Inland Buys 27 Acres for Shopping Center Development

Inland paid Tampa-based AG Development Group Inc. $3.77 million or $121,111 per acre ($2.78 per sf) for a 27-acre tract at the southeast corner of Little Road and Fox Hollow Drive. The REIT broke ground this week and expects the project to be completed by year end.

AG Armstrong Development LLC is building the center that will be anchored by a 44,271-sf Publix Supermarket at an estimated hard construction cost of $3.56 million or about $40 per sf. AG Armstrong Development LLC is a joint venture between AG Development Group Inc. and Gustine Co. of Pittsburgh, PA.

Inland is funding the venture and will own it on completion. Shoppes at Golden Acres is Inland's 45th property, bringing its total portfolio to 6.76 million sf. In Florida, Inland has 23 properties totaling 4.23 million sf.

"This is Inland Retail's first ground-up development of a Publix-anchored center and the growth in the Tampa/New Port Richey area makes this extremely attractive for us," Steve Sanders, senior vice president, Inland Real Estate Acquisitions Inc., tells GlobeSt.com.

Sanders; Barry Lazarus, president, Inland Retail Real Estate Estate Trust Inc.; and outside counsel Charles Benvenutto represented Inland in the land acquisition. David Layman of Greenberg Traurig's law office negotiated for the seller.

Inland is also increasing its annualized dividend rate to 82 cents per share from 81 cents, effective April 1.

"This is the eighth dividend increase since the company began operations in February 1999," Inland chairman/CEO Robert D. Parks says in a prepared statement. "An 8.2% return speaks for itself when compared to recent market returns."