BENTLEYFORBES COMPLETES $436 MILLION ACQUISITION OF ATLANTA’S BANK OF AMERICA PLAZA ATLANTA (Oct. 2, 2006) – BentleyForbes, a national commercial real estate investment and operations company, has completed the $436 million acquisition of Bank of America Plaza in Atlanta from CSC Associates, a partnership of Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE: CUZ) and Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC). “Bank of America Plaza is one of the nation’s landmark skyscraper towers, and a tremendous addition to our growing portfolio of trophy office and luxury hospitality properties,” said C. Frederick Wehba II, vice chairman and co-founder of BentleyForbes. “The quality and stature of the property has given it a best-of-class reputation within the Atlanta business community, and we are committed to not only retaining but enhancing that distinction in the years to come.” The 55-story Class A trophy office tower encompasses 1.25 million square feet, situated at the corner of North Avenue and Peachtree Street in Atlanta’s Midtown submarket. The landmark office tower is noted as the tallest skyscraper in the Southeast and the tallest in the United States outside of New York and Chicago. Notable tenants occupying Bank of America Plaza at the time of acquisition include such firms as Bank of America, Troutman Sanders, Paul Hastings, Boston Consulting, Hunton & Williams and Ernst & Young. “BentleyForbes continues to pursue trophy class A office assets in markets across the nation, and has now completed more than $1.1 billion of new acquisitions in 2006,” said David W. Cobb, president and CEO of BentleyForbes. “The company’s investment criteria are focused on asset quality and submarket specifics rather than macro market characteristics in any specific region. The key to our interest in Bank of America Plaza is its irreplaceable status on the Atlanta skyline and the quality of its tenants, finishes, amenities, infrastructure and timeless architecture, all acquired at a cost well under replacement value.” Pursuant to the terms of the completed transaction, BentleyForbes has retained Cousins Properties for its continued oversight of onsite property management and leasing. BentleyForbes was represented internally during the transaction by Shane Cates, managing director of acquisitions for the company. The transaction was brokered by a team comprised of Will Yowell, John Shlesinger, Justin Parsonnet and Jay O’Meara from the Atlanta office of CB Richard Ellis. “As the original developer of this landmark office tower,
Cousins Properties has been closely associated with Bank of America
Plaza since its completion in 1992,” said Tom Bell, president
and CEO of Cousins Properties. “We are confident that BentleyForbes
will work to preserve and enhance the unique qualities and market
leading stature of this landmark tower, a fixture on the Atlanta
skyline. We’re also proud our property management team will
stay in place, working with BentleyForbes to ensure the building’s
tenants and visitors will continue to receive award-winning management
services that make this a highly desirable location for companies
seeking a prominent position in the Atlanta business community.” Also, BentleyForbes recently entered the hospitality investment marketplace with its acquisition of the Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas, a 400-acre luxury resort property in Irving, Texas featuring the state’s only AAA Five Diamond rating. The Resort offers a polished, residential-style interior, two 18-hole championship golf courses which annually host the Byron Nelson Classic (the second largest attendance PGA golf tournament), the finest private sports club and spa in the area and more than 34,000 square feet of elegant function space. The Resort has 397 guest rooms, including 16 suites and 90 villa rooms all of which are richly appointed and offer a private balcony or patio overlooking the expansive landscaped grounds. About BentleyForbes |
