Brentwood Place Apts. Sells for $8.5 Million

Slidell, La.-based Southern Breeze LLC has bought the Brentwood Place Apartments complex at 1835 Sycamore View Road from Grant Investment LLC for $8.5 million. The deal closed Aug. 22.

The 216-unit, two-story complex was built in 1989, according to the Shelby County Assessor of Property. It sits on 18.8 acres bounded by Sycamore Ridge Road to the north, Sycamore View Road to the east and Pleasant View Road to the south. The development is in Treetops Planned Unit Development.

The site includes a tennis court, fitness center, clubhouse, swimming pool and 20 storage units, according to a listing for the complex on real estate sale site Loopnet.

Everything at Brentwood is original and requires about $300,000 in capital improvements, according to the Loopnet site, which lists the complex as off the market. The property has historically operated above 90 percent occupancy with current occupancy at 93 percent, according to the site.

Grant Investment Co. quitclaimed the property to Grant Investment LLC in August 2003. Grant Investment Co. bought the then-vacant land in November 1987 for about $623,000. The assessor’s 2011 appraisal is $6.6 million.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

– Kate Simone

Terminix Enters Joint Venture in India

Terminix has entered into its first non-franchise expansion outside North America with an India-based company.

The joint venture is with Security and Intelligence Services Ltd., an Indian-owned subsidiary of SIS Group. SIS works in electronic security, security training and cash management services as well as pest control. It provides a wide variety of support services to businesses. Headquartered in New Delhi, SIS has more than 100 offices in the country and 5,200 employees.

Terminix is one of the commercial and residential services companies owned by Memphis-based The ServiceMaster Co.

ServiceMaster has partnered with SIS since 2008 through the ServiceMaster Clean brand that does only commercial cleaning services in India.

– Bill Dries

Mercer Capital Office Wins Architectural Design Award

Mercer Capital’s office headquarters – which were designed by the Memphis-based architectural firm archimania – were recently honored as an Award of Merit winner at the American Institute of Architects Tennessee 2011 Design Awards.

The office design was commissioned as part of Mercer Capital’s 2010 relocation to Clark Tower and was recognized by the AIA jury for its “appropriate recognition of the studio as a privileged space.”

Archimania, which specializes in modern design, was a multiple-award winner at the AIA Tennessee 2011 Design Awards.

Memphis-based Mercer Capital is a national business valuation and financial advisory services firm.

Grinder, Taber & Grinder was builder of the project.

– Sarah Baker

Nonprofit FuelFilm Hosts Filmmakers Media Expo

FuelFilm, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the internal growth of Memphis’ film industry, will hold a Filmmakers Media Expo from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, at The Skye Grille (formerly Quetzal), 668 Union Ave.

The expo, for people of all ages and skill levels who are interested in filmmaking, will feature casting calls, hands-on demonstrations and workshops, guest speakers, crew networking opportunities and hourly prize giveaways.

Directors and producers will meet technical film crew and support personnel; screenwriters will have the opportunity to pitch scripts to filmmakers; and casting directors will have private space to meet actors and cast projects.

Event co-chairman James Sposto said an impressive array of film industry talent will appear live and via Skype.

Attendees are encouraged to bring headshots, resumes and business cards for networking with regional industry professionals.

DVDs and memorabilia from local filmmakers will be available for purchase.

Admission is $10 at the door or at www.fuelfilm.org.

Founded in 2009 by local filmmakers Matt Beickert, James Sposto, David Merrill, DeAara Lewis and entertainment attorney Harry Brown, FuelFilm organizes an array of workshops, panel discussions and other events of interest to Mid-Southerners involved in the film industry.

– Aisling Maki

Wunderlich Equity Announces New Hires

Trace Urdan and Jeff Lee have joined Wunderlich Equity Capital Markets as a senior vice president and vice president respectively. Both will cover the education services sphere.

Urdan has twice been cited as an all-star analyst by The Wall Street Journal. He is widely cited as a global expert on for-profit education and e-learning trends.

Urdan joins 16 of his former Signal Hill Capital Markets colleagues who started at Wunderlich Securities recently when Signal Hill ended its Equity Capital Market Services.

The firms will co-host the “Wunderlich Securities-Signal Hill Education Conference” Nov. 17 at the Taj Hotel in Boston.

The conference will provide an overview of investment opportunities being created by private sector companies as they address challenges facing the global education market.

– Andy Meek

5K Benefiting Porter-Leath to be Held Sept. 10

The second annual Bishop G.E. Patterson Memorial 5K Walk-Run 4Life, presented by Bountiful Blessings Inc., will be Sept. 10 at Shelby Farms Park.

The event, which benefits Porter-Leath and is held in honor of Patterson, will begin at 8 a.m. with onsite registration beginning at 7 a.m.

The proceeds will go to Porter-Leath’s Cornerstone program, an infant mortality reduction effort offering in-home support services to expectant mothers and their families. In 2010, the 5K raised nearly $10,000 for the program.

The registration fee for the race is $25 before Wednesday, Aug. 31, and $30 after.

– Taylor Shoptaw

Exchange Club Announces New Board Members

The Exchange Club Family Center has announced new board members as well as officers for 2011-2012.

Officers are Dan O’Brien, president; George Goldhoff, vice president; Grant Adams, treasurer; Adrienne Dailey-Evans, secretary; and Lucia Heros, immediate past president.

New board members are Dr. Jara Best, Patrick Burke, Sarah Flowers, Madelyn Gray, Michael Hamner, Mia Henley, Katie Massey, Herbert Montgomery, Lindsey Moore, Summer Owens and Miea Williams.

Returning board members are Pat Anderson, Brad Carmony, Jimmy Chancellor, Holly Walters Craft, Brian Cowart, Mike Fay, Joe Fracchia, Rick Holland, Lewis Pittman, Dr. Patrick Randolph, Shelly Rice, Debbie Sweeney, Pat Speck and Rinnie Wood.

The Exchange Club is a nonprofit agency dedicated to ending the cycle of child abuse and domestic violence.

– Taylor Shoptaw

Architecture Billings Fall at Steepest Rate in 1.5 Years

Following a drop of almost a full point in June, the Architecture Billings Index fell again by more than a point in July.

As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine- to 12-month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending.

The American Institute of Architects reported the July ABI score was 45.1 – the steepest decline in billings since February 2010 – after a reading of 46.3 the previous month. This score reflects a continued decrease in demand for design services, as any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings.

The new projects inquiry index was 53.7, a considerable slowdown from a reading of 58.1 in June.

The South saw the highest regional average ABI, at 46.9, followed by the West’s 46.6. The sector index breakdown for July was as follows: commercial/industrial (47.9), institutional (47.2), mixed practice (47.1) and multifamily residential (44.7).

– Sarah Baker