Nobody walks in L.A., as the hit new-wave song of yesteryear says.
So try Atlanta.
That’s what Los Angeles-based investor Westwood Financial is doing with its $25.5 million buy of the Glenwood Park district, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.
The 50,000-square-foot center southeast of downtown is a walkable retail center of boutiques, daily needs retailers, and hip restaurants, including Kevin Gillespie’s highly touted Gunshot, which specializes in eclectic versions of dim-sum off rolling carts.
Westwood Financial acquired the center from Charlotte-based Asana Partners, which broke into the Atlanta market seven years ago and has accumulated a portfolio of more than 2 million square feet.
Asana paid $18.1 million for the Glenwood Park center, part of a focus on prime retail that saw it acquire Krog Street Market, Midtown Promenade and Plaza on Ponce.
Asana did not respond to a request for comment from the Business Chronicle, but one of its managing partners, Terry Brown, told the publication last year that “we have to sell assets.” The apparent imperative came after Asana had raised $1 billion from backers for a third value-add fund.
Westwood Financial will add the Glenwood Park property to its extensive holdings, which includes more than 100 retail centers nationwide. The firm counts Village Place at Brookhaven, Trinity Square in Decatur and Decatur Crossing in the Atlanta metro among its holdings, according to its website.
Read more
Commercial
Atlanta
Quiet luxury retailer opening in Jamestown’s Buckhead Village
Commercial
Atlanta
Retail vacancies hit record low in Atlanta
Commercial
Atlanta
CP Group eyes revival of mostly vacant CNN Center
The firm is counting on the center’s location in central Atlanta and proximity to public transit links as building blocks for continued growth, CEO Mark Bratt said.
“The strategic location of Glenwood Park and its proximity to the Atlanta BeltLine will significantly boost pedestrian traffic and tenant demand, making it a prime destination for locals and visitors,” he said.
Population growth and retail spending are keeping Atlanta’s retail real estate in good shape. The city’s retail vacancy rate stood at 3.6 percent in the first quarter, near a record low, according to Colliers.