TV dinner scion buys Little River site in Opportunity Zone

W. Clarke Swanson Jr., scion of the Swanson frozen food company, paid $156 psf for the site

W. Clarke Swanson Jr, a Swanson TV dinner, and 2 Northwest 79th Street (Credit: Wine Watch, LoopNet, and Pinterest)
W. Clarke Swanson Jr, a Swanson TV dinner, and 2 Northwest 79th Street (Credit: Wine Watch, LoopNet, and Pinterest)

An entity tied to an heir of the Swanson food fortune just picked up three parcels in a designated Opportunity Zone site in Miami’s Little River neighborhood for $5.6 million, with plans for a 7-Eleven convenience store.

SP Miami, which is connected to W. Clarke Swanson Jr. of Naples, Florida, bought the 35,489-square foot vacant site at 2 Northwest 79th Street, 22 Northwest 79th Street, and 38 Northwest 79th Street for $156 per square foot, records show.

The properties are located in one of the more than 8,700 Opportunity Zones across the country. The federal program allows developers or investors to defer or potentially forgo paying some of their capital gains taxes if they invest in economically distressed areas.

The seller of the property is an affiliate of Cape Coral-based Creighton Commercial Development and Construction.

The convenience store chain 7-Eleven signed a 20-year lease at the site in 2017, property records show.

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Swanson Jr.’s grandfather started Omaha-based Swanson, which is credited with mainstreaming TV dinners. Swanson Jr. and his wife founded Swanson Vineyards in 1985 in Napa Valley. The winery is known for its Pinot Grigio, Merlot and Alexis Cabernet Sauvignon.

Little River along with Little Haiti, are seeing an increasing amount of new development and investment.

The ArtCenter/South Florida, which is changing its name to Oolite Arts, just bought two parcels at 75 and 77 Northwest 72nd Street for about $6 million to build its new home, a 50,000-square-foot facility that’s projected to open in 2022.

In 2017, Stambul, Miami Real Exposure and P & K Developments bought two parcels at 235 and 237 Northeast 79th Street with plans to bring a a 42,000-square-foot, mixed-use development called Eden to the neighborhood.