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CHICAGO-General Growth Properties, Inc. will team with ECE Projektmanagement G.m.b.H & Co. KG to build a 430,000-sf shopping center in Eskisehir, Turkey. The second-largest US retail REIT also has bought a 48% stake in ECE Turkiye Proje Yonetimi AS, a Turkish shopping center management company that oversees six properties.

The deals announced Thursday mark General Growth Properties' first foray into Europe. The company already has joint venture deals in Brazil, Costa Rica and Venezuela.

"Turkey's geographic location at the junction of Europe and Asia, its size and population growth, as well as recent economic development have created tremendous opportunities for investment," says chief executive officer John Bucksbaum. "This is a great opportunity to collaborate and invest with such an experienced development and management company as ECE."