Jul 07, 2005

Parker, Smith & Feek

Rue

Parker, Smith & Feek named Debbie Rue vice president. She will be an account executive in Parker, Smith & Feek's health care practice group, which provides insurance and risk management services. The company is based in Bellevue and Anchorage.

Preston Gates & Ellis

Seattle law firm Preston Gates & Ellis named Margo Easton Bennett partner. Bennett will focus on government contracts, construction and procurement policy. She was vice president of corporate development and general counsel for Seattle's Ferguson Construction and deputy general counsel for the Seattle Monorail Project. She has also worked with other Seattle law firms including Groff & Murphy, Stoel Rives, and Short Cressman & Burgess.

Moss Adams

Seattle certified public accounting firm Moss Adams added Daniel C. Inveen to consult on securities and insurance. Inveen directed marketing research for Russell Investment Group in Tacoma and was also an economist with the Washington State Department of Trade & Economic Development.

Seattle University

Melanie Apostol joined Seattle University as its media relations manager. She has more than 10 years of media experience including work as an assistant editor for Time magazine and as a media relations manager for Business Wire and Oasis Productions.

Signature Destinations Club

Jay Harbison is the new vice president of hospitality and membership operations for Signature Destinations Club, a Seattle company that bills itself as the Northwest's first regional luxury residence club. Members have access to residences in places such as Whistler, B.C., the San Juan Islands and Bend, Ore. Harbison has more than 15 years of experience in the travel and hospitality industry. He was vice president of hospitality with Abercrombie & Kent Destination Clubs, where he helped increase membership from 100 to more than 800.

Colliers International Hotels

Colliers International Hotels represented the Seattle-area buyers of the Coast Hotel in Bellevue and Deer Harbor Resort on Orcas Island. Public records indicate Belco and the Benaroya Co.'s Kent Central LLC sold the 175-room Coast for $10.3 million to Gold Trust LLC. Trendwest Resorts, a subsidiary of Cendant International, bought the Orcas property; terms were not immediately available. The Coast will continue to operate as a Coast property, but the new owners have sought help from The Chambers Group, a Seattle hotel management company. Trendwest Resorts, a subsidiary of Cendant International, bought the Orcas property. Deer Harbor will operate as hotel through the summer but Trendwest officials expect to incorporate it into their timeshare program after renovations later this year. Chris Burdett, senior VP of Colliers, says Colliers International Hotels completed just over $45 million in sales around the Northwest in 2004 and is well on its way to surpassing that number in 2005.

S-J Management

Seattle-based S-J Management is negotiating with a party that wants to buy the Monterra Apartments for $23.9 million. That's $5.7 million more than an affiliate of S-J paid for the 258-unit Phoenix property eight months ago. The deal is expected to close in November, according to S-J CEO Michael J. Sauter. He says the proceeds will bring the overall return on invested capital for S-J's period of ownership of the Monterra to between 80 and 90 percent. S-J, a privately held real estate company, acquires, manages and sells mostly large multifamily properties. It owns 2,500 units in Washington and Arizona.

GE Commercial Finance, Business Property

Rob Doxee of GE Commercial Finance, Business Property helped Soundair Aviation Service secure $2.3 million in financing to buy land in Snohomish and build an 18,500-square-foot facility. Soundair repairs airline parts for commercial and private jets. Soundair secured an SBA 504 loan, which gave the company additional financing. GE's Business Property bills itself as a leading 504 lender in the Northwest.

John L. Scott Real Estate

May and June were record months for John L. Scott. While the company did not release the actual numbers, it said agents sold more homes in June than any month in its 75 years. Company Chairman and CEO J. Lennox Scott attributes the records to a three-quarter point interest rate drop in March. That prompted large numbers of buyers and sellers to enter the housing market. Scott said when interest rates fluctuate, buyers can go online and see what's available in real time. Richard Meyer has joined the sales team of John L. Scott University Place. Hans Brown, an associate broker at John L. Scott University Place, has earned the GRI designation from the Washington Association of Realtors.

Green development

Mithun President and CEO Bert Gregory and Gerding/Edlen Development Senior Project Manager Dennis Wilde Sr. , will give a speech, "Green Development Equals Economic Development," at 5:30 p.m. Monday at the Seattle Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave. The free event is part of the city's Urban Sustainability Forum.

CREW

Clise Properties President Richard Stevenson and Ben Barron, Clise's vice president of development, will speak about the company's proposed 31-story Seventh Avenue at Westlake project at CREW Seattle's 11:45 a.m. July 14 meeting at the Washington Athletic Club, 1325 Sixth Ave., Seattle. It's $35 for members of Commercial Real Estate Women and $50 for others. For reservations, write info@crewseattle.org, or call (206) 417-5580.

NAIOP

7:30 a.m. July 15 breakfast at The Tacoma Club in Suite 1601 of 1201 Pacific Ave. It's $15 for members of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties and $20 for others. Register at naiopwa.org; click on the South Sound link under the Events tab. Register by phone by calling (206) 382-9121.

Seattle-King County Association of Realtors

The Seattle-King County Association of Realtors is hosting Antique Safari from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. July 29 at Bellevue High School to raise money for the group's First Citizen Scholarship Fund. Professionals will give verbal appraisals of antiques and other items. Admission is free but there's a $5 per item appraisal fee and a five item maximum. The school is at 10416 S.E. Wolverine Way.