CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE—A partnership formed by commercial mortgage lending specialist Innovative Capital Advisors and Chicago-based HSA Commercial Real Estate, has just completed the acquisition of the 217,346-square-foot Brookfield Fashion Center in Brookfield, WI, a Milwaukee suburb. Stein Mart, Jo-Ann Fabrics, Pier 1 Imports and Ulta Beauty anchor the regional shopping center, located on Bluemound Rd. just west of Brookfield Square Mall. Built in 1986, the center has retained several original tenants over the past three decades, including Dress Barn, LensCrafters and Pier 1 Imports. Tenants occupy 97% of the center.

“The positive attributes of this property are plain to see – the tremendous trade area demographics, the sizeable frontage on Bluemound Rd. and the stability of the tenancy,” says Tim Blum, executive vice president of retail development with HSA. “But what was probably most compelling to us was the opportunity to reinvigorate the tenant mix, and our hope is that through our expertise in project merchandising and design, we can help the Brookfield Fashion Center realize its full potential as a regional shopping destination for the benefit of the shoppers and residents throughout the Milwaukee area.”

HSA has been quite active in the region over the past few years. Most notably, it transformed a group of former warehouse structures in nearby Wauwatosa into The Mayfair Collection, a retail center anchored by Nordstrom Rack and Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5^TH. And in June 2013, a separate joint venture between ICA and HSA Commercial acquired Plaza 173, a 92,000-square-foot retail center a quarter-mile west of the Brookfield Fashion Center. Fresh Thyme Farmers Market, Total Wine & More and DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse anchor that property, which the partners have rebranded as Calhoun Crossing as part of a full-scale redevelopment.