Centurion American Scores $24M PACE Deal for Collin Creek Mall

The redevelopment of Plano’s Collin Creek Mall got a turbo boost in the form of Property Assessed Clean Energy financing.

Developer Centurion American secured a $24.4 million deal via the Department of Energy-administered program that provides financing for energy efficiency projects.

Nuveen Green Capital, a subsidiary of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America, is the lender.

The terms of the loan were not specified, but PACE financing is typically priced at a spread of 350 to 400 basis points with the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond yield, said Juliana Brooks, the PACE consultant on the deal. They’re often amortized over 25 to 30 years with one to two years of capitalized interest and one to two years of interest-only payments.

Centurion American is converting the shopping center into an outdoor mall.

Collin Creek Mall was built in 1981. Centurion American purchased it in 2018 with plans to raze the structure and build a $1 billion mixed-use project. The finished project will include 308,000 square feet of retail space, 2,300 apartments, a hotel, 1.3 million square feet of office space and a park.

The PACE financing program exploded in popularity about two years ago when interest rate hikes made lenders wary and debt more expensive.

It can be used for up to 25 percent of a project’s capital stack, Brooks said. PACE financing can cover costs like HVAC, roofing, windows, elevators, insulation and lighting

Since many new development and redevelopment projects already include energy efficient elements, some developers don’t need to change plans to qualify for the financing.

“If you’re building a ground-up multifamily development project, you’re not having to put solar panels on the roof,” Brooks said.

Another example of a local project that used PACE financing is Hotel Swexan, a boutique luxury hotel in Dallas, she said.

Centurion American Development Group is Mehrdad Moayedi’s development company. The firm has developed more than 300 communities across North Texas, including the Estates at Eagle Mountain. That 836-acre community will feature about 1,100 homes, the Dallas Morning News reported.