Store Here LLC, a joint venture between property-management company Store Here Management LLC and affiliates of real estate investment firm Westport Capital Partners LLC, has purchased 13 self-storage facilities in Georgia, Kansas and Texas for $48 million. The acquisitions comprise more than 855,000 rentable square feet in more than 6,100 units.

“Working to close this many assets with multiple sellers can be tricky, but the tenacity of our team and financial partners brought peace of mind amidst a multitude of complications that ended with successful closings,” said James J. Hanrahan, acquisitions director for Store Here Self Storage, the operating brand of Store Here LLC.

Among the acquisitions was a six-property portfolio in Georgia that previously operated as Storage Village. Those properties were purchased by Danbury Road Holdings IV LLC, which does business as Store Here, according to a press release issued by Midcoast Properties Inc., the commercial real estate firm that brokered the deal.

The former Storage Village locations, spanning 39 acres of land, encompass 74 buildings representing 434,000 rentable square feet in more than 3,100 units. Four of the assets have room for expansion, according to the release. The facilities are:

• Storage Village Clayton, 53 Highway 138 S.E., Riverdale, Ga., which comprises 72,475 rentable square feet in 571 units
• Storage Village Fayetteville, 923 Highway 85S, Fayetteville, Ga., which comprises 70,725 rentable square feet in 474 units
• Storage Village Jackson, 1228 Brookwood Ave., Jackson, Ga., which comprises 57,350 rentable square feet in 428 units
• Storage Village Jonesboro, 8898 Tara Blvd, Jonesboro, Ga., which comprises 46,425 rentable square feet in 324 units and a warehouse
• Storage Village Griffin, 749 Carver Road, Griffin, Ga., which comprises 138,625 rentable square feet in 1,008 units
• Storage Village Griffin II, 2976 N. Expressway, Griffin, Ga., which comprises 49,260 rentable square feet in 372 units

Dale C. Eisenman, president of Midcoast Properties, represented the seller in the transaction. The commercial real estate company specializes in self-storage properties in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Westport Capital Partners provides domestic and international investment opportunities to institutional and private clients. The firm invests in a wide variety of real estate assets through its various funds. It has offices in Los Angeles, London and Wilton, Conn.

Store Here Management is a division of RHW Capital Management Group. Its acquisition and analysis division focuses on the self-storage industry. The Store Here portfolio of 20 self-storage facilities comprises more than 1.4 million rentable square feet under management. RHW plans to expand the Store Here brand through property acquisitions and management contracts, company officials said in a press release.

U.K. self-storage operator Big Yellow Group PLC has made a stock placement of 14.35 million ordinary shares to raise enough capital to buy out joint-venture partner Pramerica Real Estate Investors, the U.S.-based real estate investment management business of Prudential, according to the source.

Pramerica is part of a joint venture called The Big Yellow Limited Partnership that dates back to November 2007. The company owns two-thirds of 11 self-storage facilities in the English communities of Birmingham, Camberley, High Wycombe, Leeds, Liverpool, Nottingham, Poole, Reading, Stockport and Sheffield (two locations), as well as one facility in Edinburgh, Scotland. Big Yellow plans to pay £39.25 million to buy out Pramerica, the source reported.

Thus far, the placement has raised £79 million before expenses, according to “The Financial Times,” which also reported that the total number of shares available represents 10 percent of Big Yellow’s existing share capital.

“The placing has been successful, and we are grateful to our shareholders for their support,” Nicholas Vetch, executive chairman, said in a released statement. “These proceeds will be used to take advantage of the opportunity to employ more capital into prime Big Yellow-branded assets and consolidate our position as the leading U.K. self-storage brand.”

The fundraising comes on the heels of encouraging financial results for the six months that ended Sept. 30. Big Yellow reported an 11 percent increase in revenue to £39.9 million, compared to the same period a year ago. Adjusted profit before tax rose 29 percent to £18.4 million, according to the source.

Big Yellow Group operates 78 self-storage locations in the United Kingdom under the Big Yellow Self Storage and Armadillo Self Storage brand names, with most concentrated in Greater London. Its total portfolio comprises 4.9 million square feet.

