Linear Tops $200M in Retail Fund Buys

NASHUA, NH-A pair of year-end acquisitions including the Amherst Street Village Center here on Route 101A has put Linear Retail Properties over $200 million in a fund that seeks to acquire more than $300 million of “convenience-oriented retail” in New England. Backed by capital partner Principal Financial Group, Linear spent $72 million in 2007 for a campaign that began in 2003 and has now led to 43 separate purchases.

“It’s a big milestone for us,” Linear president William Beckeman tells GlobeSt.com of the $200 million mark attained thanks to its $9.7 million Nashua acquisition. Besides that 48,000-sf asset at 550 Amherst St., Linear separately closed on 138 and 140 S. Main St. in Milford, MA. The firm paid $7.3 million for that shopping center, a 50,000-sf complex that has four buildings.

The Milford property “embodies everything we like in buying retail,” says Beckeman, citing the bustling Route 140 roadway on which the asset sits, plus a strong demographic that has attracted such well-known tenants as AT&T Wireless, D’Angelo’s and a Honey Dew Donuts shop. Occupancy at the time of purchase was 87%. Linear has retained Meredith & Grew as manager for the property, and is in the process of hiring a leasing broker.