The retail market in Utah continues to build steam and has expanded over the past 12 months. With these gains, tenants are in abundance and new construction is on the rise. Vacancy continued to improve through 2014, as the overall vacancy rate declined by 0.7 percentage points on a year-over-year basis to end at 6.2 percent. This represents the lowest vacancy rate of the past decade. With supply constrained and demand improving, average asking lease rates jumped by 9 percent on a year-over-year basis, to $18.98 per square foot. New construction continued across the valley, with 548,577 square feet of space added to the market. The local housing market drives retail development in Utah. About 18,573 building permits have been issued throughout the state in the past two years, including multifamily projects. This construction pushed many retailers into expansion mode, looking to take up shop in locations that cut off the competition. This is particularly true in one segment of the market that now stands supreme in the Utah retail ecosystem: grocery. Grocers have expanded at a breakneck rate. Sprout’s Farmers Market opened new stores in Holladay and South Jordan. A Smith’s Marketplace opened its doors in West Jordan at …
PHOENIX – Gateway Four, a 137,069-square-foot office building in Phoenix, has sold to VanTrust Real Estate for nearly $23 million. The building is located at 444 N. 44th Street. It is fully leased by State Farm Insurance, though the company is scheduled to vacate the building late next year when it consolidates its local operations. Gateway Four is part of the larger Phoenix Gateway Corporate Center. The seller was LBA Realty. The sale was executed by CBRE’s Tom Adelson and Jim Fijan.
GLENDORA, CALIF. – The 50-unit Glendora Park Place Apartment Homes has sold to a private, out-of-state investor for $14.5 million. The community is located at 633-641 West Route 66 in the Los Angeles submarket of Glendora. It is currently 95 percent occupied. The property also contains three ground-level commercial spaces. The seller was Glendora Park Place. The transaction was executed by Peter M. Hauser of Berkadia.
DENVER – A portfolio of five 7-Eleven properties in the Denver area has sold to a Northern California buyer in a 1031 Exchange for $12 million. The single-tenant, net-leased properties are under corporate guarantees from 7-Eleven. The seller, a Colorado-based private real estate investment company, was represented by JLL’s Matt Berres and Jason Schmidt.
WEST JORDAN, UTAH – Three Zaxby’s restaurant locations have recently sold in Utah. The franchised fast food chain restaurants included in these sales are situated in West Jordan, Lehi and Cedar City. The transactions were valued at a total of more than $10 million. Zaxby’s has more than 600 locations nationwide. Its first outpost opened in Georgia in 1990. The franchise opened 10 new stores in Utah over the past year, including the three that recently sold. Lance Pendleton of Mountain West Retail and Investment represented the unnamed seller in those three transactions.
LOS ANGELES – LemonPop has leased 5,900 square feet of space at Azalea Regional Shopping Center in the Los Angeles submarket of South Gate. The center is located at 4827 Firestone Blvd. LemonPop is an apparel store that serves children and adults of all ages. The center is owned by Primestor Development.
SAN DIEGO — Greystar has acquired a development parcel within the new master-planned development of Ballpark Village in San Diego. The mixed-use project sits adjacent to Petco Park in the city’s Ballpark District. Greystar’s site is slated for a 37-story, 446-unit multifamily tower. The purchase price was not disclosed. The asset will offer views of the Pacific Ocean, San Diego Bay, Coronado Island and bridge, Balboa Park, Point Loma and the Downtown skyline. Community amenities will include a rooftop pool, clubhouse, spa, fire pit and barbecue area. The property will also feature a three level parking garage and 24,000 square feet of retail space. The seller, a joint venture between JMI and Lennar, was represented by JLL’s Darcy Miramontes, Lynn LaChapelle, Bob Prendergast and Kip Malo. Ballpark Village is slated for completion in 2018.
SAN FRANCISCO — Round One, a Japan-based, family friendly entertainment center, has announced plans to open six new locations this year throughout the U.S. This is in addition to the five centers it currently operates. Round One also intends to open eight more locations in 2016. The new concept will soon debut at Westfield Southcenter Mall in Seattle; Eastridge Shopping Center in San Jose, Calif.; and Main Place Mall in Santa Ana, Calif. It will also open outposts in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. The family entertainment centers typically range between 45,000 square feet and 80,000 square feet. They offer a variety of activities like karaoke, bowling, billiards, ping pong and darts, in addition to food and beverage options. Round One has existing California locations at Lakewood Center Mall in Lakewood; Moreno Valley Mall in Moreno Valley; and Puente Hills Mall in the City of Industry. It also has centers in Texas and Illinois. The company is actively looking for new locations in gateway Northeast markets, as well as in strong retail trade areas like Washington, Oregon and California, according to RKF’s David Friedman, who arranged the six new leases for Round One. Round One currently operates more than 100 locations in …
RENO, NEV. — A 707,010-square-foot space in the Reno area that is occupied by Zulily.com has sold to CBRE Investments for $41.7 million. The space is located at 3200 USA Parkway, within the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center in the submarket of McCarran. Zulily is an e-commerce discount retailer. The seller, US RIO LP, was represented by Michael Nevis, Dave Simonsen, J. Michael Hoeck and Steve Kucera of NAI Alliance.
SEATTLE — Donahue Schriber Realty Group has acquired Interbay Urban Center, an 80,560-square-foot shopping center in Seattle, for an undisclosed sum. The center is located at 1827 15th Ave. Interbay is anchored by Whole Foods Market. It is situated just three miles northwest of Downtown Seattle near the communities of Magnolia, Queen Anne, Ballard and Interbay. The center is fully leased. This is Donahue Schriber’s third Seattle-area acquisition in the past four months.