Steven and Janice Disbrow, owners of management company Maximize Self Storage Management, have purchased Holly Hill Mini Storage in Holly Hill, Fla., for $1.4 million. The seller was Horace Smith Jr., and the real estate transaction closed on Nov. 12.

The property at 1480 N. Nova Road encompasses 34,000 square feet of space on a 41,800-square-foot lot, according to a listing on Loopnet.com. It has 294 units, which includes 178 drive-up units and116 indoor, climate-controlled units.

The Disbrows own and manage self-storage facilities around the country and were looking for one close to their home in Palm Coast, Fla., according to Chris Butera, a commercial real estate agent with NAI Realvest, which represented the couple in the transaction. NAI Realvest is the Orlando, Fla.-area representative of NAI Global, an international organization of real estate professionals.

The couple previously worked for a national self-storage company that managed more than 50 properties in 10 states, according to their company website. Steve Disbrow is a board member of the Florida Self Storage Association. Maximize Self Storage Management provides self-storage consulting, management, staff training and more.

The two-property Schillinger Mini Storage portfolio in Mobile, Ala., recently sold to a local investor for $1.27 million. The portfolio includes 2610 Schillinger Road S., which includes a 35,000-square-foot storage building, and 1550 Leroy Stevens Road, which includes 30,000 square feet of storage space. Combined, the facilities include more than 400 units, according to Keith Vaughan, owner of KV Properties LLC, who represented the seller in the transaction.

KV Properties is a Mobile, Ala., commercial real estate company that offers brokerage and property-management services. Vaughan has been a developer, general contractor, owner or partner for six self-storage facilities, according to the source.

The undisclosed buyer was represented by Loyd Marston of SpringHill Real Estate, a Mobile, Ala.-based real estate company representing buyers and sellers in Baldwin County and Mobile County.

Real estate developer Tom Head has submitted a proposal to convert a Boca Raton, Fla., warehouse into a self-storage facility, but the city is considering height restrictions that could delay the project. A principal with Mission Bay Self Storage in West Boca, Fla., Head plans to build two levels of storage units inside the existing 64,000-square-foot structure, but the project has some city officials concerned about the height of future multi-story facilities, according to the source.

Head’s proposed project would include roughly 200 units covering about 70 percent of the building at 1900 N.W. First Court, the source reported. Representatives from development firm Head Properties and the law firm GrayRobinson PA addressed city council members on Nov. 10. The council first discussed the proposal on Aug. 11.

Charles Siemon, director at GrayRobinson, showed the council images of modern, aesthetically pleasing self-storage designs as examples of what could be possible in redeveloping the warehouse, according to the source. "We would not propose to change the physical height or the setbacks, but use performance standards to ensure the facility’s aesthetic qualities, its attractiveness,” Siemon told the council. “The big issue is access doors visible from the street."

While Deputy Mayor Constance Scott said she strongly supported the project, Mayor Susan Haynie said she had “pause for concern about unintended consequences.”

Self-storage is zoned in four areas of Boca Raton, according to the source. While the council doesn’t intend to change the zoning areas, any ordinance concerning height restrictions would need to be prepared by city staff and submitted for review by the city’s planning and zoning board and city council.

Wendy Larsen, project manager for Head Properties and a director at GrayRobinson, told the council that the storage-project team could submit a site plan while the ordinance is being reviewed.

The self-storage facility would be the third developed by Tom Head. He built Mission Bay Self Storage and Federal Highway Self Storage in Deerfield Beach, Fla., in 1998. He has since sold his share of the Federal Highway business, according to the source.

AAA Storage, a self-storage operator with facilities in six states, has released its “2014 Self Storage Consumer’s Guide,” a publication that provides tips for customers on selecting a storage site and packing units wisely. The 27-page PDF is available for free download from AAA’s website in exchange for a valid e-mail address.

“We’re excited to announce that the new, updated version of our popular ‘Self Storage Consumer’s Guide’ is hot off the virtual presses and ready for readers to enjoy and benefit from,” said Dal Anderson, spokesperson. “As with previous editions, this 2014 version of the guide is going to make it easier and simpler for consumers to find affordable, secure storage of their own.”

