SL Green finances Landmark
SL Green Realty Corp. secured an $86 million mortgage on Stamford”™s Landmark Square complex from AIG Asset Management, according to published reports.
New York-based SL Green has been renovating the 825,000-square-foot office property, to include landscaping and a new health club.
Landmark Square tenants include the Business Council of Fairfield County, Cummings & Lockwood L.L.C. and Silgan Holdings Corp.
New law on annual reports, emails
As of Jan. 1, businesses must file annual reports online with the Connecticut secretary of state”™s office, due at the end of the month that an entity was incorporated.
The state will issue waivers to businesses that lack online access or other reasons, which will be allowed to file paper reports.
As part of a new law, businesses that register with the state are required to provide an email address to the secretary of the state for notifications of when annual reports are due. More than 100,000 businesses have received emails to date, of some 300,000 registered with the state.
Annual report filings that lack requisite information will be rejected and filers told what is lacking.
Â
Brynwood boosts new subsidiary
After acquiring the Kretschmer wheat germ product line to form Sun Country Foods Holdings L.L.C., Greenwich-based Brynwood Partners L.P. said it is backing its new portfolio company with $12.8 million in financing.
Sun Country Foods is based Boston with its manufacturing plant in Manhattan, Kan.
Â
Starwood debuts new funds
Affiliates of Starwood Capital Group have raised $985 million for a pair of new funds, with the Greenwich-based company investing in commercial and multifamily residential properties.
Starwood Property Trust Inc., a publicly traded company created by Starwood Capital management, earned $14.5 million in the third quarter on assets totaling nearly $2.5 billion.
Â
Former HR worker admits stealing $1.5M
A former human resources manager at Latex International stole more than $1.5 million from the Shelton-based company, by charging expenses to corporate credit cards and concocting fraudulent expense reports.
Newtown resident Joanne Osmolik, 51, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud stemming from her embezzlement between 2008 and 2010, according to the office of U.S. Attorney David Fein. She is scheduled to be sentenced in March and faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $3.5 million. Osmolik agreed to give up her interests in three Vermont residences, as well as nearly a dozen motorcycles, snowmobiles and ATVs, jewelry and other items.
Hamden woman sentenced for embezzling
A Hamden resident received a six-month prison sentence after embezzling $150,000 from Omega Engineering Inc. based in Stamford.
Renee Bragg, 43, inflated the hours she worked as a payroll specialist while altering the company”™s composite pay report to conceal the additional pay, according to U.S. Attorney David Fein.
Vineyard Vines scores NHL deal
On the heels of the National Hockey League”™s deal to set up a Stamford studio in partnership with NBC Sports, Vineyard Vines L.L.C. reached a licensing agreement with the NHL.
Stamford-based Vineyard Vines has similar deals in place with the NFL, Major League Baseball and several major colleges. The company will sell NHL team ties initially priced at $75, including those of the former Hartford Whalers and New York Americans franchises. Entering 2012, the company”™s Westport store had already stocked a few NHL ties, including those emblazoned with the New York Rangers logo.
Atlantic tries on Alex Apparel
Stamford-based Atlantic Street Capital invested in Alex Apparel Group Inc., a New York City women”™s eveningwear designer.
The companies did not disclose the size of Atlantic Capital”™s investment.
Alex Apparel was founded in 1989, with founding designer Jeanne Brizel remaining a major shareholder along with CEO Dean Brizel. The company”™s clothing is sold at Macy”™s, Nordstrom and other department stores and boutique clothiers.
Â
Catterton to sell First Watch chain
Greenwich-based Catterton Partners is selling the First Watch Restaurants chain to Freeman Spogli & Co., with the companies not disclosing financial terms.
Under the tagline “the daytime café,” Bradenton, Fla.-based First Watch serves breakfast and lunch at more than 90 locations in 13 states, none in the Northeast.
A private equity investor focused on consumer brands, Catterton acquired First Watch in 2004, with its current portfolio also including Outback Steakhouse, Noodles & Co. and Cheddar”™s.
Costco lays out welcome rug in Brookfield
For $1.5 million, the Savoy Rug Gallery building in Brookfield was sold to make way for an expansion at an adjacent Costco store.
When complete, the expanded Costco will total 142,000 square feet of space. Coldwell Banker Commercial Scalzo Group and Goodfellow-Ashmore Corfac International brokered the transaction.
CBRE to handle leasing at Merritt 7
Clarion Partners and Marcus Partners retained CB Richard Ellis as the leasing agent for Merritt 7 Corporate Park in Norwalk, among the largest office parks in Fairfield County at 1.4 million square feet of space.
Clarion and Marcus acquired a controlling stake in the building last year from Albert D. Phelps Inc. Tenants include FactSet Research Inc., the Financial Accounting Foundation and GE Capital.
UB team wins stock contest
University of Bridgeport students beat out 16 teams to turn in the best performance at the Connecticut Stock Market Game, sponsored by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and the New York Stock Exchange Foundation.
UB business students Sissy Shen, Carrie Lu, Ying Zhou, Xiao Huang and Pelin Erbil beat the overall market by 16 percent, investing a hypothetical $100,000 over two months starting in mid-October.
The team focused on undervalued high-tech and information technology stocks, said Stephen Rashba, a professor at the UB School of Business and the team”™s adviser, who formerly worked for a broker-dealer.
“We credit a combination of strategy and good fortune: buying 200 shares of Google on the first day of the competition, before it spiked, certainly helped,” said Rashba in a statement published by UB. “But we also really focused on market timing and early trading.”
