Madison Marquette Acquires 820,000-SF Bayfair Mall for $37M

SAN LEANDRO, CA-Madison Marquette of Washington, DC has paid Chicago-based M&J Wilkow $37 million for the 820,000-sf Bayfair Mall, an ailing enclosed shopping center in the city. Anchored by Macy’s and Target, which occupy about 40% of the space, the mall as a whole was about 75% leased at the time of sale.

Madison Marquette’s VP of Acquisitions and Development Eric Hohmann tells GlobeSt.com that mall is a value-add play for the company, which plans to spend another $30 million to attract new tenants and, ultimately, an institutional buyer. In addition to substantial cosmetic improvements and leasing up the vacant shop space, Madison Marquette plans to demolish some existing mall space and build new space in its place for three major new tenants. Hohmann says plans also include the addition of a freestanding pad site for a new family restaurant.

Located at East 14th Street and Fairmont Boulevard, approximately 20 miles southeast of San Francisco, the regional mall was originally built in 1957. Currently, it is the city’s biggest employer and largest source of sales-tax revenue–a significance not lost on city officials, who have promised to facilitate the permitting and entitlement process for Madison Marquette.