Acadia Plunks Down $150M for 1M SF of Retail

WILMINGTON, DE-Through its acquisition fund Acadia Strategic Opportunity Fund, Long Island, NY-based shopping center REIT Acadia Realty Trust has wrapped up the purchase of a 1 million-sf, open-air shopping complex, formerly the property of the Estate of John Rollins. Acadia Acquisition secured the dual segment property, consisting of Market Square Shopping Center and Brandywine Town Center, for an initial investment of $88 million. However, lease-up activity for vacant space adds several million to the purchase price, bringing the final acquisition cost up to an estimated $130 to $150 million.

Market Square Shopping Center offers 103,000 sf of retail shopping space and was leased to 92% capacity at the time of its sale. National outlets TJ Maxx and a Trader Joe’s gourmet food market serve as the property’s anchors. Brandywine Town Center is designed differently from Market Square, as it is basically two shopping centers in one. What is known as Phase I of Brandywine encompasses 450,000 sf of value retail space, 97% of which is currently leased. Tenants include Bed Bath & Beyond, KB Toys, Lowe’s, Old Navy, and Regal Cinema. Phase II of the center is slightly smaller at 420,000 sf, with Target accounting for nearly 140,000 sf of that space.