Done Deals
Madison Marquette Buys Birdcage Town Center
A partnership led by Madison Marquette Realty Partners of Cincinnati acquired the 265,000-sq.ft. Birdcage Town Center in Citrus Heights, California from developer Robert C. Powell for $30.5 million. The center sits on 31 acres across from the Sunrise Mall.
The Birdcage Town Center, now 93 percent occupied, houses tenants including Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Starbuck’s, Cost Plus, Bonney & Gordon clothiers, and several restaurants.
The new owner hopes to build on Powell’s renovations and eventually expand, says Steve M. Plenge, vice president of acquisitions, Madison Marquette Realty Partners. “We think it’s a great location. Our goal is to make it an even more special place... With our retail contacts we can take the center to another level. Madison Marquette wants to attract a major grocery store to the center, and plans to talk with a variety of clothing, linen and houseware-type retailers.”
Madison Marquette specializes in “urban lifestyle” shopping centers, managing more than 20 million square feet of retail projects across the nation and owning about one-fifth of that space.
For information, contact Steve M. Plenge, vice president of acquisitions, Madison Marquette Realty Partners, 310-777-3650.
Dartmouth Arranges Boston Leases
Jessica McClintock, a high-end women’s formal wear retailer, moved from Copley Place into a new flagship, two-level, 2,065-sq.ft. space on Newbury Street in Boston, Massachusetts. Other tenants on the block include Nike Town, Gap/Gap Body/Gap Kids and French Connection. Sam Hawkey of The Dartmouth Company arranged the lease.
Sean Gildea and Peter Montesanto of The Dartmouth Company negotiated a lease between Crate & Barrel and property owner Charles Sarkis for the housewares retailer to open a three-level store on Boyleston Street in the Back Bay area of Boston. The new store will replace an existing Crate & Barrel store in Copley Place.
For information, contact Sam Hawkey, Sean Gildea or Peter Montesanto of The Dartmouth Company, One Exeter Plaza, Boston, MA 02116, 617-262-6620.
Three Restaurants Lease Space In Florida
Investment Management Associates Restaurant Division in Coral Gables, Florida leased a 3,500-sq.ft. space at 1192 West 49th Street in Hialeah, Florida to the Latin Cafe 2000. The new chain features Cuban cuisine, indoor and outdoor seating and a walk-up coffee window. The restaurant is Latin Cafe’s third in the area.
Investment Management Associates leased a 3,100-sq.ft. space
to the Ugly Tuna Saloons in the Tropicare Center at 7725 Bird Road in Miami, Florida. The family-oriented, seafood restaurant will feature indoor and outdoor dining for lunch and dinner and plans to open this month.
Investment Management Associates also leased a 4,850-sq.ft. spot at 12790 Kendall Drive in Miami, Florida, to Flanigan’s Grill & Bar. Flanigan’s expects to open this, its 18th location, in April.
For information, contact Alan Howard, restaurant specialist, Investment Management Associates, 1575 San Ignacio, Suite 100, Coral Gables, FL 33146, 305-661-0110.
Sharper Image To Open New San Francisco Location
Sharper Image Corporation is opening a new store in San Francisco’s Union Square on Post Street between Stockton and Grant this summer.
With 4,000 sq.ft. of sales space, the flagship store will be one of the company’s largest. It replaces Sharper Image’s 532 Market Street location, which closed in December. The company operates two other San Francisco locations at Ghirardelli Square and at Davis and Broadway.
The company operates more than 90 stores throughout the United States and also sells through catalogs and at www.sharperimage.com.
For information, contact Michael Golden, real estate administrator, Sharper Image Corporation, 530-582-1717.
J.P. Morgan Refinances Norwalk Improvements
J.P. Morgan Mortgage Capital Inc. refinanced a $9.082-million loan for Norwalk Improvements, a mixed-use 162,300-sq.ft. retail/office property in Norwalk, Connecticut. Major tenants include TN Technologies, Norwalk Storage and Fitness Edge. The project was built in 1920 and renovated in 1999.
