Canyon-Johnson Urban Funds (CJUF) has partnered with McCaffery Interests to acquire and reposition the Roosevelt Collection, a transit-oriented mixed-use project in Chicago’s growing South Loop submarket.
Over the next 18 months, the Canyon-McCaffery team will work to transform the property’s 400,000 square-foot retail component. Plans call for demolition of the center median to create a a new shopping destination for the community and for a new active public plaza, which will include green landscaped areas, water features, children’s play areas and wider. The team will draw upon the existing 16-screen Kerasotes ShowPlace ICON theater and the improved project design to secure a mix of clothing, home furnishings and electronics retailers and enhanced restaurant opportunities.
In addition to the retail component, the property is also comprised of 342 residential units that are more than 90 percent occupied, a parking garage, vacant land for a public park and rights to develop additional multi-family units.
The partnership between CJUF, the joint venture between Canyon Capital Realty Advisors and an affiliate of Magic Johnson Enterprises, and McCaffery Interests combines forces between firms that have a history of development in the Chicago region and a track record of stabilizing and revitalizing communities and projects.
“We are very excited about joining with the Canyon-Johnson team to execute the redevelopment of this project,” McCaffery Interests Chairman and CEO Dan McCaffery said in a statement. “We see so much great potential in the burgeoning South Loop neighborhood. It is a fabulous opportunity to use our collective experience and skills to create a vibrant, new retail/dining/community center for the community.”
Alexander’s Completes $250M Kings Plaza Refinancing
Alexander’s Inc. completed a $250 million refinancing of the 1.2 million-square-foot Kings Plaza Mall in Brooklyn, New York. The five-year interest-only loan is at LIBOR plus 170 basis points. The company realized net proceeds of approximately $95 million after repaying the existing loan and costs.
Taubman Centers Completes Common Offering
Taubman Centers Inc. announced the sale of 1.75 million common shares with Goldman, Sachs & Co. as the sole underwriter in an underwritten public offering. The shares were price at $56.50 per share, raising approximately $100 million for the REIT. The offering was slated to be completed on June 17.
The underwriter was granted a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 262,500 common shares.
Taubman intends to use the net proceeds of this offering to reduce outstanding borrowings under its $615 million revolving credit facilities.
Inland Real Estate Acquisitions Purchases Centers in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina
Inland Real Estate Acquisitions Inc. acquired retail properties in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina for a combined $80.6 million.
Approximately $54 million went toward the acquisition of Perimeter Woods Shopping Center in Charlotte, N.C. The remainder, approximately $26.6 million, was for the purchase of three Walgreens-anchored shopping centers located in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina. The properties were acquired on behalf of Inland Diversified Real Estate Trust Inc.
Matt Tice, vice president of Inland Real Estate Acquisitions, facilitated the purchase of the 303,353-square-foot Perimeter Woods, which is anchored by Lowe’s and Best Buy. Perimeter Woods was approximately 97 percent leased at closing. Additional tenants include PetSmart, Off Broadway Shoes and Office Max.
Mark Cosenza, vice president of Inland Real Estate Acquisitions, facilitated the purchase of the three Walgreens-anchored properties: a 21,370-square-foot center in Lake Mary, Fla.; a 22,385-square-foot center in Conyers, Ga., and a 42,219-square-foot center in Jacksonville, N.C.
Walgreens is the primary tenant at each of the centers, occupying 25-year triple net leases that extend through 2036.
Whitestone REIT Enters Into New Revolving Credit Facility
Whitestone REIT, a fully integrated real estate company that owns, operates and re-develops community centers, has closed on a new $20 million unsecured revolving credit facility with Harris Bank, part of BMO Financial Group.
The facility is expandable to $75 million and matures two years from closing, with a 12-month extension available upon lender approval. The company will use the new facility for general corporate purposes, including acquisitions and redevelopment of existing properties in its portfolio.
The new unsecured line of credit, combined with the capital the firm raised in a recent secondary offering, enables the company to purchase approximately $150 million in value-add properties.
Karlin Real Estate Acquires Two Phoenix-Area Shopping Centers
Karlin Real Estate has acquired through foreclosure two Phoenix-area shopping centers totaling nearly 220,000 square feet, following the firm's purchase of a non performing loan portfolio with an aggregate unpaid principal of approximately $65.5 million.
