The recent sale of the Barnsdall Square strip mall in upscale Los Feliz offers the latest reminder that brick-and-mortar retail still matters in Los Angeles.
The deal came on undisclosed terms, the Los Angeles Business Journal reported.
The lack of a sales price leaves whatever the deal says about where retail ranks among asset classes a question mark. It was a bread-and-butter buy for locally based investor Reliable Properties, which gets a chunk of the property on the 1600 block of Vermont Avenue that it didn’t already own. The deal included two separate parcels that combined for 4.3 acres to go with 1.4 acres Reliable already had in its portfolio after assembling pieces over the past year.
The investor now fully owns the 92,000-square-foot center, anchored by a Jon’s grocery store and Rite-Aid drug store, with 22 other tenants on the premises. Barnsdall Square’s address is 1533-1625 North Vermont Avenue.
Grocery stores and drug stores are key tenants in what have become known as “daily needs” retail centers, drawing steady traffic in trade for necessities, which brings potential customers for adjacent retailers of discretionary goods.
Reliable bills itself as investing in properties that hold potential to “revitalize urban areas and communities.” The company has not shed light on its plans for the center, but a comment from JLL broker Jeff Atkinson to the Business Journal indicated it could be looking to upgrade its tenant roster.
“In a retail market that is witnessing a scarcity of quality spaces, Los Feliz stands out as one of the most sought-after destinations in Los Angeles,” Adkison said. “The sale of Barnsdall Square attests to the increasing demand for high-quality retail assets in this thriving neighborhood.”