Real Estate Consultants Archives

Mixed-Use Redevelopment Entitlement and Permits

The EB-5 Program is Reauthorized

President Biden signed legislation today with the effect that the EB-5 program is reauthorized, in particular its Regional Center component, effective now through September 30, 2027. The program is part of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (the “Act”), which itself is part of the Omnibus spending bill signed by the President.

The reauthorization of the Regional Center program follows an almost 9 month lapse, when prior efforts failed to extend the program beyond July 1, 2021. The Regional Centers aspect of EB-5 have allowed foreign investors a special opportunity to invest in high-profile developments that they likely would not otherwise find accessible. The EB-5 program had its controversies and numerous parties had worked to place safeguards to prevent fraud and encourage investment in areas that followed from the original intent of the program.

The EB-5 program allows foreign investors to invest a specified amount of capital into a U.S. enterprise that creates American jobs, in return for permanent residency. With passage of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, changes were made to the program to presumably improve its implementation. The new legislation emphasizes compliance with EB-5’s intent along with enforcement procedures. Program sponsors under EB-5 will face greater scrutiny in recordkeeping, investment types, audits, and investor communications. The minimum EB-5 investment amount now increases to $800,000 from the current $500,000 for Targeted Employment Areas and Rural Areas, and, changes to $1.05 million from the current $1.0 million for Non-Targeted Employment Areas. These changed minimum investments apply to both regional center and direct EB-5 investments.

With the news that the EB-5 Program is reauthorized, a backload of foreign investors who were in the midst of processing last June, will hopefully soon see progress in the processing of their investment / visa applications.

The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program was created in 1990 by the Immigration Act of 1990.

Burton Station Urban Village

19.08.2018 Master Planned Community Developments, Master Planner, Opportunity Zone Consultants, Placemaking Consultants and Designers, Rapid Prototyping, Real Estate Consultants, Senior Housing Feasibility and Facilities Consultants

As real estate consultants for project feasibility, StoneCreek Partners provided feasibility analysis, a conceptual site plan and rapid-prototyping massing study, and business plan for proposed mixed-use urban village to be developed on infill properties in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Components of the urban village to include office space, main street retail, hotel, senior living, and for-sale housing.

In addition to the subject Project, the neighborhood in which the Project is situated continues to be a major focus for redevelopment and regeneration, for developments featuring for-sale housing, apartments, and shopping facilities. One of the more recent developments in the neighborhood is Norfolk Premium Outlets, a Simon Property development which opened in June 2017. A new regional IKEA store is now in development in close proximity, further enhancing the regional retail draw of the Project’s immediate neighborhood.

The Project site is well situated within the Hampton Roads region, just off the Hampton Road Beltway (Interstate 64). The Hampton Road Beltway is the primary transportation route through the Hampton Roads region. Hampton Roads refers to the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC metropolitan area, which includes the cities of Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Poquoson, and Williamsburg. The resident population of the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC metropolitan area ranks among the top 50 metropolitan areas of the U.S.

Project Feasibility for Golf Community

18.08.2018 Golf course redevelopment and adaptive re-use, Land Development Consultants, Project Consultants for Tribes and First, Real Estate Consultants, Residential Housing & Apartments

Al-Shehail Group (Riyadh) / Hopkins Development | As land development consultants we provided a project feasibility for a golf community, with market study, capital budget estimate, and financial projections. Residential product recommendations for the single-family and attached housing units in the development were provided, along with facilities suggestions for a community clubhouse that could support golf as well as additional outdoor recreation offerings.

The project had the working name, Mountain Meadows Golf Community, of McGaheysville, Virginia. McGaheysville is situated near the south fork of Shenandoah River in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley.

This due diligence and feasibility evaluation was to support the Al-Shehail Group of Companies’ potential investment. The site for this to-be-built master-planned residential golf community is situated in rolling meadow lands and foothills near McGaheysville, near Massanutten Ski Resort. The 300-acre project included 420 units in this master-planned golf community.

Following the due diligence effort, StoneCreek Partners was retained by the Al-Shehail Group to revamp and fine-tune the project master plan. Objectives included maximization of the housing along 16,900 lineal feet of golf course frontage. Project naming and naming conventions were also reworked, and golf signature holes were configured to minimize and balance on-site grading. An interesting aspect of the residential product placement on the site, was providing both a direct view onto golf as well as onto the scenic “long views” onto surrounding Shenandoah Valley foothills and mountains.

The master planning work was directly based on the project feasibility for golf community, previously prepared.

StoneCreek strategic planning consultants - real estate consulting

Real Estate Project Consultants for TDR Program

18.08.2018 Public Sector Work, Real Estate Consultants, Strategic Planning Consultants

Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles | As a real estate consultant on retainer with the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles, a feasibility evaluation was prepared of a potential transfer of development rights (TDR) program.

The program was intended for the city’s central business district (downtown) area.

Real Estate Project Consultants for School District

16.08.2018 Public Sector Work, Real Estate Consultants, Transaction and Dealmaking Projects

San Diego Unified School District | Assistance to administrators of the school district in pursuing a surplus schools disposition program. The San Diego Unified School District held a portfolio of surplus school facility assets, and was interested in regularizing a negotiated disposition process. A “request for proposals,” or RFP, process was recommended, along with methods for generating interest in the portfolio of surplus district assets, methods for pre-qualifying interested third-parties, and a process and approach to ranking proposed business deals submitted by investors and real estate developers.

One of the largest school districts in the U.S., San Diego City Schools serve more than 134,000 students. In operations since 1854 the district has grown from a small, rented school building with one teacher to more than 200 educational facilities with 14,500 full-time equivalent staff positions. This seventh largest urban district in the United States is extremely diverse – including more than 15 ethnic groups and dozens of languages and dialects. Work completed by an SCP principal while with predecessor firm.