NORTHBROOK, IL, and NEW YORK – Northbrook, IL -based Pine Tree Commercial Realty and New York-based Silverpeak Real Estate Partners recently formed a joint venture with the goal of acquiring retail assets and portfolios across the U.S., according to Chris Westfahl, principal of Silverpeak, and Peter Borzak, co-founder and principal of Pine Tree. The new JV, Pine Tree Silverpeak Retail Partners LLC, plans to pursue transactions greater than $10 million and across the risk spectrum, ranging from raw land for development to stabilized core assets. “Specifically, we are seeking box- and grocery-anchored strip retail centers,” says Mr. Borzak, “as well as select mixed use opportunities.”
According to Westfahl, this will be the first retail platform that the company has launched since the investment advisory business formed last year as a successor to Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners (LBREP). The firm had thus far concentrated on office, hotel and residential assets. “We believe that this model is an intelligent approach to the commercial real estate investment business,” he says. “The venture combines a very sophisticated capital markets and financial platform with an experienced and comprehensive real estate operating and development team.” According to Mr. Westfahl, this combination of skills will enable Silverpeak to access capital and acquire retail real estate assets across the risk spectrum, while focusing on constantly adding value to the venture’s properties.
“We’re excited about our affiliation with one of the most respected names in global real estate and capital markets,” says Pine Tree’s Peter Borzak. “The Silverpeak group brings enormous market knowledge and vast experience to the venture, while we provide a senior operating team with broad property-level expertise that has withstood the economic storm.”
Pine Tree Commercial Realty LLC is a full-service real estate development company based in Northbrook, Ill. Since its founding in 1995 by co-founder and Principal Peter Borzak and co-Founder Barry Herring, Pine Tree has acquired and developed more than 60 properties valued over $550 million. The company’s projects are located across the United States.
Silverpeak Real Estate Partners is a newly formed investment advisory business with over $15 billion of real estate assets under management, formed as a successor to Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners (LBREP). Between 2000 and 2007, LBREP closed three opportunistic real estate private equity funds totaling over $7.2 billion in equity commitments that invested in office, apartment, hotel and other property types located in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Silverpeak employs approximately 80 people across 6 offices globally, including New York, Atlanta, London, Singapore, Tokyo and Mumbai. The team’s expertise spans transactions and originations, asset management, finance, capital raising and investor relations.
