July 19, 2021 – Newswire Pakistan

July 19, 2021

Madison Realty Capital Closes $105 Million Acquisition and Modernization Loan for Four Seasons Hotel in Prime Miami Location

NEW YORK, July 19, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Madison Realty Capital, a vertically integrated real estate private equity firm focused on debt and equity investment strategies, today announced it has provided a $105 million loan to Fort Partners for the acquisition and modernization of the Four Seasons Hotel Miami located at 1435 Brickell Avenue in Brickell, Florida. The loan was originated from Madison’s income strategy that offers transitional loans to institutional sponsors. In 2019, Madison provided a $210 million loan to Fort Partners for its construction of the Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences Fort Lauderdale.

“We are pleased to continue our work with Fort Partners, a best-in-class developer with a strong track record in South Florida, and deliver a timely, customized financing solution for this exciting project,” said Josh Zegen, Managing Principal and Co-Founder of Madison Realty Capital. “Fort Partners, in close collaboration with Four Seasons, have put forth a strong plan that will modernize the property focused on enhancing room configurations, pool deck and lobby, and upgrade the food & beverage options by partnering with renowned chefs and restaurateurs. Moreover, Brickell is an attractive, established neighborhood in Miami that caters to both tourists and business clients given its proximity to South Beach. We look forward to supporting Fort Partners in the future.”

“This is our second large loan with Madison Realty Capital, and again they executed quickly and delivered certainty of execution. Madison offered a highly competitive rate with a flexible structure that will allow us to effectively implement our renovation and repositioning plan for this strategic asset,” said Michael Conaghan, partner with Fort Partners LLC.

The 221-key hotel is part of a 70-story mixed-use tower that includes class-A office space, residential condominiums, an Equinox health club, retail space and a parking garage. Millennium Partners developed the property in 2003 and Handel Architects led the design. The acquisition marks the fourth Four Seasons property in Fort Partners’ Florida portfolio alongside hotels located in Surfside, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach.

JLL Managing Director Jim Dockerty, Senior Managing Director, Kevin Davis, and Managing Director, Mark Fisher represented Fort Partners in the deal.

About Madison Realty Capital

Madison Realty Capital is a vertically integrated real estate private equity firm that manages approximately $6 billion in total assets on behalf of an institutional global investor base. Since 2004, Madison Realty Capital has completed more than $15 billion in transactions in the U.S. providing reputable borrowers with flexible and highly customized financing solutions, strong underwriting capabilities, and certainty of execution. Headquartered in New York City, with offices in Los Angeles and Miami, the firm has over 60 employees across all real estate investment, development, and property management disciplines. Madison Realty Capital has been frequently named to the Commercial Observer’s prestigious “Power 100” list of New York City real estate players and is consistently cited as a top construction lender, among other industry recognitions. To learn more, follow us on LinkedIn and visit www.madisonrealtycapital.com.

Nathaniel Garnick/Grace Cartwright
Gasthalter & Co.
(212) 257-4170
madisonrealty@gasthalter.com

July 19, 2021July 22, 2021

Eid prayer to be offered on 21st July in Faisal Masjid

Islamabad, July 19, 2021 (PPI-OT):Eid-ul-Adha Prayer will be offered on Wednesday, 21 st July, 2021 in Faisal Masjid at 7:30 a.m.
As per details provided by Dawah Academy of International Islamic University Islamabad
(IIUI), Prof. Dr. Muhammad Tahir Hakeem of Faculty of Shariah and amp; Law, (IIUI) will deliver
“Khutaba-E-Eid-ul-Adha”.

For more information, contact:
Public Relations,
International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI)
Room No.118, Admin Block, New Campus,
H-10 Sector, Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9019249
Fax: +92-51-9257909
Email: iiuipublicrelations@iiu.edu.pk
Website: www.iiu.edu.pk

July 19, 2021July 22, 2021

LUMS Alumni Establish Scholarship Fund to Support the National Outreach Programme

Lahore, July 19, 2021 (PPI-OT):Ms. Emma Ahmed and Mr. Usman Ahmed, graduates of the MBA Class of 1995, have donated PKR 18 million to establish the ‘Emma and Usman Ahmed Scholarship Fund’. The Fund will support one talented National Outreach Programme (NOP) scholar at LUMS each year.

Mr. Ahmed is CEO at Citi Bank Malaysia, while Ms. Ahmed has worked in the finance and marketing industry for Artal and 3M, an American multinational conglomerate. Passionate about improving financial literacy among girls, they have directed their philanthropy towards improving education in Pakistan. Both have also partnered with The Citizens Foundation (TCF) for the construction and operation of primary schools in Pakistan. Due to their strong ties with TCF, the scholarship fund will prioritise TCF alumni who qualify for admission to LUMS.

