PHOENIX-Whitestone REIT, and Walmart Neighborhood Market have completed a new lease agreement at Whitestone's Marketplace at Central property. Whitestone has turned the space over to Walmart Neighborhood Market, which will complete build out of the store, with a planned mid-2014 grand opening.

“We continue to see significant progress on the leasing front with the addition of Walmart Neighborhood Market to our Marketplace at Central community centered property,” said James Mastandrea, Whitestone's chairman and CEO. “We expect robust activity during 2014 as we continue to redevelop, re-tenant and increase rents in our properties.”

Marketplace at Central is a community retail center, with over 111,000 square feet of leasable space. It is located across from John C. Lincoln Hospital, in a densely populated, established urban neighborhood. The center is home to popular retailers including Ross Dress for Less and Dollar Tree. Whitestone REIT (NYSE: WSR) is a fully integrated real estate investment trust that owns, operates and redevelops community dentered properties. Whitestone focuses on value creation in its community centers, concentrating on local service-oriented, smaller space tenants (less than 3,000 square feet).