The Boulevard at Surprise Pointe is a 201,223-square-foot lifestyle center in Surprise, Ariz. Anchored by a Walgreens and UltraStar Cinemas, the center also includes a partially completed 60,000 square-foot bowling center and more than 125,000 square feet of in-line retail space and pads. Built in 2009, The Boulevard at Surprise Pointe is the retail component of Surprise Pointe, a 290-acre master planned commercial business park.
Thunderbird Marketplace is an 18,711 square-foot strip center. Karlin subsequently sold Thunderbird Marketplace to a buyer in a off-market transaction.
Northmarq Arranges Two Retail Financings in Denver Market
NorthMarq Capital’s Denver regional office arranged two financings on retail properties.
In the larger deal, NorthMarq arranged $28.3 million in financing for the 279,415-square-foot River Oaks Shopping Center in Valencia, Calif. The center is anchored by Target (on a ground lease), Sprouts Farmers Market (a ground lease subtenant) and buybuy BABY (a ground lease subtenant) and consists of seven.
Other major tenants include JoAnn Fabrics and Big 5 Sporting Goods with pad retail buildings occupied by Pier 1 Imports, El Pollo Loco (ground lease), Wells Fargo and Mimi’s Cafe. National tenants in the multi-tenant buildings include UPS Store, GameStop and Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt, to name several.
NorthMarq’s John M. Stewart, senior vice president; and Brock Yaffe, senior investment analyst, arranged the financing for the borrower.
In a separate deal, NorthMarq arranged financing of $6.5 million for Main Street Marketplace in Longmont, Colo. The 81,543-square-foot retail center includes three, one-story multi-tenant retail buildings anchored by Ace Hardware and Vitamin Cottage along with such national tenants as Starbucks, FedEx Kinko’s and Radio Shack. Stewart and Yaffe arranged the financing for the borrower.
HFF Arranges $21M Refinancing for New Jersey Center
HFF arranged a $21 million refinancing for Florham Park Plaza, a 64,587-square-foot retail center in Florham Park, N.J.
HFF worked exclusively on behalf of The Klein Group to secure the 10-year fixed-rate loan through Nationwide Life Insurance Co.. The loan will be serviced by HFF and is replacing an existing first mortgage loan on the property, which was also arranged by HFF.
Originally built in 1977, Florham Park Plaza was recently renovated and expanded to include new tenants Trader Joe’s and Walgreen’s. Other tenants at the 96.6-percent leased center include McDonald’s, Dunkin Donuts, Sprint, Red Mango, Citibank, Dress Barn and Qdoba.
The HFF team representing The Klein Group was led by senior managing director Jon Mikula and managing director Jim Cadranell.
CBRE Negotiates $16.5M Sale of Arizona Property
CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) has negotiated the $16.5 million sale of DC Ranch Crossing, an A.J’s Fine Foods-anchored shopping center located within the prestigious North Scottsdale, Ariz., master-planned community of DC Ranch.
Glenn Smigiel, Bob Young, Steve Brabant and Rick Abraham of CBRE’s Phoenix office represented the seller, DC Ranch Crossing LLC, an affiliate of DMB Associates of Scottsdale. The buyer was Stockbridge Capital Group LLC of San Francisco.
The 68,113-square-foot property is 60 percent occupied and includes a vacant pad and a 2.35-acre parcel immediately north of the shopping center.
Miami Shopping Center Trades Hands
Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services and Bilzin Sumberg have brokered the sale of a 60,497-square-foot shopping center anchored by Babies “R” Us in Miami. The sales price of $10.2 million represents $169 per square foot.
Drew A. Kristol and Kirk Olson, senior associates in the firm’s Miami office, represented the seller, a limited liability company based in Miami. Marcus & Millichap and Bilzin Sumberg represented the buyer, 157th Kendall LLC and 157th Kendall 2 LLC.
Built in 1985, the center contains two components, a 42,341-square foot Babies “R” Us store and an 18,156-square foot retail strip called the Kendall Hammocks Shopping Center. The Babies “R” Us component contained a mortgage from Principal Life Insurance Co., which had to be assumed. Kendall Hammocks Shopping Center was delivered free and clear of debt.
