Pacific Security Capital and Swinerton Inc. are coming together to provide the general contracting firm with a ready source of capital as part of expansion efforts.
Pacific Security, a Beaverton, Ore.-based commercial real estate investment bank, teamed up in late April with San Francisco-based builder Swinerton to offer general contracting and construction management services to its customers, while Swinerton can now offer capital markets solutions to its clients.
Both firms are hoping to market the unique alliance to expand nationally. “I think it will set us apart from the competition, because not many contractors have access to the capital base,” says Jeffrey Hoopes, a Swinerton executive vice president. Swinerton, which produces more than $2 billion in construction projects annually, expects the partnership to boost its general contracting and construction management revenues by 20 percent. “We do a lot of construction for private developers who are always looking for a resource on capital,” Hoopes says. “This gives us the opportunity to bring them bridge financing, mezzanine financing, equity investment and long-term debt financing all from one source.”
“There are a lot of synergies between the business lines,” agrees Mike Myatt, Pacific Security's executive managing director. For example, if Pacific Security has a client that wants to build a retail strip center, it can bring Swinerton into the deal as the general contractor. “So for us, we can take a client that has a general contracting need and shore up that piece of the puzzle,” he adds.
Moreover, the partnership goes beyond a simple referral. The two firms collaborate on deals, and work together as projects move forward. The companies already have several deals in the pipeline, including a mixed-use development in West Virginia that involves a student-housing component.