For the second time this month, a Publix-anchored shopping center is at the heart of a big-ticket retail sale in South Florida.
An affiliate of Horizon Properties of Miami bought El Mercado Plaza in Hialeah for $33 million, records show.
Publix is the anchor tenant in the 101,484-square-foot shopping center at 2400 West 60th Street, taking up 42,112 square feet. Other tenants include Bank of America, Pollo Tropical, Little Caesars, Cricket Wireless, U.S. Post Office and Banfield Pet Hospital, according to an online listing of the property.
An affiliate of Stockbridge Capital Group is the seller. The Atlanta-based real estate investment firm paid $23 million for El Mercado Plaza in 2015, records show.
Built in 1988, the shopping center is in a densely populated neighborhood, with more than 54,000 residents within one mile of the property, according to a Colliers International leasing listing.
Last week, Barberry Rose Management paid $16.5 million for the Quantum Village shopping center in Boynton Beach, anchored by a 45,600-square-foot Publix. Barberry, based in New York, financed the deal with a $14.5 million loan from Ameris Bank. Built in 2007, the Quantum Village retail property spans 95,499 square feet.
Publix Super Markets also has been acquiring development sites in South Florida. In April, the Lakeland-based grocery chain bought 1.4 acres at 2985 North Ocean Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. Publix paid $10 million for two parcels, with plans to build a 29,000-square-foot store with rooftop parking.
In July, Publix paid $9.1 million for a 20-acre site in the master-planned community of Westlake in Palm Beach County. The company received city approval to develop a 140,000-square-foot shopping plaza anchored by a 50,000-square-foot Publix grocery and liquor store at 5075 Seminole Pratt Whitney Road.
According to Colliers International, South Florida’s retail submarket rebounded in the second quarter, showing positive net absorption and stabilizing vacancy rates in the tri-county region. Population growth is boosting consumer trips to physical stores, and national discount retailers like Ross and Marshalls are driving new tenant occupancy, according to Colliers.