BURLINGTON, N.C. — The Morgan Cos. has purchased a former Sears department store at 309 Huffman Mill Road within Holly Hill Mall. Morgan Cos. intends to develop the 9.6-acre site into a shopping center anchored by a 48,387-square-foot Publix grocery store and 13,400 square feet of inline retail space. Prego’s Trattoria restaurant, located on an outparcel, is also part of the purchased property. Morgan Cos. will also develop the former Sears Auto Center outparcel next to Prego’s into a multi-tenant retail building as part of the project. Morgan Cos. plans to begin demolition of the Sears building next year and expects the new shopping center to be completed in 2021. Morgan Cos. currently owns a second Triad Publix and developed and owns Peace Haven Village shopping center in Clemmons, N.C.. Morgan Cos. is currently developing another Publix-anchored shopping center in Clayton, N.C. that is expected to open in 2021.
TUSCALOOSA, ALA. — Capstone Real Estate Investments (CREI) has acquired Parker 301, a student housing community located near the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The community has been rebranded The Preserve at Tuscaloosa and is set to undergo substantial renovations and repositioning within the market. Renovations will include updates to all units and the addition of one- and two-bedroom floor plans; updates to the community’s clubhouse; an expansion of the property’s business center to include private study rooms; the addition of a new dog park; and a refresh of the swimming pool area. A timeline for renovations and terms of the acquisition were undisclosed.
RANSON, W.VA. — Heidenberg Properties Group and Strategic Real Estate Partners have opened the 22,000-square-foot Marshalls at The Potomac Marketplace in Ranson. In March, the two companies announced they reached a leasing agreement with The TJX Cos., the parent company of Marshalls, and would need to immediately expand the center between Kohl’s and Petco. The center now spans 379,000 square feet following the expansion. Marshalls joins other retail tenants such as AT&T, Weis Markets, Kohl’s, Petco and The Home Depot.
CHATTANOOGA, TENN. — CBL Properties (NYSE: CBL) will suspend its stock dividends for 2019 and possibly through year-end 2020 in the face of retail bankruptcies, store closures and corporate restructurings of tenants within its portfolio. The Chattanooga-based shopping center and mall owner’s board of directors will review the suspension quarterly but doesn’t expect the dividends to resume in 2020. CBL announced the decision following a review of current taxable income projections for 2019 and 2020. Unpaid dividends on CBL’s preferred stock shall accrue without interest. The suspension includes CBL’s common stock, 7.375% Series D Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock and 6.625% Series E Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock. CBL’s stock price fell in the wake of the announcement, going from $1.36 per share Monday afternoon to 93 cents per share Tuesday morning, then steadily rose to $1.03 for Thursday’s opening. Stephen Lebovitz, CBL’s CEO, says that the REIT has tried to shore up operating costs the past 18 months through reducing executive compensation and capital expenditures, as well as bringing on joint venture partners. Lebovitz expects the company’s net operating income to decline in 2020.
LORDSTOWN, OHIO — General Motors and LG Chem have teamed up to invest up to $2.3 billion through a new, equally owned joint venture company. The partnership plans to establish a battery cell assembly plant for electric vehicles on a greenfield manufacturing site in northeast Ohio’s Lordstown. The plant is expected to create more than 1,100 new jobs. Groundbreaking is slated for mid-2020. Coinciding with the news is GM’s sale of its manufacturing complex in Lordstown to Lordstown Motors Corp. for the production of battery-electric trucks. This investment builds on GM’s previously announced $28 million investment in its Warren, Mich. battery lab.
OMAHA, NEB. — Access Commercial LLC has purchased an 11-acre redevelopment site in Omaha with plans to develop a mixed-use project known as Regency Landing. The site comprises the former Regency Lodge hotel and Shaker Place shopping center. Plans call for office, retail and restaurant space in addition to a hotel. Approximately 66,000 square feet of the east building at Shaker Place will be redeveloped, with the complete replacement of lobbies, mechanical systems, elevators and common areas. Some tenants such as Twisted Cork Bistro will remain in the redeveloped space. Regency Lodge, which closed in 2018, operated on the land for more than 40 years. It will be demolished by the end of this year.
INDIANAPOLIS — U.S. OCG has acquired a 497-room, three-property Marriott hotel portfolio in Indianapolis for an undisclosed price. The hotels, located adjacent to each other, include a 315-room Marriott, a 119-room Delta and a 63-room Fairfield Inn & Suites. Together, they include more than 90,000 square feet of meeting space. Nate Sahn, James Foxx, Pravin Boteju and Stephen LaMotte Jr. of CBRE represented the seller, a joint venture between Shadeland Enterprises LLC and Midwest Investments Associates LLC.
FISHERS, IND. — Colliers International has brokered the sale of Crosspoint Plaza One, a four-story Class A office building located at 10475 Crosspoint Blvd. in Fishers. The sales price was $8.8 million, according to the Indianapolis Business Journal. The 138,636-square-foot property is situated in the northeast Indianapolis corridor with immediate access to I-69. Alex Cantu, Alex Davenport, Matt Langfeldt and Rich Forslund of Colliers represented the seller. Arkansas-based Tempus Realty Partners purchased the building, constructed in 1999. Crosspoint Plaza One originally served as a build-to-suit for Wiley Publishing, which recently vacated the property, leaving it 20 percent occupied. The new ownership plans to upgrade the building with modernized common areas, outdoor space and a first-floor conference center.
INDIANAPOLIS — Aaron’s Inc. has signed a 12,100-square-foot retail lease at a 200,000-square-foot shopping center in Indianapolis. The furniture company expects to begin operations at the property as soon as mid-March 2020. Millennial Holdings LLC acquired the center, known as Felbram Plaza, several months ago and is completing renovations such as new signage, lighting, roofs, HVAC units, landscaping and a new parking lot. Millennial plans to rename the property, which is nearly 85 percent leased. Keith Fried of McCrea Property Group is the leasing agent.
DENVER — SunCap Property Group, in partnership with Colony Industrial, a subsidiary of Colony Capital, has closed on the land for the development of North Central Logistics Center, a speculative industrial project in Denver. Formerly known as Welby Gardens, the three-building speculative development will offer tenants the opportunity to occupy space ranging from 25,000 square feet to 641,000 square feet. Situated on 33 acres, the project will feature two single-loaded buildings with trucks entering in the rear and a central cross-docked facility. All buildings will feature 32-foot clear heights and ample employee parking. Murray & Stafford will manage construction, which is slated to begin by the end of the year with completion scheduled for early spring 2021. Mitch Zatz, Jason White and Carmon Hicks of JLL represented the land sellers in the transaction and will be handling leasing for the development.