CIM Group Starts Construction on Plaza Lofts -- Apartment and Retail Development in Downtown Sacramento.

Business Editors

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 26, 2004

Government officials and Sacramento business and community leaders joined developer CIM Group today to kick-off the start of construction for Plaza Lofts, an elegant seven-story building with 225 stylish lofts that will replace the infamous hole in the ground on J Street. The apartment and retail project is an important component in the completion of the downtown core, adding much needed housing and enlivening the street with ground floor shops and restaurants. CIM chose this prime location to initiate a program of investment and development of a new Sacramento neighborhood and lifestyle in the heart of downtown.

"The beautifully restored and maintained Chavez Plaza area is an ideal setting for an urban neighborhood. There are grand civic spaces, beautiful civic and commercial buildings, hotels and restaurants, farmer's markets, and the theaters, shops and restaurants of K Street and the Shopping Plaza," according to John Given, senior vice president of CIM Group.

The City of Sacramento is investing alongside CIM Group in the $46 million Plaza Lofts development. The City's Redevelopment Agency has assembled the half block site and will fund an additional $8.2 million. The Agency's commitments have made it possible to build high quality construction, with on-site parking, 45 affordable housing units and the ability to attract first class retail, restaurant and entertainment venues to the mixed-use building.

"Residents are lining up to live in downtown Sacramento. The Plaza Lofts will be a great new opportunity to live in the core of the fun, exciting urban lifestyle only downtown Sacramento can provide," said Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo.

The building, which stretches from 8th to 9th along J Street in downtown Sacramento, is comprised of 21,000 square feet of ground floor retail and restaurant space with 225 apartments above at this pivotal downtown location. With 74 studios, 57 one-bedroom and 94 two-bedroom apartments, Plaza Lofts is designed to appeal to a broad cross-section of the community. CIM's experience in urban communities across the State is that urban housing demand cuts across all demographic, occupational and household demographics. Proximity to the Capitol and Sacramento's finest restaurants will be particularly attractive to a unique population for whom Sacramento is a second home.

"Plaza Lofts is a model for urban planning and development. It provides for housing and retail in a location that will connect people with services and amenities in downtown Sacramento, and help create a thriving district in the heart of the city," said California State Treasurer Phil Angelides who, as a member of the CalPERS and CalSTRS boards, has led the pension funds' efforts to invest in urban redevelopment.

CIM Group called upon LPA Architects to create a contemporary urban design for Plaza Lofts. The building is almost entirely glass offering residents exceptional views and ample light. Adding to this sense of space, the interiors are designed in an open loft-style floor plan with high ceilings and top quality finishes such as hard wood floors, stone countertops and gleaming stainless steel.

"This project is a centerpiece in our efforts to bring new vitality to downtown Sacramento. I believe the investment made by the City in CIM's project will come back many fold as this catalyst project attracts future retail and residential development in our downtown core," said District One Councilmember Ray Tretheway.

Turner Construction is managing the construction of the seven-story structure and three levels of both above-grade and subterranean parking to serve residents and visitors. Completion of construction and occupancy are expected for Fall 2005.

CIM Group, based in Los Angeles, is a full service real estate investor and operator organized in 1994 to revitalize districts of high population density, including the traditional downtown areas within large cities and the main street districts within towns and suburban cities. A leader in California's urban renaissance, CIM Group has developed a premier portfolio of street retail and urban housing, office and mixed-use properties in California's most popular destinations, including Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade, Old Pasadena, San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter, Birch Street in Brea, Hollywood Boulevard and San Jose's downtown. CIM Group is currently managing investments in Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood Boulevard, Mid-town Los Angeles, San Pedro, West Hollywood, Anaheim, Huntington Beach, San Jose, Sacramento, San Francisco, and Washington, DC. Each CIM investment adapts proven land use and design principles of great urban districts to the unique strengths of the location and the needs of the community.

CIM is one of a few firms with the comprehensive ability to bring projects to life. As manager of the $676 million CIM Urban Real Estate Fund, it has the financial ability to fund the equity requirement for projects. The fund, formed in 2001 with investments from the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS), is designed to pursue California urban infill projects.