“There is no doubt that access to higher education for a single person has a multi-generational impact on families. We would like to thank both LUMS and TCF, two pioneering institutions, for coming together and helping us set up this scholarship. We hope this will motivate TCF alumni and other deserving students from across Pakistan to aim for a world-class education,” shares Ms. Ahmed.

The NOP – recently shortlisted as the regional finalist for the CASE Platinum Awards in the Asia Pacific region for the ‘Best Practices in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’ category – has funded over 700 scholars since inception and provides full tuition waivers, as well as additional living stipends and allowances. The Programme furthers LUMS’ commitment to diversity, inclusion and accessibility. Annually, the NOP reaches out to over 12,000 potential applicants across Pakistan.

For more information, contact:
Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
D.H.A. Lahore Cantt. 54792
Lahore, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-35608000
Fax: +92-42-35725048
Website: www.lums.edu.pk

July 19, 2021July 22, 2021

Change of venue for the admissions in M.Sc./Ph.D in IME

Lahore, July 19, 2021 (PPI-OT):Department of industrial and manufacturing engineering has changed the venue of admission for MSc/PhD. Now the admissions will be conducted in new auditorium UET Lahore instead of IME department.

For more information, contact:
Public Relations Officer
University of Engineering and Technology (UET)
G.T. Rd, Lahore – 54890
Tel: +92-42-99250274, +92-42-99029358
Cell: +92-321-9467302
Email: tanveerqasim@yahoo.com
Website: www.uet.edu.pk

July 19, 2021July 22, 2021

NUST faculty member appointed as an Associate Editor for top IEEE journals

Islamabad, July 19, 2021 (PPI-OT):NUST is pleased to announce that our very own faculty member – Dr Haider Abbas, Head of R and D, NUST Military College of Signals (MCS), has been invited to serve as full-time Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Systems Man and Cybernetics: Systems (IF 13.4) and IEEE Internet of Things Journal (IF 9.5). IEEE SMC and IEEE IoT are the top IEEE journals; publishing quality research in the area of computer sciences. Dr Abbas has the extensive editorial experience that would benefit the international research community.

We congratulate Dr Haider Abbas on this achievement and wish him the best for the future. NUST family congratulates our distinguished faculty member for representing NUST and Pakistan on these prestigious international forums by assuming these new responsibilities.

For more information, contact:
Director Press and Media Release
National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST)
NUST Campus, H-12, Islamabad, Pakistan
UAN: +92-51-111-11-6878
Tel: +92-51-90851381
Fax: +92-51-90851382
Email: prnust@gmail.com
Website: www.nust.edu.pk

July 19, 2021July 22, 2021

HEC Awards China Study Center to UET, Lahore

Lahore, July 19, 2021 (PPI-OT):The federal Higher Education Commission (HEC) has notified the establishment of six China Study Centers in the country and three-year funding under the PC-1 titled “Academic Collaboration under CPEC Consortium of Universities.” In Punjab, the only such center will be established at the University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore. “It is an honor for our university to be selected for the project from among over 30 public sector universities in the province and we are grateful to the HEC for providing us this opportunity,” said Prof Dr Syed Mansoor Sarwar, Vice Chancellor, UET, and Lahore. “Our faculty has several on-going research collaborations with Chinese universities, several of our faculty members have earned their PhDs from top Chinese universities, we are already running Confucius Set at the University for offering Chinese language courses, and the university has been selected as Rotating Chair of China-based UNESCO’s International Institute of Online Education (IIOE) for 2021,” Sarwar added.

The university will receive Rs 22.815 Million for hiring human resource (teachers and administrative staff) for three years to run the center. In addition, it will receive a one-time grant of Rs 6.0 million to purchase study material (books, magazines, etc), audio visual material including software, and requisite hardware, and office requisites. The university will get approval of the academic, administrative, and financial mechanism of the center from its statutory bodies and provide suitable furnished Internet-enabled accommodation for the center.

Applications from universities across the country were evaluated through a competitive process against certain benchmarks. These yardsticks were related to their involvement in CPEC-related projects, research collaborations with Chinese universities, joint publications, and linkages through university’s teachers who have earned their PhDs from Chinese universities. The China Study Centers are being established as mini think tanks to promote academic and research linkages among the Chinese and Pakistani universities.

The primary function of these Centers will be to drive collaborative activities to enhance understanding of Chinese system, culture, and economic miracle. Universities will be eligible for funding through other initiatives under the PC-1, such as joint research projects, training and talent cultivation, and joint conferences, seminars, and workshops through a competitive selection process. The selected universities are expected to achieve the following target on the completion of the project to promote better understanding of the Chinese history, culture, and economic development.

Each Center will be expected to publish minimum three books on China/CPEC, undertake at least three impact studies related to CPEC in collaboration with Chinese universities, train at least 100 staff/students in Chinese language, and translate minimum 100 pages of Chinese literary pieces in addition to organizing exhibitions of Chinese advancements in science and arts as well as organize cultural activities to showcase Chinese culture.