The seller was represented by Lawrence Krasner, David Doupe and Jay Luchs, all based at Insignia's Downtown Los Angeles office, with the Davis Street Land Co. representing itself. Krasner notes the El Paseo center has been called "the Rodeo Drive of the Coachella Valley" for its luxury and upscale shopping, a comparison to the famous Rodeo Drive shopping center in Beverly Hills.

The Gardens was 95% leased at the time of the sale. The center, which was developed by Madison Marquette and opened in 1998, is a lushly landscaped, two-level, open-air retail and dining center in an eight-block stretch of specialty and boutique retail shops, restaurants and art galleries a block south of Highway 111 at San Pablo Avenue and El Paseo. The property, which includes a 1,000-space parking facility, is anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue. Recently, the New York jeweler Tiffany & Co. announced it will open a store at the center in the fall. Among the retailers at the center, which occupies an entire city block on Palm Desert's primary fashion shopping street, are Brooks Brothers, Ann Taylor, Talbots, Tommy Bahama and Williams-Sonoma.

Madison Marquette, an affiliate of international investment firm Capital Guidance, is a developer and investor that oversees more than 26 million sf of regional malls, specialty centers, community centers, urban villages and other mixed-use properties across the US. Southern California centers under management by Madison Marquette include Fashion Island in Newport Beach and the Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine.

Buyer Davis Street Land Co. is a privately held firm that develops and owns upscale specialty centers and Main Street properties in suburban and urban downtowns. The company manages more than three million sf of retail centers in California, New Mexico, Missouri, Tennessee and Illinois.