Major tenants at the Babies “R” Us-anchored shopping plaza include Domino’s Pizza, Farm Stores and Sherwin Williams.
Phillips Edison Acquires Publix-anchored Center
Phillips Edison – ARC Shopping Center REIT Inc., a publicly registered, non-traded REIT, acquired the 65,000-square-foot St. Charles Plaza shopping center in Haines City, Fla., for approximately $10.1 million. The shopping center is anchored by Publix Supermarket, which occupies 45,600 square feet on a long-term lease through October 2027. Other tenants include Verizon Wireless, Crispers, Publix Liquor and Hair Cuttery.
The St. Charles Plaza was built in 2007 and is 98.2 percent occupied. The company acquired the property through a bankruptcy auction.
Other Notable Deals
Sterling Organization completed a $7.8 million refinance of the 110,270-square-foot The Falls Centre community shopping center in Raleigh, N.C. The Falls Centre is anchored by Stein Mart, Office Depot, Jo-Ann Fabrics, Sears and Pei Wei and has an occupancy rate of 99 percent. The transaction was closed with The Paul Revere Life Insurance Co., a UNUM Group company.
Cohen Financial secured $5 million to refinance loans for two class-B retail properties in the Chicago area. The Waterfall Plaza is a 22,000-square-foot strip center in Orland Park, Ill. and the Plaza Del Grato is a 40,000-square-foot strip center in Arlington Heights, Ill. Brandon Harrington, Cohen financial director in the Phoenix office, originated the $2 million loan for Waterfall Plaza and the $3 million loan for Plaza Del Grato. The lender is StanCorp Mortgage Investors LLC. The borrower was a group of investors that own multi-tenant retail properties. Mr. Harrington secured two low interest, 21-year fixed-rate loans with a 25-year amortization and more than 70 percent loan-to-value ratios. Both loans closed on May 31, 2011.
Houston-based Baker Katz, a full-service commercial real estate brokerage firm and X Team International partner, acquired the 120,000-square-foot Four Corners Shopping Center in Tomball, Texas, for an undisclosed price. The center has a 45,000-square-foot former Kroger space and is 35 percent occupied by such retailers as Tuesday Morning, Rent-A-Center, Firestone and Domino’s Pizza. The seller LNR Property LLC who obtained the property in foreclosure in 2010, was represented by James Namken of The Weitzman Group Inc. while Baker Katz represented themselves.
Grubb & Ellis Co. announced that George Cushing, executive vice president, and Wendy Vandeventer, vice president, of the company’s investment services group, represented Gulf Coast Commercial Group in the sale of the 94,053-square-foot Westheimer Crossing Shopping Center in Houton. Delta Troy Interests Ltd. purchased the property for an undisclosed price. The company represented itself in the transaction.
Cardinal Equities, through its affiliate Paradise Capital Group, has acquired from U.S. Bank, a 50,000-square-foot retail and office complex in Thousand Oaks, Calif. The center, built in 2008, was foreclosed on by the construction lender in late 2009. It is 20 percent occupied with tenants including Boney Mountain Coffee, Red Coral Restaurant, Fitness Together, The Art Box and Paraiso Cleaners. Office tenants include ETF Portfolio Management and Paraiso Family Dental and Orthodontics. Paradise Capital has engaged CBRE to head up leasing for the center.
Cassidy Turley BRE Commercial announced that the 15,600-square-foot Mar Vista Centre in Vista, Calif. sold for $2.19 million. The center consists of 20 suites currently leased to 12 tenants. Ray Adams of Cassidy Turley BRE Commercial represented the buyer, Primrose Park Apartments LLC in the transaction. Matty Sundberg, Mark Avilla, and Bob Cowan, also with Cassidy Turley BRE Commercial, represented the seller, RLS Investments LLC. Title and escrow services were provided by Chicago Title. Teresa McElaney was the escrow holder and Mark Brady was the title representative. A new $1.35 million loan was originated by Tonnie Blinks of Sunrise Mortgage.
Agree Realty Corp. acquired a retail property net leased to Advance Auto Parts in Marietta, Ga., for $1.34 million. The store opened for business in April 2011. The base term of the lease is 15 years.