Developer, former Royal Bank executive plead guilty to bribery

A suburban Philadelphia commercial real estate developer and a local bank executive pleaded guilty to bribery and conspiring to defraud Royal Bank America, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

Developer Mark Alan Mendelson, 52, of Villanova, Pa., and Royal Bank's former Senior Vice President Joseph Zakorchemny Jr., 57, of Aston, Pa., were charged last month. Mendelson's lawyer said at the time that a plea agreement was being finalized and his client had cooperated fully with law enforcement.

Prosecutors alleged that beginning in late 2004, Zakorchemny took a property the bank owned --196 Ridge Pike in Limerick, Pa. -- off the market for Mendelson to purchase for $2.4 million, knowing that Mendelson did not have the required $100,000 deposit. Prosecutors said that Zakorchemny and Mendelson falsely represented to Narberth, Pa.-based Royal Bank that the deposit had been made, using a bogus check that they both knew was not covered by sufficient funds.

Because Mendelson was unable to come up with the financing to buy the property, Mendelson and Zakorchemny agreed that the property would be sold to Limerick-Ridge Ventures LP, an entity owned and controlled by an attorney for Mendelson, according to prosecutors. Limerick-Ridge Ventures sold the property three months later at a profit of more than $2 million -- of which Mendelson received about $500,000, according to prosecutors.

In turn, prosecutors said Mendelson paid Zakorchemny about $12,000 in cash and gifts, including a casino stay, landscaping work and jewelry. Zakorchemny failed to report the payment to anyone of authority within Royal Bank and failed to recuse himself from matters affecting the financial interests of Mendelson and his businesses, prosecutors said.

Royal Bank has said it terminated Zakorchemny once the charges were filed but said the bank did not lose money because of the transaction since the property was sold for a price higher than the estimated value.

Both men are schedule to be sentenced in late March.

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source: bizjournals.com

Lionstone buys Atlanta site

The Lionstone Group has purchased a nearly seven-acre site in Atlanta that had previously been used by Siemens for $19 million, according to real estate services firm Databank Atlanta Inc.

While the buyer has only recently begun to explore the scenarios for the property, plans could run the gamut, from adaptive reuse as office and wholesale showroom to development as a mixed-use project.

Siemens was represented by Steve Barton of CB Richard Ellis Inc. Houston-based The Lionstone Group was represented by CB's Nelson Kramer and Bruce Lanehart. Kramer and Lanehart are also marketing the property for Lionstone.

Barton said Siemens had used the site for office and warehouse space.

The property is near Atlanta's Atlantic Station, a mixed-use development site.

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source: bizjournals.com

Praemittias to market technology for Spacehab

Spacehab Inc. has signed a licensing agreement with Praemittias Group Inc. to market and sell Spacehab's technology to the U.S. Department of Defense.

The Webster commercial space services firm said Praemittias, an Englewood, Colo.-based defense contractor, will market the miniature mass spectrometer technology that detects, identifies and analyzes potentially dangerous explosives and other harmful materials and precursors.

Under the terms of the license, Praemittias has agreed to produce sales of $10 million in 2008, $50 million in 2009, and $100 million in 2010 for Spacehab (NASDAQ: SPABD).

The technology is the first product to come out of Spacehab's wholly owned subsidiary, Spacetech.

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source: bizjournals.com

Independence Plaza sold

CB Richard Ellis Investors LLC has purchased downtown Denver's Independence Plaza office building from Amstar-ARA Denver LLC for $144.5 million, according to Denver County real estate records.

The deal closed Thursday, Dec. 6, confirmed Scott Gibler, executive director for the Amstar Group LLC, based in Denver. Amstar's partner in the building, since 2004, was American Realty Advisors, an institutional real estate investment firm located in Glendale, Calif.

CBRE Investors of Los Angeles acquired the property on behalf of an Alaskan pension fund. The purchasing entity is Independence Plaza Investment Group Inc.

Located at 1050 17th St., Independence Plaza includes 567,286 square feet on 25 floors. The building was completed in 1972, and was one of metro Denver's tallest buildings when it opened. The high-rise underwent a major renovation in 1995.

The office property is 98 percent leased, according to Gibler. Its largest tenants are Questar Market Resources Inc. and the RNL architectural firm.

Amstar's offices also are there, and the real estate investor will remain in the building for the term of its lease. "Amstar has been involved in the property a total of 13 years," Gibler said.

Mike Wynn and Tim Richey at Cushman & Wakefield of Colorado Inc. helped broker the deal.

Started in 1987, Amstar Group is a private equity firm that owns $2 billion in commercial real estate, ranging from office buildings and apartment complexes to hotels. The company bought and sold $740 million worth of properties in 2006.

With the sale of Independence Place, Amstar's only metro-area holding is the 255-unit Retreat at City Center apartments in Aurora.

Amstar had a deal to sell Independence Plaza in 2001, but the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 squelched the sale. At the time, Gibler said Amstar and the buyer had agreed on a price, but financing became an issue.

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source: bizjournals.com

Head named president of Blackmon Mooring

Blackmon Mooring has named Tom Head as its new president, after a 3 1/2-year stint as general manager of Blackmon Mooring of Houston Inc. As president of the Fort Worth-based company, Head will oversee all company operations.

Head was recruited to Blackmon Mooring from Waste Management Inc., where he had served in senior mnagement for five years.

The company offers services that include carpet and air duct cleaning, air conditioning, heating, plumbing, mold remediation, and fire and water damage restoration for residential and commercial properties.

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source: bizjournals.com