The loan is a fixed rate with a 10-year term and 30-year amortization. J.P. Morgan is based in Atlanta with offices in New York, Chicago, Boston, Denver, Dallas, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.
For more information, contact Lisa Malone, marketing director, J.P. Morgan Mortgage Capital Inc., 400 Perimeter Center Terrace Suite 575, Atlanta, GA 30346; 770-351-8350.
Winick Realty Arranges NYC Leases
Winick Realty Group, based in New York City, arranged a lease for “For Eyes” Optical at 420 Lexington Avenue in the Graybar District within the Grand Central retail district of New York City. Winick managing directors Jason Pruger and Dan Spector facilitated the 10-year lease for the 1,600-sq.ft. ground-floor facility. “For Eyes” Optical operates 120 stores nationally. Previous stores focused on fast service and a diverse clientele. At the new store, the company will focus on corporate customers and launch a new, upscale corporate approach.
Winick Realty Group also arranged a 10-year lease for a Fossil Watches store at 103 Fifth Avenue in New York City. Winick represented the property owner, Harlington Realty, and Richard Cohan of Staubach Realty represented Fossil Watches, which will open its store in September 2000 and is negotiating for more space on the second floor of the building.
Winick worked out 10-year leases for two restaurants. Italian eatery Massimo Felice-La Nonna will open in a 3,700-sq.ft. space including 1,500 sq.ft. of garden area at 133 West 13th Street, and the “Roc” Bar and Restaurant owned by Elio Guaitolini signed a 10-year ground-floor lease for a 2,700-sq.ft. sidewalk cafe at 323 Greenwich Street in Tribeca.
Winick, founded in 1988, is a full-service real estate organization offering services ranging from site assessment to lease negotiations for retail tenants, commercial building owners and institutional owners and disposing of retail portfolios for both private owners and institutions.
For information, contact Cory Zelnik, executive vice president, Winick Realty Group, 212-792-2600.
Cutter & Buck To Open In Portland, Oregon
Cutter & Buck, a Seattle-based manufacturer of sportswear and business casual apparel, is opening its sixth store in Portland, Oregon’s Pioneer Place this month. Cutter & Buck’s 3,479-sq.ft. store will be located in the new expansion area of Pioneer Place.
In the last quarter of 1999, the company opened stores in Denver, Colorado; Orlando, Florida; and Mission Viejo, California. It also announced a lease for a store in the Desert Passage at the Aladdin in Las Vegas, Nevada, slated to open this summer.
“We are very excited about our continuing expansion efforts planned for this year,” says Harvey Jones, chairman and chief executive officer. “Cutter & Buck is looking forward to its expanded involvement with the community of Portland.”
For information, contact Scott Darkenwald, director of retail stores, Cutter & Buck, 800-929-9299, ext. 116.
TRC and Brownfield Realty Buy New Jersey BrownField
TRC Companies Inc. and Brownfield Realty LTD, a privately held company based in Allentown, Pennsylvania, purchased a 26-acre site in Metuchen, New Jersey housing more than 200,000 sq.ft. of commercial, office and warehouse space.
The agreement includes a multi-year leaseback by Mark IV and other tenants. Metuchen Realty Acquisition, a joint venture set up for the property, plans to make improvements to the site’s overall appearance and increase the amount of leasable space.
Before buying the property, the new owners reached a prospective purchaser agreement with the state of New Jersey protecting them from unknown environmental issues and agreeing to be responsible for known problems. The state required the buyers to purchase site-specific insurance to make certain cleanup would be completed.
TRC provides technical, financial risk management and construction services to industry and government. Its main focus is on infrastructure improvements and expansions, environmental management and information technology.
For information, contact Mike Salmon, senior vice president, TRC Companies Inc., 949-727-9336.
Macy’s Will Stay In Downtown Atlanta
After months of speculation that Macy’s could leave downtown Atlanta, owner Federated Department Stores Inc. announced the store will remain in its current location and enter a sale and lease-back agreement with Taconic Investment Partners/Benenson Capital Company.
