Brandywine To Raise Capital Through JVs

RADNOR, PA-Brandywine Realty Trust expects to complete a joint-venture partnership for 80% of its Northern Pennsylvania portfolio by the end of this year. The locally based REIT also announced plans to market its Cira Centre office building in Philadelphia to a JV partner while also seeking development partners for portions of the planned Cira Centre South project.

The Northern Pennsylvania partnership will be announced within weeks, said Jerry Sweeney, president and CEO, during a third-quarter conference call. That portfolio encompasses between one million and 1.5 million sf in diverse building types and is valued in the $240-million to $250-million range, he said.

As for the value of the fully leased, class A Cira Centre, Sweeney said, “we’ll let the market determine that.” Regarding the development of Cira Centre South, Sweeney said, “there are several funding options.” They include pursuing JV participation in redevelopment of the 862,000-sf former postal facility, which is expected to cost $265 million, including the $28-million acquisition cost, and is fully pre-leased to the IRS; a hotel partner for the hospitality portion of the Walnut Street tower and a residential developer for the 250-unit Chestnut Street tower.