CalPERS Buys First Washington Realty Trust for $800 Mil

BETHESDA, MD-The California Public Employees’ Retirement System will buy First Washington Realty Trust, the nation’s largest owner of neighborhood shopping centers, for $800 million.

CalPERS will acquire 63 shopping centers in the Mid-Atlantic states and the Midwest. The price is $26 per common share, about 25% better than its closing price of $20.75 on Sept. 27. The sale is expected to close in January.

First Washington’s management will continue to manage the same properties, through a new company called U.S. Retail Partners LLC, which is essentially the same as the company they run now. They plan no layoffs and CalPERS wants them to expand their acquisitions, says William J. Wolfe, president.