Westcore Expands Retail Portfolio

CORONA, CA-Westcore Corona Plaza LLC, an affiliate of Westcore Properties of San Diego, has acquired the 92,045-sf Corona Main Street Plaza from MRES America for nearly $11.9 million, with Longwing Real Estate Ventures LLC, a New York-based private real estate investment company, as Westcore's partner in the purchase.Corona Main Street Plaza is a four-building retail center on 8.8 acres at 300-470 N. Main St., just north of the 91 Freeway. The property is 100% occupied and is anchored by Rite-Aid, with a tenant list including Citibank, The Learning Center and Alexander Arman Salon.The center could offer redevelopment possibilities in the future, according to Gary Katz, director of acquisitions for Westcore Properties, who describes the center as "in a strong location in the high growth area of Corona, with a retail vacancy rate of just 6%."Katz adds that this is the second retail property Westcore has acquired in Corona over the past 90 days. The company's first acquisition in the city was a 35,000-sf Sears Outlet store,acquired as a long-term leasehold interest, and is located almost adjacent to Corona Main Street Plaza. In its purchase of the Corona Main Street property, Westcore was represented by Tom Lagos and Ken McLeod of the of the West Los Angeles office of Grubb & Ellis. The seller was represented by Bryan Shaffer and Ray Dapp of the Torrance office of Mitsui Real Estate Sales USA. The two Corona purchases join a growing list of recent retail deals by privately held Westcore, which has acquired more than $200 million in industrial, retail and office property over the past 18 months. Its other recent retail property purchases have included the 73,402-sf Alpine Creek Center in Alpine and the 277,037-sf Monarch Industrial Center in Garden Grove.