PA Firm Sells South Brunswick Shopping Center

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ-After owning it for six years, WP Realty Inc.– a Bryn Mawr, PA-based real estate investment, development, management and leasing company that specializes in turning around underperforming retail centers–has sold the 260,981-square-foot South Brunswick Square shopping center here. The property was purchased for $45.4 million by 426 Royal LLC.

When WP Realty purchased the grocery-anchored property in June 2003, it included an empty 76,345-square-foot Macy’s store and ran only $24 million. At the time of the closing, Strategic Resources Corp. was the owner.

According to WP Realty, the center had a vacancy rate of 89% when it acquired the property. A year later, Bloomingdale Furniture vacated more than 49,000 square feet. Macy’s subsequently bought out their own lease early and WP Realty executed a ground lease with Home Depot which–after the Macy’s was demolished–made way for a separate 104,664-square-foot store with a 17,883-square-foot garden center.

The former Bloomingdale building was divided into a Bob’s Stores outlet and a Dollar Tree. The center also includes a 55,556-square-foot Stop & Shop. Other tenants at the complex, which is now completely leased, include Bandito’s Margarita Factory, Blockbuster Video and Friendly’s.

Among the improvements WP Realty made to the center was resurfacing the parking lot and upgrading signage, lighting and landscaping. On its website, South Brunswick Square was listed as its only property in New Jersey.

South Brunswick Square is located along Route 1, a heavily traveled north/south route through the central portion of the state. It sits approximately eight miles north of Princeton and six miles south of North Brunswick.