SAN JOSE, CALIF. — PCCP LLC has provided a $48.5 million senior loan to Dollinger Properties for the development of Sprouts @ Brokaw, a 143,000-square-foot shopping center to be anchored by Sprouts Farmers Market in San Jose. Construction has begun on the project, which is set to open in summer 2016.
LOS ANGELES — Institutional Property Advisors (IPA) has arranged the sale of The Shrine Collection, a 324-bed, 103-unit student housing community near the University of Southern California (USC), for $39.1 million. The sales price equates to just under $380,000 per unit and approximately $120,700 per bed. Ron Harris, IPA executive vice president of investments, director Paul Darrow and associate director Michael DiSimone advised the seller and procured the buyer, a joint venture between Stuho and Cambridge Capital Advisors. Situated on seven parcels of land totaling more than two acres, the properties are Chez Ronne, The Bungalows, Roma, Pisa, Corsica and Habitat Soozee. All are located one block from USC’s main campus, one block west of Figueroa Street and less than two miles from downtown Los Angeles. The portfolio’s properties feature controlled entry, security services, USC network accessibility, 24-hour on-site laundry facilities and all residents have the use of a fitness center.
CORTE MADERA, Calif. — The Atlanta-based Seniors Housing and Healthcare Finance Team of Grandbridge Real Estate Capital has arranged a $42.3 million refinancing for Aegis of Corte Madera, a 118-unit assisted living and memory care near San Francisco. A life insurance company provided funding for the loan. Grandbridge’s Richard Thomas, senior vice president, and Meredith Davis, vice president, originated the transaction. Grandbridge Real Estate Capital arranges permanent commercial and multifamily real estate loans, services loan portfolios and provides asset and portfolio management, as well as real estate brokerage services.
SAN DIEGO — Westcore Properties has purchased a 67,681-square-foot industrial building in the San Diego submarket of Scripps Ranch for $7.3 million. The building is located at 10050 Scripps Ranch Court. The seller, window manufacturer Skagfield, is leasing the property through January 2016. The building will undergo a major rebranding early next year. Todd Murphy of Cushman & Wakefield represented Westcore. Bob Mooney of Colliers International represented Skagfield.
SACRAMENTO, CALIF. — Autograph Collection Hotels has added The Citizen hotel in Sacramento to its portfolio. The hotel is situated inside the California Life Insurance Building. It contains the Grange Restaurant and Bar, as well as 9,000 square feet of meeting space. Autograph is part of the Marriott International brand. Its global portfolio consists of 93 hotels worldwide.
OAKLAND, CALIF. – Meridian has purchased a 19,202-square-foot medical office building in Oakland for an undisclosed sum. The building is located at 380 W. MacArthur Blvd. Meridian plans to invest about $2.2 million into the building. This is the firm’s first value-add medical office acquisition in the Oakland area. It is Meridian’s first speculative purchase this year. The seller was BIC Oakland.
CORONA DEL MAR, CALIF. — Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) has arranged the $8.36 million sale of two fully-occupied, two-story retail/office buildings totaling 11,526 square feet in Corona Del Mar. Ian Brown of NGKF represented the seller, Masters Properties, and the buyer, 39 Beach View LK100 LLC, in the all-cash transaction.
DUBLIN, CALIF. — Dublin, Calif.-based Ross Stores Inc. opened 19 Ross Dress for Less locations and seven dd’s DISCOUNTS locations across 14 states in September and October. These new locations completed the company’s 2015 expansion plan to add a total of 90 stores during the year.
FULLERTON, CALIF. — Safeco has acquired 914 West Orangethorpe Ave., a 79,898-square-foot retail property occupied by Food 4 Less in Fullerton, for $22.5 million. Heslin Holdings Inc. and Becker Development had jointly owned the property. The Food 4 Less lease extends through March 2026.
The retail market in Los Angeles is demonstrating exponential growth. Rents are going up, cap rates are going down and occupancy is soaring. Naturally, as lease prices rise, so do sale prices. As such, it is becoming increasingly difficult for investors to find opportunities where substantial rent growth is possible. Tenant competition is also fierce, and landlords are benefitting from extremely high demand throughout the market. Competition Abounds It’s only natural that retailers are competing over space as occupancy rises. One trend that has emerged in Los Angeles is competition among not only direct competitors, but indirect competitors as well. For example, a small grocer might compete with a Ross Dress 4 Less for the same location. Fueling this competition is an increase in large national retailers seeking out smaller urban spaces in downtown areas. Target, for example, is opening a store in LA’s Koreatown on Vermont and 6th streets at the base of a high-rise apartment building. When national soft goods chains open in urban hubs, there will be an evolution of retail surrounding those stores. Smaller discount stores and mom-and-pop retailers will likely suffer, which will lead to vacancies that tend to open the doors for new specialty …
