PENNSYLVANIA, MARYLAND AND VIRGINIA — A joint venture between Cedar Shopping Centers and RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust has entered into an agreement to acquire a five-property shopping center portfolio for approximately $92 million. The announcement follows on the heels of the venture's $53 million acquisition of Exeter Commons in Exeter Township, Pa., last month.
Four of the five properties in the 678,000-square-foot portfolio are anchored by Giant Food Stores supermarkets. They include Gettysburg Marketplace, an 85,500-square-foot center located in Gettysburg, Pa.; York Marketplace, a 305,000-square-foot center located in York, Pa., that is co-anchored by Lowe's Home Improvement; Northland Center, a 108,000-square-foot center located in State College, Pa.; and Marlboro Crossroads, a 68,000-square-foot center located in Upper Marlboro, Md. The fifth center, the 111,000-square-foot Towne Crossings in Midlothian, Va., is co-anchored by Bed Bath & Beyond and Michaels. Overall occupancy at the portfolio was 96 percent at the time of closing.
The joint venture plans to fund the purchase with a $52 million first-mortgage loan and $41 million in cash equity. The loan will carry a term of up to 10 years and an estimated interest rate of 5.5 percent. The ownership in this transaction is structured in the same way as the two REITs' other joint venture acquisitions, with RioCan holding an 80 percent stake and Cedar holding the remaining 20 percent.
The seller in the deal was Columbia, S.C.-based Edens & Avant. The brokers representing the seller included the CB Richard Ellis team of Gary Lawrence, R. William Kent and Jeffrey Ackerman. The buyer did not utilize outside representation.
— Coleman Wood