NEW YORK, NY, May 27, 2003 – Investment firm W. P. Carey & Co. LLC (NYSE: WPC) today announced that it has acquired the U.S. corporate headquarters of Yardley, PA-based MediMedia Group Holdings from an affiliate of Berwind Property Group (BPG), a privately held Philadelphia, PA-based real estate investment firm, for approximately $23 million.
MediMedia, considered to be one of the world's leading providers of healthcare communications, educational materials and services, will lease the 107,000 square foot facility under a 15-year triple net lease. In June 2001, BPG entered into a build-to-suit lease with MediMedia and delivered the completed building in February 2002. The facility, which serves as the U.S. and operational headquarters for MediMedia, is located 25 miles outside Philadelphia, PA at 780 Township Line Road in Yardley, PA. The facility was purchased on behalf of Corporate Property Associates 15 Incorporated (CPA®:15) a member of the $5 billion W. P. Carey Group of publicly held non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs).
“As a leading provider of healthcare communications, MediMedia is the type of company we seek to create long-term partnerships with,” said Alistair Calvert, a Vice President at W. P. Carey. “This corporate headquarters is a great addition to CPA®:15’s portfolio of net leased assets and will further increase our presence in the greater Philadelphia area.”
Stephen Spaeder, Senior Vice President at BPG, commented, “As the owner of approximately 360,000 square feet in the Lower Makefield Corporate Center, we are delighted that MediMedia will remain as a long-term tenant in a facility now owned by W. P. Carey. This was our first transaction with W. P. Carey and it was a pleasure working with them on this sale.”
This latest acquisition adds to W. P. Carey's growing managed portfolio of properties in Pennsylvania, which consist of approximately 1.8 million square feet. The properties, which are owned by W. P. Carey & Co. LLC and its affiliates, include warehouses, distribution centers, corporate offices and retail centers leased to Atrium Companies, Inc., Balanced Care Corporation, The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc., Brashear, LP, Datcon Instrument Company, Lincoln Technical, Lockheed Martin Corporation and Pennsylvania Crusher Corporation.
MediMedia has approximately 2,550 employees across 39 countries and operates four primary business segments defined as: Practice Management and Drug Information Systems, Academic Learning, Medical Education and Communication and Consumer/Patient Education.
Berwind Property Group is a Philadelphia-based, privately held real estate investment company with strong operational and development expertise. Their portfolio consists of more than 25 million square feet of office, residential, retail, hotel and industrial properties located throughout the United States.
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal securities laws. A number of factors could cause the company’s actual results, performance or achievement to differ materially from those anticipated. Among those risks, trends and uncertainties are the general economic climate; the supply of and demand for office and industrial properties; interest rate levels; the availability of financing; and other risks associated with the acquisition and ownership of properties, including risks that the tenants will not pay rent, or that costs may be greater than anticipated. For further information on factors that could impact the company, reference is made to the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
