DIAMOND BAR, CA-The Diamond Creek Shopping Center has secured financing of $15 million after a recent conversion to a mini-mall. The center received a 10-year loan with a 29-year amortization and fixed interest rate, and was structured with no prepayment penalty.

The 121,788-square-foot shopping center has a grocery anchor tenant. Recently, owners converted a 26,937-square-foot retail space into 20 smaller spaces, ranging in size from 1,000 to 3,000 square feet. The smaller spaces are now being marketed for lease. The new mini-mall-style renovation has been renamed the Plaza.

CBRE VP Shaun Moothart, who works out of the firm's Newport Beach, secured the loan on behalf of the borrower, a local investor and the center's operator. Due to a 78% occupancy and a single location grocer, the deal was particularly challenging, according to Moothart. However, he was able to secure the loan because of the prime location and lender-borrower relationship. “The deal was creatively structured with an initial $12 million funding, supplemented by a forward commitment to fund an additional $3 million upon meeting pre-negotiated leasing hurdles,” he says.