Woolbright Snaps Up Three Centers Aggregating 510,311 SF

BOCA RATON, FL-Locally based Woolbright Development Inc. acquired three South Florida shopping centers totaling 510,311 sf. They are Glades Plaza here, River Bridge in Green Acres and Galt Ocean Marketplace in Fort Lauderdale.

Boston-based Brookwood Financial Partners sold the River Bridge Centre asset for $37.7 million, or $168.79 per sf. It is 99% leased. This is the third property Brookwood has sold in South Florida over the past six months. "The abundance of capital in the market..prompted us to sell a portion of our portfolio in South Florida," says Thomas N. Trkla, Brookwood's chairman and CEO. "We continue to believe that South Florida is an excellent market and are selectively looking at acquisition opportunities." The total purchase price of the three properties is undisclosed. Calls to Mike Fimiani, vice president of leasing for Woolbright, were not returned by deadline. Earlier this year, Deerfield Mall, which is also in Broward County, traded for $136 per sf. Coral Palm Plaza in Coral Springs, once a Woolbright property, traded for $125 per sf in April. On condition of anonymity, a retail real estate specialist in Broward County tells GlobeSt.com the price for the three assets "was probably variable among them, but, in all, near an average of $120 per sf or between $58 million and $62 million."

The 105,000-sf Galt Ocean Marketplace center is located on N. Ocean Boulevard just south of Commercial Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. Woolbright also owns Sea Ranch Centre in Sea Ranch Lakes, which is the only other grocery-anchored center along Broward County's stretch of AIA. Winn-Dixie and Bealls Outlet anchor the Galt asset. Among the other tenants are McDonald's, Winestyles, Southtrust Bank, Dunkin Donuts, Bank of America and Wings Sports and Surf. "This new asset positions Woolbright as the key real estate investment company in this area," Fimiani says in a statement.

Starbucks, Brewzzi's, Relax the Back, Cold Stone Creamery, Dolly Duz and Palladio of Boca Raton are among the tenants in the 181,976-sf Glades Plaza. Publix and Walgreen's anchor the 223,335-sf River Bridge community center, and its tenant roster also includes Kaiser Career College and World Gym. Each of the property locations is in an affluent area that is experiencing significant growth, according to Fimiani's statement.

Woolbright has redeveloped more than 5.5 million sf of retail space and two million sf of shopping center space. Its other South Florida assets include Palm Lakes Plaza in Margate, Plaza Del Mar in Manalapan and South Dade in Cutler Ridge.