Pillar has sold three more retail parks--the 575,000-sf FortKinnaird in Edinburgh; the 313,000-sf Deepdale park in Preston andthe 297,00-sf Broughton park at Chester--into Hercules for £444.1million ($630 million). The deal raises Pillar £87.6 million ($124million) in cash.

At the same time the Retail Park Unit Trust, a similar venturein which Pillar had a one-third stake whose sole asset was the416,000-sf Fosse park at Leicester, has merged with Hercules.Pillar has raised a further £93.9 million ($133 million) from thesale of its stake. Fosse park is the highest-rented retail park inthe UK, with prime space fetching £70 ($100) per sf.

And in the third transaction Hercules has also bought a retailpark in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, from Equitable Life and MerrillLynch Property Fund. The two investors are also paying £27 million($38 million) for more new Hercules units. Hercules has alsosecured an option to acquire two more parks in Croydon and inBletchley from Merrill Lynch.