The agreement calls for Macy’s to lease and extensively renovate more than 130,000 sq.ft. of space it has occupied since 1927. The redesigned store will be a three-level, full line department store excluding furniture. Work is expected to start in the spring, be completed next year, and will include extensive improvements in lighting, fixturing, department design and customer service areas.
Macy’s East, a New York-based division of Federated, now operates 87 stores in 15 states. Sales in 1998 totaled more than $4.5 billion.
Federated, with corporate offices in Cincinnati and New York, is one of the country’s leading retail department store corporations, with annual sales of more than $17.3. billion. Currently Federated operates more than 400 stores in 33 states under the names Bloomingdale’s, The Bon Marche, Burdines, Goldsmith’s, Lazarus, Macy’s, Rich’s and Stern’s. The company also owns Fingerhut, Bloomingdale’s by Mail, Macy’s by Mail and Macys.com.
For information, contact Federated Department Stores Inc., 513-579-7315, or Paul Pariser, partner, Taconic Investment Partners/Benenson Capital Company, 404-898-1263.
The Cheesecake Factory To Open In Riverside Square
The Shopco Group, owners of Riverside Square in Hackensack, New Jersey, signed a deal for The Cheesecake Factory to take over space formerly occupied by Houlihan’s. The new lease may result in construction of a second level over the restaurant area, adding 20,000 sq.ft. of space to the shopping center.
The Cheesecake Factory, based in Calasbasas Hills, California, operates 36 restaurants.
For information, contact The Shopco Group, 212-594-9400.
Tiffany Plans Another Chicago Store
Tiffany & Co. is opening its third Chicago-area store in the Old Orchard Shopping Center in Skokie. The jewelry retailer will move into a 6,800-sq.ft. space vacated by Tommy Hilfiger and speciality outfitter Orvis. The location is next to Nordstrom, one of the center anchors.
“We’ve been looking for a strong presence in the north suburbs of Chicago,” says Beth Owen Caravan, senior vice president, U.S. retail, for Tiffany.
Tiffany now has 38 stores in the United States and operates another 93 retail operations outside the country.
For information, contact Beth Owen Caravan, senior vice president, U.S. retail, Tiffany & Co, 212-755-8000.
Selima Optique Opens Fifth Manhattan Store
Garrick-Aug Associates Store Leasing Inc. arranged a lease for Paris-based retailer Selima Optique to open its fifth store in Manhattan at 899 Madison Avenue, between East 72nd and 73rd streets. The boutique will occupy an 800-sq.ft. space under a 10-year lease valued at more than $1.8 million.
The new store is expected to open this month, says Roberta Baldizzone, a retail consultant for Garrick-Aug. Along with eyewear, Selima also sells jewelry, lingerie and clothing accessories.
For information, contact Faith Hope Consolo, Garrick-Aug Associates Store Leasing Inc., 212-850-0200.
Metro Commercial Handles Theater Sale in Easton, PA
Metro Commercial Real Estate Inc. negotiated the sale of the former United Artists Theater in Easton, Pennsylvania to Martin Cohen, a local attorney and entrepreneur who intends to turn it into a theater for arts and connoisseur films.
According to Daniel J. Hughes, president of Metro Commercial, the 12,299-sq.ft. theater is located at 175 South Third Street. Metro Commercial agent Mark Gerlach represented the seller, United Artists Realty Co., in the transaction.
Metro Commercial is a retail leasing and management firm based in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.
For information, contact Paul Rumley, broker, Metro Commercial Real Estate Inc., 303 Fellowship Road, Suite 202, Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054, 866-866-1900.
Transwestern Investment Buys Beach Place
Transwestern Investment Co. of Chicago purchased Beach Place, a shopping center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for $35 to $40 million.
The 100,000-sq.ft center, which opened in 1997 on the site of the former Martin Beach Hotel, includes a profitable 600-space parking garage which grossed $2 million per year for its former owners.
The center is 92 percent leased, with tenants including Sally O’Brien, an Irish pub. A 23-story luxury hotel called Castillo Grand is proposed on an adjacent site and is awaiting municipal approvals.
For information, contact Dirk Degnaars, senior vice president, Transwestern Investment Co., 312-499-1900.