver... [View the article here]

Colliers International has promoted Mitch Stravitz to vice president. Stravitz joined Colliers? in 2008 and focuses on industrial properties in Metro Phoenix. His areas of concentration include the Scottsdale Airpark, Deer Valley Airpark, and Northwest... [View the article here]

Aggreko, the global leader in the rental of power generation and temperature control equipment, has signed a 61-month lease for the industrial building at 5030 W. Watkins St. in Phoenix, AZ. The transaction is valued at nearly $678,000. Aggreko is relocating... [View the article here]

National multifamily vacancy rates in the second quarter 2009 was 10.6%, according to the Department of Commerce's Census Bureau. The Census Bureau said the rental vacancy rate was higher than the second quarter 2008 rate (10%) and higher than the rate... [View the article here]

Editor's Note: Expansions Relocations & Extensions is now The Lease Up. Here you will find news on companies that are bucking the trend of the recession by expanding, or taking advantage of the market by relocating. You will also find stories on businesses... [View the article here]

In this week's issue: A new report finds that stimulus funds aren't saving or creating many construction jobs -- at least so far. In Richmond, CA, the EIR has been released for a proposed $1.5 billion mixed-use casino-hotel project on San Francisco... [View the article here]

This week in the Retail Roundup, CoStar reports on expansions or new concepts among the "Hot 100 Retailers" and Capriotti's Sandwiches; new retail development news in MA and NY; acquisition, merger, loan, sale, and IPO activity at Macquarie, Regency,... [View the article here]

Southwest Network, a provider of mental health treatment, leased 11,228 square feet in the 2700 Tower in Phoenix. The 78-month deal includes tenant improvement build-outs of $27.50 per square foot. The 15-story, 220,949-square-foot office tower... [View the article here]

Green Choice Solar, a commercial solar systems company, signed a four-year industrial lease for the entire building at 15344 N. 83rd Way in Scottsdale, AZ. The 11,408-square-foot warehouse was built in 2001 in the Scottsdale Airpark Industrial submarket... [View the article here]

Goodwill leased 25,387 square feet at the Pecan Grove Shopping Center in Tempe, AZ, for ten years. The nonprofit thrift store is set to take occupancy in October. The 167,555-square-foot shopping center at 725 W. Warner Road is in the South Tempe... [View the article here]

The Palo Verde Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ, sold for $1.8 million, or $92 per square foot, in a sale between private investors. The medical office building at 5251 West Campbell Ave. totals 19,524 square feet. It is 48 percent occupied and sold at... [View the article here]

United Cos. sold a 3,740-square-foot office unit at 8405 E. Baseline Road, in Mesa, AZ, to Agave Associates Limited Partnership for $1.08 million, or $290 per square-foot. The office building is part of the Baseline Crossings office park, in the... [View the article here]

ACKK Enterprises LLC acquired the 88-unit Glen Park Apartments in Glendale, AZ, from Irwin Union Bank for $1.7 million, or about $19,300 per unit. Located at 6301 N. 64th Drive, the complex is comprised of 29 one-bedroom/one-bath units, 51 two-bedroom... [View the article here]

Phillips Edison & Co. purchased the shopping center at 4304-4326 E. Cactus Road in Phoenix from a joint venture of Macerich Management Co. and The Westcor Co. for $11.9 million, or approximately $70 per square foot. The buyer put down $4.2 million, and... [View the article here]

Rahlves & Rahlves Inc. purchased the auto repair shop at 6944 W. Chandler Blvd. in Chandler, AZ, for $3.18 million, or approximately $390 per square foot. The capitalization rate was 7.5 percent. The 8,143-square-foot retail building was built in... [View the article here]

Avon Products Inc. plans to realign its global supply chain manufacturing footprint and improve its operating model effectiveness in key geographies. As a result, the company said that approximately 2,300 positions will be impacted globally, with a net... [View the article here]

Editor's Note: Expansions Relocations & Extensions is now The Lease Up. Here you will find news on companies that are bucking the trend of the recession by expanding, or taking advantage of the market by relocating. You will also find stories on businesses... [View the article here]

