ONTARIO, CA-Hispanic grocery store chain Cardenas has signed a deal to replace a Ralphs market at the Vineyard Plaza shopping center when the Ralphs lease expires in 60 days. Founder Terry Bortnick of Mission Viejo-based Argent Retail Advisors, who represented the building ownership in the lease, tells GlobeSt.com that the grocery store space is approximately 32,000 square feet. The shopping center is at 1837 E. 4th St., at the northwest corner of Vineyard Avenue and East Fourth Street, one of the busiest intersections in Ontario.

The soon-to-be-available space generated multiple offers from national, regional and local grocers and discounters, according to Bortnick, who notes that Ontario-based Cardenas, which has approximately 30 stores, expects to occupy the space in the fourth quarter of this year. Ralphs has occupied the building since 1981. “We had numerous offers from many national and regional grocers and discounters. Ultimately, the owners chose Cardenas because of their strong position in the Inland Empire, their unmatched ability to operate their stores and their proven track record in generating huge sales volumes,” Bortnick said.

“Another strong consideration for the owners was that they expect to be able to significantly drive the rents of the shop tenants as spaces roll over in the future. There are a group of small shop tenants that love to follow Cardenas to their new locations, so we are looking forward to working with these supporting tenants in the months and years ahead,” Bortnick said.

The Cardenas lease achieved “an enormous rental increase over the previous tenant,” Bortnick says. The space is owned by Mabela VP LP of Los Angeles; Cardenas was represented by Pacific Properties Group.

The Cardenas lease is part of a flurry of retail leasing in the Inland Empire n the last several months, according to Bortnick. Argent has completed 40 leases for over 213,000 square feet in the region. The leases range from about 4,000 square feet to nearly 24,000 square feet, involving a cross-section of local, regional and national tenants.