San Diego's Carlsbad Village Plaza Trades Hands as Redevelopment Play

Investment and development firm Tooley Interests has acquired Carlsbad Village Plaza in North San Diego County from Balboa Retail Partners for $23.5 million. Tooley Interests purchased the property as a redevelopment play.

Carlsbad Village Plaza is on four acres at Carlsbad Village Drive and the I-5 Freeway. The 58,735-square-foot property has a diverse mix of tenants, including a Smart & Final Extra, which serves as the anchor for the property, along with local restaurants and service retailers.

While the property has a strong and stable mix of tenants, the property will benefit from the new ownership’s planned capital investment. According to Newmark senior managing director Glenn Rudy, the property offers a “best-in-market location with the ability to transition the asset for the future with new tenants and a capital plan to freshen up the physical plant for the area’s discerning customer.” Rudy along with Newmark senior managing directors Rob Ippolito and vice chairman Pete Bethea represented the seller in the transaction.

While the retail market was battered by the pandemic, it has quickly rebounded this year, giving investors a renewed interest in the asset class. The holiday shopping season has already illustrated the potential for the asset class. While the final numbers aren’t in yet, a report from CBRE forecasts that holiday spending will increase 8.4% this year to $800 billion, a new record. Southern California is expected to benefit from the surge in retail sales. Brick-and-mortar sales specifically will grow 8% to a 10-year high. Brooks says that isn’t surprising because people want to resume in-person experiences.

In San Diego, the recovery is blossoming across asset classes. Industrial rents in the market continued to climb in the fourth quarter. According to market research from Marcus & Millichap, industrial rents in the market have increased 4.7% to $16.80 per square foot. Rents have grown consistently each quarter since the start of the pandemic. And in office, demand for lab space has increased 280% since March 2020 and office demand has already surpassed pre-COVID levels, according to research from JLL. The demand is driving both leasing and investment activity in the market.