IRVINE, CA - HFF announced today that it has closed the sale of and arranged financing for Gaslamp CitySquare, a 54,773-square-foot high-street retail asset in San Diego’s historic Gaslamp Quarter.
HFF marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Champion Real Estate Companies. A joint venture between Clarion Partners and HP Investors purchased the asset free and clear of existing debt. HFF also arranged a floating-rate loan on behalf of the buyer.
Gaslamp CitySquare is located at 430 5th Avenue within walking distance of the San Diego Convention Center and the 42,000-seat PETCO Park and is less than four miles from San Diego International Airport. Completed in 2004 and 2006 in two phases, the high-street retail property is part of a larger mixed-use project that includes 223 residential units (not included in this transaction). The asset includes tenants such as The Oceanaire, Bice Ristorante, Puma, Quiksilver, Skechers, and Oakley.
The HFF investment sales team was led by senior managing director Ryan Gallagher and associate director CJ Osbrink from HFF’s Orange County office.
HFF’s debt placement team was led by senior managing director Tim Wright and associate director Zack Holderman from HFF’s San Diego office.
“This transaction demonstrates the continued strong institutional interest in high-street retail properties. As the Gaslamp District continues to mature, we expect to see more high-profile transactions take place,” commented Gallagher.
Los Angeles-based Champion Real Estate Company was founded in 1987. The company has been primarily a developer and investor in urban infill retail, multifamily and mixed-use projects in prime Southern California locations. The company has also renovated and repositioned existing projects and completed the adaptive re-use of historic buildings. To date, Champion Real Estate Company has completed more than 2 million square feet of development and investment projects with aggregate and anticipated revenues in excess of $1 billion.
Clarion Partners has been a leading U.S. real estate investment manager for more than 30 years. Headquartered in New York, the firm has offices in major markets throughout the U.S., in São Paulo, Brazil and London, England as well as a presence in Mexico. With more than $28 billion in total assets under management, Clarion Partners offers a broad range of real estate strategies across the risk/return spectrum to its more than 200 domestic and international institutional investors.
Formed in 2010, HP Investors is a principal owner and investor of commercial real estate assets and is based in San Diego. The firm primarily invests in urban high-street retail projects in major gateway cities throughout the United States. The investment marks the company’s seventh retail investment in Downtown San Diego in the past 18 months.
HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) and HFFS (HFF Securities L.P.) are owned by HFF, Inc. (NYSE: HF). HFF operates out of 21 offices nationwide and is a leading provider of commercial real estate and capital markets services to the U.S. commercial real estate industry. HFF together with its affiliate HFFS offer clients a fully integrated national capital markets platform including debt placement, investment sales, equity placement, advisory services, loan sales and commercial loan servicing. For more information please visit www.hfflp.com or follow HFF on Twitter at www.twitter.com/hff.
Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P., acting by and through Holliday GP Corp., a real estate broker licensed with the California Department of Real Estate, License Number 01385740.