CTO Realty Growth made its first acquisition in South Florida, picking up a Broward shopping center for $65.2 million.
Winter Park-based CTO, led by John Albright, acquired Pompano Citi Centre, a 509,000-square-foot retail complex at 1955 North Federal Highway in Pompano Beach, a news release states. The buyer paid roughly $128 per square foot.
Cushman & Wakefield brokered the transaction.
Pompano Citi Centre is the latest South Florida shopping center to change hands in a recent flurry of year-end trades.
The seller, an affiliate of West Palm Beach-based Sterling Organization, paid $15 million for the 35-acre property in 2012, records show. The firm subsequently redeveloped a former Sears Auto Center into a fully leased multi-tenant strip mall.
Last year, Macy’s sold a separate 12 acres, including one of the retailer’s shuttered stores, on the mall site for $18.8 million to Morgan Group and Carlyle Group. The joint venture also purchased a parking lot surrounding the Macy’s portion for $8.8 million. Morgan and Carlyle are planning a 356-unit apartment complex.
Pompano Citi Centre is 92 percent occupied and is anchored by big box tenants Burlington, TJ Maxx, Nordstrom Rack, Ross Dress for Less and J.C. Penney. CTO retained Avenue Real Estate Partners to market the vacant space, which includes 62,000 square feet on the mall’s second floor.
A public real estate investment trust focused on shopping centers, CTO owns eight other such properties in Florida, according to the firm’s website. With the acquisition of Pompano Citi Centre, CTO’s year-to-date investment volume hit $149.9 million, the release states.
The trade comes as other investors pile into South Florida retail. North Miami-based IMC Equity Group recently dropped $74 million on Doral Square, a nearly fully leased shopping center in Doral developed by David Martin’s Coconut Grove-based Terra.
Also this month, South Florida shopping center mogul Raanan Katz’s firm, RK Centers, acquired a Fort Lauderdale shopping center for $36 million, and Lakeland-based grocery chain Publix bought a Boca Raton strip mall anchored by one of its stores for $83 million.