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La Grange Crossing shopping center sold, former Borders nearly full
Updated: March 25, 2013 1:19AM
LA GRANGE — The La Grange Crossing Shopping Center has been sold for $21.1 million to a pension fund, and five new tenants have signed leases.
Edward Hassan, owner of Edwards Realty based in Orland Park, confirmed the sale of the 67,800-square-foot property straddling La Grange Road in mid-December to a fund represented by RREEF Real Estate. The investment firm manages property investments for Germany’s Duetsche Bank.
“They made an offer, and we decided to sell,” Hassan said. “La Grange is in demand, and we also do well with distressed property. We purchase and turn it around, and we sell it.”
Hassan said his company bought the shopping center in July 2010, well aware of financial problems with Borders bookstore, one of the anchors with about 17,000 square feet on two floors. The store survived one round of closings in the chain, but was shuttered in September 2011.
Patrick Benjamin, community development director for La Grange, said the Hassan family and leasing agent Mid-America Asset Management Inc. worked diligently for a year to find a single replacement tenant, but without success.
“They’ve done a fairly good job of finding a mix of tenants,” Benjamin said. “Smashburger’s is being very well received. They’re doing really well.”
Hassan said leases have been signed with Massage Envy and ATI Therapy for spaces upstairs, and a yogurt store, Great Clips and an AT&T phone store will occupy the ground level with Smashburger. AT&T is moving from a spot in the center to the north.
Benjamin said a third space upstairs remains vacant.
Other major tenants in the complex are Trader Joe’s, Corner Bakery, Walgreens and Pier 1 Imports.
Benjamin said the shopping center’s sale moved quickly.
“They didn’t have it on the market. A lot of institutional retirement funds go looking for quality shopping centers to have in their portfolio, and they were approached,” he said. “There was a distinct advantage to selling before the end of the year, because the capital gains tax was going up significantly.”
Benjamin said the new owners are the second institutional investor to own the property developed by Triangle Partners in 2000. The next owner was UBS Realty, an institutional investor, which sold to Edward Realty. Hassan confirmed he purchased the center for $16.3 million.
