ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. — IRC Retail Centers Inc. has purchased Tanglewood Pavilions, a newly built, 158,000-square-foot retail power center located in Elizabeth City. IRC Retail Centers and joint venture partner Thompson Thrift Development Inc. broke ground on the center in October 2014 and completed construction within a year. The asset was 92 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Hobby Lobby, Ross Dress for Less, T.J. Maxx and Dollar Tree. As part of the pre-negotiated joint venture agreement following Tanglewood Pavilions’ construction and stabilization, IRC Retail Partners acquired 100 percent ownership of the property from Thompson Thrift for an undisclosed price described as “a discount to fair market value” in IRC Retail Centers’ 2014 annual financial report. According to the report, the company provided 90 percent of the equity for the development, while Thompson Thrift provided the remaining 10 percent equity. Formerly known as Inland Real Estate Corp., IRC Retail Centers is owned by funds managed by DRA Advisors LLC.
Retail
CHICAGO — Banana Republic has signed a 6,078-square-foot lease to occupy a two-story retail building under construction in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago. Centrum Partners is the developer of the project, located at 2720 N. Clark St., which is slated for completion in October. The 22,000-square-foot building will replace The Edge Bar and Grill. Alt School has preleased 13,199 square feet of space and will occupy the entire second floor. Meredith Oliver and Brendan Reedy of Cushman & Wakefield represented Banana Republic in the lease transaction.
PEORIA, ILL. — Locally owned boutique Blue has preleased 1,600 square feet of retail space at Plaza at Grand Prairie. Cullinan Properties is developing the 7,200-square-foot shopping center that is located at the intersection of War Memorial Drive and American Prairie Road in Peoria. Blue, along with retailers Massage Envy and Great Clips, will open this summer. This location will be Blue’s second store. Plaza at Grand Prairie is part of Grand Prairie Developments, a 200-acre mixed-use project. Components of Grand Prairie Developments include Plaza at Grand Prairie, Shoppes at Grand Prairie, Plaza West, Prairie Place, Shoppes West, Apartments at Grand Prairie and a Carmike Cinemas. Plaza at Grand Prairie is co-anchored by Hy-Vee and Gordmans. Other tenants include Longhorn Steakhouse, Famous Dave’s BBQ, Steak ‘n Shake and Starbucks.
MONTEBELLO, CALIF. — Combined Properties has planned a $5.5 million renovation for Mart Montebello, a retail center at the intersection of Montebello and Beverly boulevards in Montebello. Originally built in 1957 and last renovated in 1991, the new project will remodel and modernize the facades and pad buildings with new parapets, features, fascia materials and repainted color schemes. Additionally, the renovation includes a new pad building, currently under construction, that is leased to Chipotle and The Habit Burger. The renovation is expected to begin during this quarter with completion by the end of the year. Upon completion, the center will be renamed Montebello Mix.
DAVIS, CALIF. — Browman Development has acquired a five-building retail portfolio across four blocks in downtown Davis. Brinley Downtown Properties sold the fully-leased portfolio for an undisclosed price. Located at 513, 603 and 718 Second St., 209 F St. and 207 E St., the 71,437-square-foot portfolio is occupied by a variety of retailers, including Armadillo Music, Fleet Feet Sports, The Army Corps of Engineers, The Avid Reader, Spa Central, E Street Salon, Balance Point Pilates Studio, The Wardrobe, The Root of Happiness Kava Bar, and Sweet and Shavery. Erik Neese, Ken Reiff and Shaun Morrow of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller in the transaction.
DUBLIN AND PETALUMA, CALIF. — Regency Centers, in partnership with SoCore Energy and several of its retail partners, has installed over 750 kilowatts of rooftop solar photovoltaic systems at Persimmon Place in Dublin and East Washington Place in Petaluma. Combined, the systems include approximately 2,500 modules and are expected to produce over 1.2 million kilowatt hours of electricity each year.
MERIDEN, CONN. — Vestis Retail Group LLC, the parent company of sporting goods and apparel retailers Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS), Bob’s Stores and Sport Chalet, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday. The Meriden-based company plans to close the Sport Chalet chain entirely, while closing eight EMS properties and one Bob’s Stores location. The remaining stores will be re-evaluated in an attempt to strengthen financial performance. Collectively, Vestis Retail Group operates 144 stores and two distribution centers across 15 states, according to documents filed at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del. Hilco Merchant Resources and Gordon Brothers Retail Partners are in charge of the liquidation sales, according to court documents. Private equity firm Versa Capital Management LLC (Versa) acquired each of the chains separately and combined them under the parent company Vestis Retail Group LLC in 2012, according to reports by The Wall Street Journal. Vestis has proposed the sale of EMS and Bob’s to funds advised by Versa, which would acquire substantially all of the remaining assets of the company. “When Vestis first acquired EMS and Sport Chalet, each company faced significant operational challenges and was on the verge of liquidation,” says Mark Walsh, CEO of Vestis. “EMS and …
Simon Property Group, Invesco Complete $1.1B Purchase of The Shops at Crystals in Las Vegas
by Nellie Day
LAS VEGAS — Simon Property Group and Invesco Real Estate have completed the acquisition of The Shops at Crystals in Las Vegas for $1.1 billion. The two companies are 50-50 joint venture partners in this acquisition. The Shops at Crystals is a 324,000-square-foot retail complex anchored by 10 luxury flagship stores, including Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Tom Ford, Prada, Fendi and Tiffany & Co. It also contains 30 unique-to-market luxury retailers like Céline, Saint Laurent and Richard Mille. The asset features a dedicated tram station that connects to the Bellagio Resort & Casino, Aria Resort & Casino and Monte Carlo Resort & Casino. The Shops at Crystals is situated within City Center, a mixed-use development that includes Aria Resort & Casino, a 4,004-room casino resort; Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas, a 392-room boutique hotel with 225 luxury condominium residences; Vdara Hotel and Spa, a 1,495-room luxury hotel-condominium; and Veer Towers, which contain 669 luxury condominium residences.
LOS ANGLES — NorthMarq Capital has arranged $13.6 million in financing for Marshalls Plaza, a retail property located at 707-815 W. Second St. in Los Angeles. Ory Schwartz of NorthMarq Capital’s Los Angeles office secured the 10-year financing, which features a 30-year amortization schedule, through a CMBS lender for the undisclosed borrower. Marshalls, DD’s Discounts and Dollar Tree are tenants at the 151,286-square-foot property.
PORTLAND, ORE. — Commercial Income Advisors Inc. has arranged the $4.4 million sale of a single-tenant, triple-net-leased 7-Eleven located in Portland. John Halvorson of Commercial Income Advisors represented the Orange County-based buyer in the transaction, and arranged $1.3 million worth of acquisition financing for the purchase. The property was acquired through a 1031 exchange.