NEW YORK, NY – March 22, 2001 – W. P. Carey & Co. LLC (NYSE: WPC), a leader in the ownership and net leasing of corporate properties, today announced that it has closed on the acquisition of a "build-to-suit" fitness center in St. Charles, Missouri. The facility was purchased on behalf of Corporate Property Associates 14 (CPA®:14). CPA®:14, a public non-traded real estate investment trust (REIT), is a member of the $2.5 billion W. P. Carey Group.
The St. Charles, MO facility, formerly an AMC multiplex theater, was acquired from Trammell Crow Company and is being developed for Fitness Holdings, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Fitness Holdings Worldwide, Inc. The 38,500 square foot St. Charles, Missouri facility, which will operate under the 24 Hour Fitness name, will be located on a designated parcel of Regency Square, a large commercial development on the Regency Parkway, just South of I-70. Under the terms of the transaction, the build-to-suit facility will be leased to Fitness Holdings under a 20-year triple net lease.
Headquartered in Pleasanton, California, 24 Hour Fitness serves approximately 2.7 million members. To date, there are 431 clubs worldwide with over 280 in the United States. 24 Hour Fitness is committed to making fitness accessible and affordable to people of all ages, backgrounds, and fitness levels.
Commenting on the transaction, Edward V. LaPuma, Executive Director of W. P. Carey stated, "The St. Charles transaction demonstrates W. P. Carey's capabilities and depth of resources in developing creative financing solutions tailored to meet individual company needs. Most traditional financing sources would be reluctant or unable to provide financing for "to-be-built" properties. By contrast, W. P. Carey has a successful track record of working in conjunction with private equity firms to design "outside the box" flexible financings that provide liquidity for their portfolio companies."
Founded in 1973, W. P. Carey & Co. specializes in corporate real estate financing using the corporate net lease, or sale-leaseback structure. The firm and its affiliates is one of the largest lessors of net leased corporate real estate in the nation. W. P. Carey & Co. LLC (NYSE: WPC), the largest publicly traded Limited Liability Company in the world, owns and manages over 44 million square feet of property in the USA and Europe. Additional information about W. P. Carey can be found on the company's Web site: www.wpcarey.com
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.