LEAWOOD, KAN. — AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AMC) plans to reopen almost all of its U.S. and U.K. theaters in July. The Leawood, Kan.-based movie theater chain has already reopened 10 theaters in Norway, Germany, Spain and Portugal, and expects to be fully open globally in July ahead of the release of Christopher Nolan’s Tenet on July 17 and Disney’s Mulan on July 24. AMC is working closely with local, national and international officials to coordinate timing and requirements of reopening. It is consulting with the Harvard University School of Public Health on how to best create a safe environment for guests and associates. This includes personal protection equipment, cleaning protocols, limited theater capacity and blocked seating. AMC has also partnered with The Clorox Co. for advice on making theater environments as safe as possible. Last week, AMC said it had “substantial doubt” about staying in business if it was forced to keep theaters closed for a longer period. AMC operates 1,000 theaters and 11,000 screens across the globe. Its stock price closed at $5.98 per share on Tuesday, June 9, down from $10.94 one year ago.
INDIANAPOLIS — Simon Property Group (NYSE: SPG) has terminated its Feb. 9 merger agreement with Taubman Centers Inc. (NYSE: TCO). Simon also filed an action today in Michigan’s Oakland County Circuit Court saying Taubman breached the covenants in the merger agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, Simon was to acquire an 80 percent interest in Taubman for approximately $3.6 billion. Indianapolis-based Simon says its termination of the merger agreement is based on two separate grounds. “First, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a uniquely material and disproportionate effect on Taubman compared with other participants in the retail real estate industry,” according to a statement from Simon. “Second, in the wake of the pandemic, Taubman has breached its obligations, which are conditions to closing, relating to the operation of its business.” Taubman failed to take steps to mitigate the impact of the pandemic as others in the industry have, such as not making essential cuts in operating expenses and capital expenditures, according to Simon. The merger agreement specifically gave Simon the right to terminate the transaction in the event that a pandemic disproportionately hurt Taubman. Simon says that Taubman’s significant proportion of enclosed retail properties in densely populated metropolitan areas — …
HEREFORD, PA. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $1.9 million sale of a 4,147-square-foot net-leased retail property in Hereford, approximately 50 miles northwest of Philadelphia. Turkey Hill Minit Market is the tenant. Located at 3664 Seisholtzville Road, the property was constructed in 1991 and offers proximity to State Route 100. Derrick Dougherty and Steven Garthwaite of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a limited liability company, in the transaction. The team also represented the buyer, another limited liability company. Both parties requested anonymity.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — COVID-19’s impact on U.S. retail imports is easing, beating prior forecasts, says the National Retail Federation (NRF). The NRF and partner Hackett Associates released their Global Port Tracker on Monday, which showed that ports handled just over 1.6 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs), beating expectations from one month ago. “Imports are erratic, with one month up and the next down,” says Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates. “Getting 40 million people back to work will take time, especially with many fearful of catching the virus and staying home. That makes a rapid return to an economic boom unlikely.” Even with an immediate boom delayed, Jonathan Gold, vice president for supply chain and customs policy for NRF, points out that the April numbers show that the economy is recovering faster than what was projected just one month ago. The volume of 1.6 million TEUs in April was down 7.8 percent from April 2019, but it was up 17 percent from March 2020. NRF’s forecast for April showed 1.5 million TEUs coming through the ports. “It may still be too soon to say but we’ll take that as a sign that the situation could be slowly starting to improve,” …
CARROLLTON, TEXAS — Teso Life, a provider of Japanese beauty products, snacks and home goods, has signed a 14,236-square-foot retail lease at Carrollton Town Center on the northern outskirts of Dallas. The store, which will be the company’s first outside of its home base of New York City, is scheduled to open this fall. Heather Nguyen represented the landlord, Houston-based NewQuest Properties, in the lease negotiations on an internal basis. John Nguyen and Grace La, also with NewQuest, represented the tenant.
PAINESVILLE, OHIO — The Boulder Group has arranged the $2.6 million sale of a 15,048-square-foot property net leased to Walgreens in Painesville within metro Cleveland. The building is located at 132 Richmond St. Walgreens has nearly eight years remaining on its lease. Randy Blankstein and Jimmy Goodman of The Boulder Group represented the seller, a Northeast-based private real estate company. A West Coast-based investor purchased the asset.
CLINTON TOWNSHIP, MICH. — Fast-casual seafood restaurant Captain D’s has opened its newest franchised location in Clinton Township, about 25 miles north of Detroit. Situated at 35134 Groesbeck Highway, the restaurant marks Captain D’s only Michigan location and expands the brand’s footprint into its 23rd state. Currently, the Clinton Township Captain D’s is open for drive-thru, call-ahead ordering for curbside pickup and delivery. The dining room will remain closed for the immediate future due to COVID-19. Detroit native and restaurant industry veteran Kirit Patel of J&D Restaurant Group LLC owns and operates the Clinton Township building, which was formerly occupied by Dunkin’. Patel has plans to develop two additional Captain D’s restaurants in metro Detroit by 2023. There are now more than 530 Captain D’s locations across 23 states.
On June 4, InterFace Net Lease and France Media hosted the first industry-wide webinar to discuss net lease/sale-leaseback market conditions related to the impact of coronavirus: “The State of the NNN Market as the Industry Emerges from COVID-19.” In this panel discussion, net lease experts explain the short- and long-term impacts of COVID-19 on the world of triple net lease, as well as the challenges and opportunities investors and developers may see as the country reopens after months of shutdown. What can we expect as from a bank liquidity point of view? Per Karl Francetic of Realty Investor Capital: “[When the crisis first happened], there were a bunch of tenants that weren’t sure how if and how they were going to be paying their rent. They all got PPP loans, and now everybody has paid their rent. July is going to be the first month where they’re not going to have that PPP funding. It’s going to be very telling what happens. Are tenants going to be paying their rent and are things going to be back on track without PPP, or is the government going to go and do another stimulus, which then can extend that kind of uncertainty in terms of how long it’s …
CHARLESTON, W.VA. — West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice on Friday allowed movie theaters and casinos in the state to reopen. Theaters are required to operate with social distancing guidelines in place, including limiting the theater occupancy that will allow for proper distancing, adjusting common area layouts to allow for a six-foot distance between patrons who do not live together, encouraging all patrons and employees to wear personal protective equipment (PPE) and encouraging patrons to purchase tickets in advance to limit cash transactions. For casinos, occupancy must be limited to 50 percent capacity based on the fire code. Furthermore, operators must adjust the layout of the casino to implement social distancing of at least six feet between individuals who do not live together, limit the number of players at tables to allow for social distancing and close common areas where employees or players may congregate. Justice also approved the state’s plans for reopening adult sports facilities, including indoor tennis courts, racquetball courts, outdoor basketball courts and similar venues beginning today. Youth sports practices may also resume today. Private campgrounds and state park campgrounds, cabins and lodges will open to out of state guests beginning Wednesday, June 10.
TUCKER, GA. — Branch Properties will develop Hugh Howell, an 83,000-square-foot, Publix-anchored shopping center in Tucker. Publix will occupy 48,000 square feet, and Branch Properties will develop an additional 35,000 square feet of space across three buildings and two outparcels. The $19 million project will span 14 acres at the northeast corner of Hugh Howell Road and Mountain Industrial Boulevard, 15 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta. Publix will relocate from an existing site less than one mile away. Phillips Partnership is the architect of the project, and Contineo Group is the civil engineer. Branch Properties has not yet determined a general contractor. Construction is expected to be complete in fall 2021.