America’s Realty, LLC acquired the value-add retail asset situated in Gwinnett County, one of the nation’s fastest-growing markets
ATLANTA (February 2, 2020) – Franklin Street has arranged the sale of River Exchange, a 263,651-square-foot shopping center in Lawrenceville, Georgia, a fast-growing suburb approximately 25 miles northeast of Atlanta. The property is anchored by Kroger, the United States’ largest supermarket chain, which recently extended its lease by five years.
Franklin Street’s John Tennant and Bryan Belk, of the firm’s Atlanta Retail Investment Sales Team, represented local owner Monarch Investments in the disposition. The buyer is Baltimore-based America’s Realty, LLC, an investment group that owns several hundred shopping centers around the country and focuses primarily on grocery-anchored and discount retail properties. The group, led by President and CEO Carl Verstandig, acquired 18 shopping centers in 2020.
“At 83% occupancy, River Exchange provides a great opportunity to increase the NOI through lease up and increasing current below-market rents,” said Belk. “The dense neighborhood population surrounding the property bodes well for its longevity. Further, the large lot this property sits on allows for unlimited redevelopment opportunities in the future for alternative uses.”
In addition to Kroger, River Exchange tenants include Goodwill, Farmers Home Furniture, Metro by T-Mobile, Citi Trends, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, Hertz, Cato and One Main Financial. There is also a recently built Kroger fuel center on site.
At 2100 Riverside Parkway, River Exchange serves a population of over 233,000 residents within five miles and enjoys excellent visibility to over 44,500 vehicles a day. The area has seen substantially housing growth and several new apartment communities.
“Retail properties with a grocery anchor have historically been met with the strongest demand from investors, and the pandemic hasn’t changed that,” said Tennant. “Foot traffic to River Exchange has returned to pre-COVID levels, according to the data we track, which is a promising sign of recovery for the Greater Atlanta retail market and grocery-anchored assets in particular.”
About Franklin Street:
Founded in 2006 during one of the toughest real estate climates, Franklin Street focused on delivering value-added solutions to meet the evolving needs of clients. Through a collaborative philosophy of leveraging the resources, expertise and experience of each of its lines of business, Franklin Street has grown to include seven business divisions – Investment Sales, Tenant and Landlord Representation, Capital Advisory, Insurance, Property Management and Project Management. With more than $5 billion in transaction value across all major product types, Franklin Street offers unmatched value and optimal solutions for clients nationwide. Headquartered in Tampa, Fla., the company has offices in Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando and Atlanta. Learn more about Franklin Street at FranklinSt.com.
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