PITTSBURGH — North Carolina-based grocer The Fresh Market will open a 32,131-square-foot store in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty neighborhood. The building at 5880 Centre Ave. was originally constructed in 2002 for Whole Foods Market, which vacated the space in 2022 for a larger store on nearby Penn Avenue. Herky Pollock of CBRE represented the undisclosed landlord in the lease negotiations. Brian Kerr of Hanna Langholz Wilson Ellis represented the tenant. The store will be Fresh Market’s first in Pittsburgh.
TORONTO AND SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Toronto-based Restaurant Brands International Inc. (RBI) has agreed to acquire Syracuse-based Carrols Restaurant Group Inc. for $1 billion. RBI (NYSE: QSR) owns the Burger King, Popeyes, Firehouse Subs and Tim Hortons brands. Carrols (NASDAQ: TAST) is the largest Burger King franchisee in the United States, operating 1,022 locations in 23 states. Burger King says the transaction is part of its “Reclaim the Flame” plan to accelerate sales growth and drive franchisee profitability. The transaction follows the brand’s initial $400 million investment announced in September 2022 to drive high-quality remodels, improve operations, enhance marketing and support ongoing technology and digital priorities. Burger King plans to remodel restaurants over the next five years by investing approximately $500 million of capital, funded by Carrols’ operating cash flow, to remodel roughly 600 acquired restaurants that are not currently considered “modern image.” Carrols will continue to operate the acquired restaurants in partnership with Burger King’s operations teams. Burger King ultimately plans to refranchise the vast majority of the portfolio to new or existing smaller franchise operators who live in their local communities. Following refranchising the acquired restaurants, which Burger King expects to be completed in five to seven years, Burger …
BRUNSWICK, GA. — Buc-ee’s will develop a 74,000-square-foot travel center in Brunswick, a coastal Georgia city midway between Savannah and Jacksonville along I-95. Construction is scheduled to begin Jan. 29. Upon completion, the property will feature 120 fueling stations, as well as a store offering snack, meal and drink options. Buc-ee’s currently operates 47 stores throughout its home state of Texas, as well as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Missouri and Tennessee. The company is also underway on two travel centers in Virginia — one near Richmond along I-64 and another near Harrisonburg along I-81.
LEXINGTON, KY. — RD1 Spirts has signed on to join as an anchor tenant at The Commons, a 40-acre mixed-use development in downtown Lexington. The locally based bourbon brand plans to invest $4.8 million to develop the two-story distillery at 113 Turner Commons Way, which will span 10,215 square feet and include an entrance off Main Street. The venue will include outdoor seating on both levels, four private tasting rooms, a glass-enclosed research-and-development space for wood finishing for RD1’s bourbon barrels, VIP speakeasy tasting room, craft cocktail bar and a gift shop. The venue will also include an 800-gallon pot, 175-gallon pot still, 750-gallon fermenter and a 1,000-gallon mash cooker that will cumulatively produce a barrel of bourbon per week. RD1 plans to open the distillery in August and support 11 full-time employees. The project team features law firm McBrayer and engineering firm VITOK, both out of Louisville, as well as architectural and design firm Lord Aeck Sargent. Ron Hardwick, a Louisville bourbon expert and shareholder of RD1, plans to lead the distillery design at the new venue. RD1 received approval for $521,000 in incentives from the Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority to help finance the project. In addition to …
HENDERSON, NEV. — LOGIC Commercial Real Estate has arranged the sale of Emerald Island and Rainbow Club Casino in downtown Henderson. An affiliate of ECL Water Street LCC, a Las Vegas-based company with 45 properties in three states, acquired the assets from Tim Brooks for an undisclosed price. The buyer company is led by Ron Winchell and Marc Falcone. Tim Brooks, former owner, will continue overseeing both properties’ day-to-day operations as general manager. Covering approximately 2.7 acres, the portfolio features a combined gaming machine count of approximately 768 and each property holds a Nevada non-restricted gaming license. Vincent Advisory Group of LOGIC represented the seller in the transaction.
ROSEVILLE, CALIF. — LRE & Co. and American Hospitality Services have broken ground on Roseville Junction, a mixed-use development at 290 Conference Center Drive in Roseville, a suburb northeast of Sacramento. Functioning as a sports and entertainment complex in Placer County, Roseville Junction will include two select-service hotels, three restaurants, an outdoor gathering place and The Electric Pickle, which will offer a bocce ball court, 10 pickleball courts and dining venues. Caption by Hyatt Roseville will feature 112 rooms and suites, a fitness center, meeting facilities and a reimagined hotel lobby with an on-site restaurant and beverage venue, an all-day café, market and bar with a lounge and social space. Hyatt House Roseville will offer 126 rooms, including studios and one-bedroom suites, public spaces, workout spaces and a rooftop bar.
WHEAT RIDGE, COLO. — SRS Real Estate Partners has negotiated the sale of a newly developed retail property at 4400 Harlan Court in Wheat Ridge. Cadence Capital sold the asset to a California-based family office for $8.8 million. 7-Eleven occupies the 4,650-square-foot property, which is situated on 1.3 acres. The asset also includes Laredo Taco, 7-Eleven’s new quick-service restaurant concept. The building is an outparcel to Lakeside Center, a 728,000-square-foot retail power center anchored by Walmart Supercenter, Petco, Planet Fitness and Goodwill. Ryan Tomkins of SRS Capital Markets represented the seller in the transaction.
NORMAL, ILL. — Marcus & Millichap has negotiated the $2.5 million sale of two retail centers located in the college town of Normal. The adjacent properties are located on Northbrook Drive near Illinois State University. Totaling approximately 17,500 square feet, the centers are leased to mostly local tenants such as a marijuana dispensary, coffee shop, pizza parlor, regional medical provider and laundromat. Eric Bell, Jordan Callaway and Mitchell Kiven of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a real estate developer. Buyer information was not provided.
AXIS 360, Lee & Associates Arrange $2.3M Sale of Former Gold’s Gym Property in Bloomington, Illinois
BLOOMINGTON, ILL. — AXIS 360 Commercial Real Estate Specialists and Lee & Associates have arranged the $2.3 million sale of a 45,749-square-foot building formerly occupied by Gold’s Gym in Bloomington. The two-story property features areas for workout equipment, locker rooms, offices, physical therapy areas and a childcare area. Greg Yount of AXIS 360 and Rick Scardino of Lee & Associates represented the seller, Citizen’s First Bank. Sherye Przybyla of Berkshire Hathaway represented the undisclosed buyer, which plans a remodel of the building in the coming months.
OAK LAWN, ILL. — Quantum Real Estate Advisors Inc. has brokered the $2.1 million sale of a two-tenant retail property in the Chicago suburb of Oak Lawn. The center recently underwent a full renovation, including new pylon signage. At the time of sale, the property was fully leased to Chicago Title and Hassleless Mattress. Chad Firsel and Brett Berlin of Quantum represented the seller, a joint venture between affiliates of Core Acquisitions and T2 Capital Management. The buyer was a California-based 1031 exchange investor.