SOUTHLAKE, TEXAS — Bright Realty has brokered the lease for a new Texas Rug Gallery in Southlake. The 6,082-square-foot retail space will be at Cornerstone Plaza on East Southlake Boulevard and Nolan Road. Mason Bakken and Britton Lankford of Bright Realty represented the landlord, BTR-8 Southlake LLC, in the lease transaction.
DALLAS — The Vitorino Group has brokered the sale of an Empire Petroleum gas station and convenience store in Grapevine. The single-tenant, net-leased asset is located on State Highway 121 just north of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The Vitorino Group acted as an intermediary between a local Dallas owner and a private, Dallas-based REIT. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
YORBA LINDA, CALIF. — Thorofare Capital has funded a $15 million floating-rate commercial mortgage for a 60,740-square-foot retail property in Yorba Linda. Kevin Miller and Felix Gutnikov of Thorofare arranged the acquisition, CapEx and TI/LC facility financing for the undisclosed borrower.
LOS ANGELES — Benchmark Contractors, a subsidiary of Morley Builders, has completed the construction of Blossom Plaza, located at the intersection of Broadway and College Street in downtown Los Angeles. Situated directly north of the Gold Line’s Chinatown Station, the plaza serves as the main pathway through Blossom’s Cultural Plaza and commercial arcade. Blossom features 237 apartment units in three five-story structures with 19,000 square feet of retail space over parking for 453 cars. Forest City developed the project, which Johnson Fair and Togawa Smith Martin designed. The project is targeting LEED Gold certification.
SAN DIEGO — The ONE Group is opening its San Diego version of STK at Andaz San Diego, located at 600 F St. in downtown San Diego. Occupying the space of the long-shuttered Katsuya, the modern steakhouse/club will feature an updated design and menu options from the brand’s original STK concept. The restaurant will feature a variety of food offerings, ranging from shellfish platters and raw bar dishes to various steaks, and entertainment including nightly DJs.
KISSIMMEE, FLA. — The Hampshire Cos. has acquired The Crosslands, a 529,300-square-foot power center located in Kissimmee, for $121 million. The 98 percent leased center is home to tenants including The Fresh Market, Hobby Lobby, Ross Dress For Less, Marshall’s, Home Goods, Forever 21, Burlington Coat Factory, 24 Hour Fitness and Academy Sports + Outdoors. The property was acquired from a partnership between O’Connor Capital Partners and Tupperware Brands Corp. O’Connor recently completed development on The Crosslands, and will retain an interest in the center as well as leasing and property management responsibilities.
JACKSON, MISS. — Newk’s Eatery, a fast-casual restaurant chain based in Jackson, has signed a 10-unit development agreement in Virginia with Red Alpha Holding LLC, a long-time Five Guys Burgers & Fries multi-unit operator. The northern Virginia-based operator will open 10 locations in Fairfax and Arlington counties over the next six years. Red Alpha will open the first location next year, marking the chain’s entry into Virginia. Now in its 12th year of business, Newk’s Eatery serves made-from-scratch sandwiches, salads, soups and pizzas. Red Alpha Holding is the third multi-unit franchisee to sign with Newk’s Eatery in 2016. Combined, the new franchisees will open more than 30 new restaurants in the next four years, consistent with the company’s goal to reach 200 units by 2019.
CINCINNATI —Macy’s Inc. has announced that the company plans to close approximately 100 stores beginning in early 2017. This number constitutes roughly 15 percent of Macy’s current portfolio of 675 full-line stores. Specifics on the locations set to close will be announced at a later date. Cincinnati-based Macy’s intends to improve the stores that will remain in its portfolio by adding new vendor shops and bringing new businesses onto the sales floors through additional license agreements; increasing the size and quality of staffing through programs including “My Stylist” personal shopping services; infusing new technology; and creating new in-store events and experiences. The company also intends to invest in building the capacity of its websites and apps to create a faster, simpler interface for customers. Over the past six years, approximately 90 Macy’s stores have been closed and 13 new stores have been opened.
LEAWOOD, KAN. — Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. has opened a 56,000-square-foot design gallery at Town Center Plaza in the Kansas City suburb of Leawood. RH Leawood offers three levels of artistic installations of home furnishings in a gallery setting, including an entire floor dedicated to the company’s RH Modern line with an integrated RH Contemporary Art Gallery. The new location features a 5,000-square-foot studio called the Design Atelier, which offers a fully integrated workspace for architects, designers and customers to reimagine one room or an entire home. Architect James Gillam of Backen, Gillam & Kroeger designed RH Leawood.
NEW YORK CITY — A joint venture between Extell Development Co. and SMI USA, the US subsidiary of Shanghai Municipal Investment, has unveiled plans to develop Central Park Tower, a $3 billion residential and commercial tower in Manhattan. When complete, it will be the tallest residential building in the Western Hemisphere, according to the developers. The 131-story building will feature condos and retail space, including Nordstrom’s first full-line location in New York. The retail space will serve as Nordstrom’s flagship store and will be its second largest location. The seven-story store will total 285,000 square feet, according to Bloomberg. Central Park Tower will be located along Billionaire’s Row on 57th Street in Midtown Manhattan and is slated to open in 2019. “We believe the superb location, views, design and quality of Central Park Tower will make it the most important residential building ever to be built in New York City and expect it to be a great success for Extell and SMI,” says Gary Barnett, founder and CEO of Extell Development Co. Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, which designed the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, and the future world’s tallest building, Kingdom Tower in Saudi Arabia, will serve as the architect …