Welcome to Green Lede, a CoStar feature column by sustainability reporter Andrew Burr examining green building and its impact on commercial real estate, politics and the environment. August 12, 2009 VIEWPOINT: Climate Bill a Defining Moment for Building... [View the article here]

SCOTTSDALE, AZ-Michael Gusich brings expertise from Alterra Capital to help the local firm nab up to 10,000 units during the next two years. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-After falling out of escrow twice within the past year, Arrowhead Professional Park sells for just over $12 million. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-In the second transaction of its kind in the past two weeks, a Calgary buyer takes the remaining 80-unit Biltmore Palms for $4 million. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-Phillips Edison & Co. pays shy of $12 million for its second area asset, the Target-anchored Village Center, from Macerich. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-Legislators consider sale-leaseback options for government buildings, which could bring up to $735 million into the treasury. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-The SEC files charges against Radical Bunny, which lent close to $200 million to Mortgages Ltd. [View the article here]

CHANDLER, AZ-Capital Commercial Investments ends up with the 152-acre campus that once housed Motorola Inc. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-The leases, totaling a little under 32,000 square feet, bring the class A building on the Camelback Corridor to 99% occupancy. [View the article here]

TOLLESON, AZ-The baked-goods manufacturer takes close to half of a 200,000-square-foot facility for distribution purposes. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-Though Q2 apartment stats continue dismal overall, experts note that certain part of the metro area show small, but positive, gains. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-A Canadian investor steps up to take 186 units, the lion's share of what was once a 276-unit apartment-to-condo complex. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-The Canton, MA-based chain has its sights set on Phoenix and Tucson, and is recruiting franchisees for openings throughout the desert state. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-Mid-year retail vacancy rates stand at 10.5%, well above last year's 6.7%, marking the ninth consecutive quarter of increases [View the article here]

CHANDLER, AZ-The home-grown supermarket chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with plans to close 10 stores by late July. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-A year after filing bankruptcy, the lender accepts $20 million from Universal Equity for its reorganization plan. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-Six months after the area's light rail began rolling, transit-oriented developers wait for the economy to improve. [View the article here]

PHOENIX-Fairfield Residential defaults on a loan for the 454-unit Diamonte on Bell. An auction is scheduled for early September. [View the article here]

CHANDLER, AZ-A recent trustee sale for the half-completed hotel/condo asset attracted no buyers, leaving mortgage holder Point Center Financial as the likely owner. [View the article here]

SCOTTSDALE, AZ-The local developer has drained lakes on the retail project, with 23 acres available for development. Cosmetic upgrades have also been implemented. [View the article here]

PEORIA, AZ-The second of sister complexes developed by Trammell Crow Residential and Opus West goes to an Illinois buyer. [View the article here]

It starts with the development of the story, which should percolate through the marketing materials, like the franchise brochures, website, newsletters and videos. CEO of iFranchise Group, Mark Siebert, shares his knowledge of the essentials. [View the article here]

The current economic climate is providing unprecedented challenges for many franchise systems. Callum Floyd explores the importance of reviewing and aligning the business model with franchise system structure and the current environment. [View the article here]

Corporate psychologist Greg Nathan talks about the relationship between franchisors and franchisees. Read about what Greg identifies as the six stages of franchise relationships. This model will be of interest to prospective and existing franchisors and franchisees. [View the article here]

Learning about franchising and finding the ideal franchise needn't be the arduous task it was 10 years ago. Pamela Gold explains how many stages of the selection process can be undertaken online. [View the article here]

Returning from a recent trip, Jerry Wilkerson explains the huge potential (and complex challenges) encountered by foreign franchisors entering China. [View the article here]

How do you tell when a business 'franchisable'? What are the benefits of franchising, and what is involved? In this article Mark draws on his experience in franchising to explore each of these issues. [View the article here]

Callum Floyd explains why Australia and New Zealand should not be overlooked as international franchise markets. [View the article here]

In this article Greg Nathan explains the 6 reasons why franchise relationships get strained and applies the old adage "if you can?t measure it you can?t manage it." [View the article here]

This article outlines a range of key factors and decisions to consider when evaluating international franchising in the UK and Europe. [View the article here]

In this article Jerry Wilkerson explains how progressive franchisors encourage and stimulate their employees to think and grow with the system. [View the article here]