Inland Buys Nine Retail Centers in Southeast for $160M

BIRMINGHAM, AL-Inland Retail Real Estate Trust Inc. continued its aggressive acquisition march in the Southeast with the purchase of nine shopping centers in five states totaling 1.3 million sf and valued at $160 million.

The most expensive purchase by the Oak Brook, IL-based REIT was Birmingham, AL-based River Ridge Shopping Center, a one-year-old, 162,062-sf, 100%-leased property sold by locally based Ridge Retail Co. LLC for $29.64 million or $182.89 per sf.

River Ridge anchors are Best Buy, 45,504 sf; Linens ‘N Things, 35,000 sf; Staples, 23,942 sf; and Cost Plus, 17,790 sf. A Super Target store was not part of the transaction. Jason Lazarus, Inland Real Estate Acquisitions Inc. and outside attorneys Charles Benvenuto and Andrew Viola negotiated for Inland. Jeffrey Bayer, Bayer Properties, represented the seller.

“The properties we’ve purchased over the past 12 months on behalf of Inland Retail are comparable to the numbers you are seeing in the biggest mergers and acquisitions,” Joe Cosenza, chairman, Inland Acquisitions Inc., says in a prepared statement. “The difference is that we buy only the properties we choose. In other words, we don’t get stuck with properties we might not otherwise want to buy.”

Inland picked up three Georgia properties. The REIT paid Snellville Assoc. Limited Partnership via Selig Enterprises Inc. $45 million or $120.91 per sf for the 372,149-sf, four-year-old, 100%-leased Presidential Commons Shopping Center.

Presidential anchors are: Home Depot Inc., 101,860 sf; Kroger supermarket, 64,905 sf; JoAnn Fabrics, 45,120 sf; Steinmart, 34,000 sf; and Circuit City, 28,860 sf. Cosenza and Benvenuto negotiated for Inland. David E. Witt, Selig’s executive vice president, represented the seller.

In Warner Robins, GA, another Atlanta area suburb, Inland bought the newly constructed, 186,033-sf City Crossing Shopping Center from Selig Enterprises Inc. for $18.31 million or $98.42 per sf. Anchors here include: Steinmart, 34,000 sf; Ross Dress for Less, 30,187 sf; Michael’s, 20,376 sf and Old Navy, 20,000 sf. The center is shadow anchored by a Home Depot which was not part of the transaction. Cosenza represented Inland, while Witt negotiated for Selig.

In its third Georgia acquisition, Inland bought 10 acres in Tyrone, GA where the REIT is partnering with Atlanta-based Candler Development Co. in a $10.5 million deal ($134.79 per sf) to build South Hampton Village, a planned 77,900-sf center.

Inland had a similar deal with AG Armstrong Development LLC in New Port Richey, FL where the REIT purchased a 10-acre tract that houses the $10.22 million ($133.82 per sf), 76,371-sf Shoppes at Golden Acres. A Publix Supermarket is the anchor. Steve Sanders, senior vice president, Inland Acquisitions and Barry Lazarus negotiated for Inland.

Also in Florida, Inland bought the 17-year-old, 90%-leased, 108,944-sf Goldenrod Groves Shopping from New York Life Insurance Co. for $9.15 million or $83.99 per sf. A 39,795-sf Publix Supermarket is the anchor. Sanders and lawyer Elliot Kamenear negotiated for Inland. Ron Petit and lawyer Thomas A. Hanson represented the seller. Whitney Knoll, senior vice president, Trammell Crow Co., Atlanta, marketed the property.

In Boynton Beach, FL, the privately held REIT paid Woolbright Golf Ltd. $18.51 million or $137.22 per sf for the 134,894-sf, 100%-occupied Village Square at Golf Shopping Center anchored by a 39,795-sf Publix Supermarket. Sanders and Benvenuto negotiated for Inland. Duane J. Stiller and lawyer Peter Holton represented the seller.

In Cornelius, NC, a Charlotte suburb, Inland paid Southlake Associates AAC Real Estate Services Inc. $13.6 million or $98.42 per sf for the 131,247-sf, four-year-old, 98%-lease Southlake Shopping Center. The anchors are Harris Teeter Supermarket, 32,960 sf; Steinmart, 38,500 sf; and Eckerd Drug Store, 8,640 sf. Sanders and Benvenuto negotiated for Inland. Steven Brumm and lawyer Shannon O’Donnell represented the seller.

Inland paid General Electric Credit Equities Inc. $7.3 million or $154.97 per sf for the three-year-old, 100%-leased, 47,104-sf, Comp USA Center near the Patrick Henry Regional Mall in Newport News, VA. Costco, also on the property, was not part of the transaction. The center is anchored by a 29,134-sf Comp USA and a 17,970-sf Cost Plus. Lou Quilici, senior vice president, Inland Acquisitions, and lawyer Scott Wilton negotiated for Inland. Constantine Lallas and lawyer James J. Freedman of Buchanan and Ingersol represented the seller.