WARRENDALE, PA. — Rue21, an apparel and accessories retailer based in the Pittsburgh area, has filed for bankruptcy and will close all its stores in the coming months, according to reports from multiple news organizations such as CNN, Reuters and The Business Journals. All three of those media outlets report that this is the third bankruptcy filing in the history of Rue21, which operates about 540 stores nationwide, down from more than 1,000 at the height of its existence. Following Rue21’s 2017 bankruptcy filing, the company closed some 400 stores. The Warrendale-based retailer also shed about $700 million in debt at that time, according to Reuters. However, subsequent growth in e-commerce, along with the COVID-19 pandemic, continued to create operational struggles for the retailer. Today, Rue21 has about $200 million in outstanding debt, according to reports from the aforementioned media groups.
EPHRATA, PA. — New Jersey-based brokerage firm The Kislak Co. has arranged the $11.7 million sale of Stonecreek Court Apartments, a 60-unit multifamily property in Ephrata, located west of Philadelphia in Lancaster County. Built on 6.2 acres in 2008, the five-building property features a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Matt Wolf of Kislak represented the seller and procured the buyer, both of which requested anonymity, in the transaction.
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA. — Simon Property Group has welcomed five new food-and-beverage concepts to King of Prussia mall in metro Philadelphia. Vietnamese restaurant Saigon Eats and confectionary Neuhaus Belgium Chocolate recently debuted their eateries. Chinese restaurant Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao and New York-based Gregory’s Coffee will open in the coming weeks. Chicken Guy!, a concept from celebrity chef Guy Fieri, opened in March.
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA. — Simon Property Group has welcomed seven new retailers to King of Prussia mall in metro Philadelphia. Four new retailers — fashion chains Mango and Abercrombie Kids and jewelry concepts Grand Jewelers and Little Words Project — opened stores over the past three months. Women’s clothing retailer Evereve also just debuted its store. Two other lifestyle retailers — accessories provider Rothy’s and activewear brand Vuori — will open in the coming days.
COLLEGEVILLE, PA. — A partnership between David Werner Real Estate Investments (DWREI) and GreenBarn Investment Group has begun the redevelopment of The Bridge at Collegeville, a 14-building, 1.8 million-square-foot office campus located about 20 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The development team, which includes architect EwingCole and leasing agent Cushman & Wakefield, plans to renovate the existing office space on the 340-acre campus and to add another 1.4 million square feet of office, life sciences and manufacturing space. The redevelopment will also add amenities such as a fitness center, golf simulator, pickleball courts and a food truck plaza. The partnership purchased the property in August 2023 from Pfizer, which remains a tenant. In addition, chemical manufacturer Dow recently signed a long-term lease extension at the campus. A timeline for completion was not disclosed.
HAZLETON, PA. — Kansas City-based NorthPoint Development will build a 1 million-square-foot industrial project in Hazleton, located roughly midway between Allentown and Scranton in Luzerne County. The building will feature a clear height of 40 feet, 100 docks, four drive-in doors and parking for 839 cars and 360 trailers. The design team includes studioNorth Architecture and designBLD. Peak Construction Corp. is the general contractor. Completion is slated for the first quarter of 2025.
PHILADELPHIA — Greystone has provided a $20 million Freddie Mac loan for the refinancing of Ray Philly, a 110-unit apartment building in the city’s South Kensington area. The newly constructed building houses studio, one- and two-bedroom units and amenities such as a fitness center, rooftop garden and a coworking lounge with a kitchen. Steven Vainer of Greystone originated the loan, which carries a five-year term, fixed interest rate and a 30-year amortization schedule. The borrower is a partnership between Ray, a family office that specializes in multifamily development, and Six Acre Capital.
PHILADELPHIA AND LANCASTER, PA. — Fulton Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: FULT), a regional lender based in Lancaster, has acquired Philadelphia-based Republic First Bank via an auction overseen by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC). On Friday, April 26, the Pennsylvania Department of Banking & Securities seized control of Republic First, closing the bank and appointing the FDIC as receivers. The transfer of ownership of “substantially all” of Republic First’s assets and deposits to Fulton Financial represents a move to protect customer funds, according to the FDIC. Some of the driving forces behind the collapse of Republic First appear to mirror those of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, two regional lenders that went under in March 2023. Those factors include losses on bond holdings that had diminished in value amid rising interest rates, as well as exposure to high-risk loans that are collateralized by commercial and office properties, many of which have struggled to recoup occupancy and cash flows post-pandemic. Relatively speaking, however, Republic First is a much smaller player than Silicon Valley and Signature. At the time of its collapse in late March 2023, Silicon Valley Bank had approximately $110 billion in assets, $56 billion in consumer and business deposits …
PHILADELPHIA — Los Angeles-based Thorofare Capital has provided a $13 million loan for the refinancing of a portfolio of five industrial buildings totaling 118,509 square feet in Philadelphia. Four of the buildings are contiguous, and the fifth is located less than a mile down the street. David Perlman, Edward Prosser, Henry Johnson and Chris DeLuca of Thorofare Capital originated the loan on behalf of the borrower, New York City-based investment firm Thor Equities Group.
ASTON, PA. — Walker & Dunlop Investment Partners has provided $6.2 million in equity for a 100,000-square-foot industrial project that will be located at 48 Chichester Ave. in Aston, a western suburb of Philadelphia. According to LoopNet Inc., the project will feature a clear height of 36 feet, 10 exterior dock doors and 2,500 square feet of office space. The name of the developer was not disclosed.