JACKSONVILLE, FL-Lowe's Inc. has purchased a 17-acre tract at the planned one-million-sf River City Marketplace. This, along with a newly signed 25,000-sf lease from Bed, Bath & Beyond, brings the estimated $75-million retail center to 565,000 sf of pre-construction leasing, or just over 50% committed occupancy, the company reports. Lowe's plans a 177,000-sf store.

Dennis Gershenson, president and CEO of Ramco-Gershenson Properties Trust, the Farmington Hills, MI-based developer of the shopping center, and Richard Smith, another principal at the company, couldn't be reached by GlobeSt.com's publication deadline to learn the value of the Lowe's transaction.

However, Jacksonville area industrial brokers familiar with recent sales at the airport submarket, tell Globest.com comparable dirt has been trading in the $30,000 to $50,000 per-acre range. Area sources in a position to know tell GlobeSt.com the Lowe's purchase was probably valued at about $850,000.

"Our anchor retail lineup ensures that the center will be the primary retail destination for all of North Jacksonville," Gershenson says in a prepared statement. He adds that most of the anchor space has already been leased and that the company has commitments for over 100,000 sf of ancillary retail space to open in late summer and early fall. Groundbreaking for the first phase of the center is scheduled for the third quarter.

Among the other national retailers signed to leases are Michaels, 21,300 sf; Old Navy, 15,100 sf; and OfficeMax, 20,000 sf, as Globest.com previously reported. The center's tenant roll will also include Wal-Mart, Ross Dress for Less, PetsMart and an 18-screen Wallace (Hollywood) theater. The development site is at the Jacksonville Airport exit on Interstate 95.