WASHINGTON, DC—Retail Properties of America announced another trio of acquisitions in its earnings call this week, with one of the properties a strip mall in Tysons, VA.
In addition, the Oakbrook, IL-based REIT announced development plans for the Baltimore area. These moves follow a handful of acquisitions the REIT has made recently in the area, including the commercial core of the 180-acre Crown community in Gaithersburg, MD for $163 million and in Virginia, the Merrifield Town Center and Fort Evans Plaza II, which traded off-market for $121.5 million.
Its latest pending purchase is a 38,000-square foot retail strip located on 8459 Leesburg Pike, from Finmarc Management. Tenants in the property include Golfsmith, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chic-Fil-A, and Roti. A source told GlobeSt.com that the asset is trading for $31.7 million, or $834 per square foot.
The REIT's CEO Steve Grimes announced the deal as part of three acquisitions totaling $89 million, although it didn't break down the pricing. The other properties are Peter Park Town Center, in the Austin area and a grocery-anchored neighborhood shopping center in the Seattle area. These acquisitions are expected to close in the first half of 2015.
Grimes also told listeners that the company plans to begin predevelopment activities at Towson Circle in Baltimore. The center, located next to General Growth Properties' Towson Town Center Mall, is anchored by Barnes & Noble, Pier 1 Imports and Trader Joe's.
Retail Properties plans to replace the current property with a high-rise tower comprised of 400 residential units, a hotel component and street level retail "that will be significantly more visible and accessible than what is in place today," Grimes said.
If all this sounds like Retail Properties is fixated on the DC/Baltimore market, well, that is because it apparently is. Grimes acknowledged the REIT's area focus during the call, noting that the vast majority of its year-to-date acquisition activity has been in the DC area.
Possibly more deals could be announced. Grimes also said that as the REIT moves into 2015, it has about $375 million of acquisitions already closed or under contract.
GlobeSt.com has reached out to Retail Properties of America for comment.
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Erika Morphy
Erika Morphy has been writing about commercial real estate at GlobeSt.com for more than ten years, covering the capital markets, the Mid-Atlantic region and national topics. She's a nerd so favorite examples of the former include accounting standards, Basel III and what Congress is brewing.
