Home developer Chris Kemmerly, and Steve Quinlan, chairman of Long Realty Co., have essentially reacquired the company Kemmerly sold to Standard Pacific Homes 3½ years ago.

The company will operate as Miramonte Homes. Craig Campbell, who had been president of Standard Pacific’s Southern Arizona division, continues as the president under the new ownership.

According to Kemmerly, the acquisition includes about 700 ready-to-build vacant lots and 70 homes that are either about to begin construction or are already under construction. The purchase price was not announced.

He said Standard Pacific decided to exit the Southern Arizona marketplace due to continuing challenges in the homebuilding industry.

Kemmerly and Quinlan’s knowledge of the local real estate market and Standard Pacific Homes, combined with their willingness to retain employees after the acquisition, made Miramonte Homes the right company to acquire these assets, Campbell said.

Miramonte Homes’ goal is to complete the 70 homes in process and start about 70 new homes this year, he said.

"Although the homebuilding industry will continue to be challenging during the first half of 2008, we believe that the local market will begin to recover by summer 2008," said Quinlan. "Once the public perceives the bottom of the market has passed later this year, we expect to see a more robust economy in Southern Arizona. In fact, given the low levels of recent home permitting, we may even find there is a shortage of available new homes due to pent up buyer demand."

Kemmerly had sold his Kemmerly Homes to Irvine-based Standard Pacific in August 2004 at a time when the company was looking to expand beyond its traditional California marketplace. He has more than 20 years experience in homebuilding. In 2005, Kemmerly was chairman of the board for the Southern Arizona Home Builders Association and previously had been homebuilder of the year.

Quinlan has more than 25 years of residential and commercial brokerage experience and has other investments in the local commercial real estate market.

PICOR joins with

Cushman & Wakefield

PICOR Commercial Real Estate Services is now the exclusive alliance member for the greater Tucson Area of Cushman & Wakefield.

Cushman & Wakefield is a global real estate and project management firm.

The alliance gives PICOR access to the extensive resources of a global giant, which will further strengthen PICOR’s abilities to serve the community’s needs by enabling them to provide more services.

"We believe our alliance with Cushman & Wakefield, the most influential of all national site selectors, will also have an enormous positive impact on the future economic development of our community," said Russell W. Hall, principal at PICOR.

There are three main reasons PICOR believes this:

• Cushman & Wakefield’s strong relationships with Fortune 500 corporations and major global firms open the door to many new opportunities for PICOR while creating potential to bring more businesses and jobs to the region. With its size and reach, Cushman & Wakefield plays a major role in the site selection process for clients from around the world.

• Cushman & Wakefield also has a much greater presence in the world’s primary business markets ranging from New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta to London, Tokyo, and Beijing. This can only create more business relationships for PICOR and the region.

• To be invited by world’s primary business markets ranging from New York City, Los Angels, Chicago and Atlanta to London, Tokyo, and Beijing. This too can only create more business relationships for PICOR and the region.

It is an exclusive alliance PICOR is joining as only 20 other firms in the country are members.

"We are truly excited about our new alliance with Cushman & Wakefield," Hall said. "Like us, Cushman & Wakefield sees countless new opportunities emerging in the border region, and they are determined to build a strong presence here."

Developer to pay record $12 million for settlement

Developer George H. Johnson and his partners agreed to pay the state a record $12.1 million to settle a lawsuit accusing them of bulldozing protected state land and private land without obtaining permits, destroying archaeological sites, polluting riverbeds and causing an epidemic that killed 21 bighorn sheep.

The issues involved in the agreement primarily involve about 2,000 acres of desert land in the Santa Cruz River Valley in Pinal County bordering Ironwood Forest National Monument that Johnson wanted to develop into 67,000 homes. He sold what property he had acquired in 2004.

"This resolution sends a strong message to anyone who would despoil our heritage," said Attorney General Terry Goddard.

The 2005 lawsuit was brought against Johnson, excavation contractor Jack McCall, 3F Contracting Inc. and Preston Well Drilling. Under the agreement, Johnson was to pay $7 million to the state by Jan. 4. 3F Contracting was to pay $5.05 million and Preston Well Drilling agreed to pay $61,500.

The violations listed in the lawsuit included:

• Bulldozing and clearing nearly 270 acres of State Trust Lands on and near the Ironwood National Monument and the Los Robles Archeological District.

• Bulldozing and clearing 2,000 acres of private lands in the Santa Cruz River Valley without obtaining permits.

• Destroying portions of seven major Hohokam archeological sites, dating back to years 750 to 1250.

• Destroying more than 40,000 protected native plants, including saguaro, ironwood, mesquite and palo verde.

• Violating clean water laws by discharging pollutants into tributaries of the Santa Cruz River and the Little Colorado River.

• Causing a disease epidemic resulting in the deaths of at least 21 bighorn sheep.

Hilton El Conquistador

resort part of 11-hotel deal

The 338-room Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf and Tennis Resort, 10000 N. Oracle Road, Oro Valley, is now 100 percent owned by Ashford Hospitality Trust Inc., after the Dallas-based real estate trust restructured joint ventures with Hilton.

The deal also included Hilton hotels in Dallas; Rye, N.Y.; Auburn Hills, Mich.; and Costa Mesa, Calif.; and Embassy Suites at the Orlando, Fla., airport; Santa Clara, Calif.; Arlington, Va.; and Portland, Ore.

As part of the restructuring Ashford was turning full ownership of two properties – a Hilton hotel at the Miami, Fla., airport and a Doubletree in Arlington, Va. – to Hilton.

Monty J. Bennett, president and CEO of Ashford Hospitality Trust, said the restructuring deal will provide long-term strategic benefits and that Hilton’s brands remains one of his company’s strongest relationships.

45-year old apartment

complex sold for $1.9M

Desert Courtyard Apartments, a 34-unit complex at 1411 N. Alvernon Way and 3835 E. Fairmount Ave., has been sold for $1.93 million to API Properties 1053, LLC, Granite Bay, Calif.

The sellers were Ilya and Rena Shlafman, Lenard and Tanya Nelson, Michael and Klara Litvak and Arkady and Elena Tsibel of Arcadia, Calif. Hamid Panahi of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services represented both parties in the deal.

Built in 1962, Desert Courtyard Apartments consists of and 32,600-rentable square feet on two acres. The unit mix consists of 14 one-bedroom, one-bath units; 18 two-bedroom, two-bath units and two, three-bedroom, two bathroom units ranging in size from 850 square feet to 1,350 square feet.