Issues explored in the guide’s articles include 24-hour facility access, “hidden” charges, customer misconceptions about storage, the difference between price and value, and more. The company’s Houston-based employees also contributed insights about “6 Costly Myths When Choosing Storage Units.” The article is designed to help consumers select an appropriate amount of storage for their money, company officials said in a press release.

Based in Austin, Texas, AAA Storage operates more than 30 self-storage facilities in Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. Its largest concentration is in Texas, with more than 20 locations primarily in the Austin, Houston and San Antonio areas.

Two self-storage businesses in Vineland, N.J., are in a position to receive property-tax abatements after the city council introduced an ordinance proposing payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreements, also known as PILOTs. The council is expected to make a decision on the applications from Delsea Investments LLC and East Avenue Properties LLC on Nov. 25, according to the source.

If approved, the PILOT agreements would alleviate the self-storage operators from having to pay property taxes in 2015. Instead, taxes would be set to increase incrementally over a five-year period until they reach their full amount, the source reported. From the city’s standpoint, the agreements are intended to encourage local investment and development, according to the Southern New Jersey Development Council (SNJDC).

Delsea Investments owns Vineland Self Storage, a new facility at 820 N. Delsea Drive. The facility, minus the land, is valued at $100,000 for tax purposes. East Avenue Properties owns a storage facility at 1851 S. East Ave. Minus the land, that facility is valued at $87,500, the source reported.

City officials recently approved approximately $6.4 million in property-tax abatements for six construction projects, according to the SNJDC.

Westy Self Storage of Lake Success, N.Y., is working with the Nassau Region of Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, to raise funds for the Young Judaea Scholarship Fund. On Nov. 23, the storage facility at 2400 Marcus Ave. will act as a distribution point for a fruit sale, the proceeds of which will fund scholarships for the Young Judaea summer camp as well as programs in Israel.

Cases of fruit will be delivered to the storage facility, then sorted and distributed by volunteers. This is the fifth year that Westy has participated in the charity event.

“It is our pleasure to again extend our location as a distribution point for the Young Judea fruit sale,” Yasir Zaidi, the self-storage facility’s district director, told the source. “It is part of our culture to support our communities and local organizations.”

Hadassah is a volunteer organization that “inspires a passion for and commitment to its partnership with the land and people of Israel,” according to the organization’s website. It enhances the health of people worldwide through its support of medical care and research at the Hadassah Medical Organization in Jerusalem. It also provides opportunities for “personal growth, education, advocacy and Jewish continuity.”

Young Judaea is a peer-led, religiously pluralist Zionist Youth movement. According to the source, its mission is to build and strengthen Jewish identity and connection to Israel and bring its members closer to Israel ideologically, spiritually and physically.

Founded in 1990, Westy Self Storage is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. The company's portfolio of facilities spans Connecticut, New Jersey and New York.

Salt Lake City-based Extra Space Storage Inc., a self-storage real estate investment trust, has been selected as one of “The Wasatch Front” Top Workplaces for 2014, based on an employee survey conducted by WorkplaceDynamics LLP, a Pennsylvania-based independent marketing-research company. Extra Space, which employs more than 2,600 employees nationwide and 300 in the state, ranked No. 10 in the “medium-sized” company category.

WorkplaceDynamics began advertising in the “The Salt Lake Tribune” in March, inviting Utah-based companies and their employees to participate. To be eligible, the organization had to employ at least 35 people in The Wasatch Front, a chain of cities and towns along the Wasatch Range in North-Central Utah.

WorkplaceDynamics invited 829 companies to participate, then surveyed 83 firms employing 24,302 people, CEO Doug Claffey told the source. Roughly 20,065 employees received the questionnaire, and nearly 12,000 responded via a mail-in survey or online. Employees were asked 22 questions about overall job satisfaction, work-life balance, pay and benefits, the company’s direction, and their engagement. The winners were categorized by size—small, medium or large—then ranked based on employee responses to the survey statements, Claffey said.

“We are pleased Extra Space Storage has been chosen as a top place to work by the most important judges—our employees,” said Extra Space CEO Spencer Kirk.

Extra Space owns or operates 1,081 self-storage properties in 35 states; Washington, D.C.; and Puerto Rico. The company’s properties comprise approximately 720,000 units and 80 million square feet of rentable space.