Colorado Real Estate Journal - April 18, 2018
A Loveland shopping center that’s been well cared for sold to a buyer with a vested interest in keeping it that way. Columbine Center Chen Associates LLC paid $4.86 million, or $152.83 per square foot, for 31,800 sf of shop space at Columbine Shopping Center. The group is managed by the owner of Main Moon Chinese Kitchen, a tenant in one of the center’s two buildings. Located at 2225-2295 E. Eisenhower Blvd., Columbine Shopping Center is shadow-anchored by the top-grossing Safeway in Loveland, according to Joe Palieri of Doberstein Lemburg Commercial Inc., who handled both sides of the transaction. “There are not any other groceries on the west side of town, and the west side has quite a few housing units, and also the demographics are pretty good,” he said. There also are “quite a few apartments” in the immediate vicinity. “It’s a good center. On a price-per-square-foot basis, it was pretty reasonable, too,” said Palieri, who added that it probably would cost $250 per sf to replace Columbine Shopping Center. Columbine Center Associates LLC sold the center, which was built in 1984 and had been owned by the same family ever since. The owner updated the façade to keep pace with a complete remodel of the Safeway in 2006 and was very active in the upkeep, Palieri said. “He had a lot of pride in the property, so that translated into value, for sure. There was no deferred maintenance whatsoever.” Also, “Vintage (Corp.) has done an exceptional job managing that property for the owner.” As a tenant and new owner, Palieri said it’s to the buyer’s “advantage to continue what’s been done there and to maintain it as well as it’s been maintained. I think most of the tenants are pretty happy that the buyer was local and was also a tenant. He has the same concerns that they do, so I think it will be good for everybody.” Columbine Shopping Center had a single, 1,827-sf vacancy at the time of the sale. El Cielo II Mexican restaurant, Daddy O’s Green Onion sandwich shop, Columbine Drug, Breakaway Cycles, Hank’s Pet Food Market and Associates in Family Eyecare are among tenants. The lease rates are below market, and a development agreement requires Safeway to take care of a good portion of the shared parking and common area electrical costs, said Palieri. As a result, he said, triple-net expenses are around $3 per sf less than at comparable retail centers. Other News A 33,654-square-foot office building in Centerra sold for $9.7 million, according to Larimer County records. FDC I Office I LLC, a McWhinney affiliate, sold the building at 5200 Hahns Peak Drive in Loveland to 5200 Hahns Peak LLC, records show. McWhinney declined to comment on the transaction. The buyer apparently is associated with a family owned real estate investment company. The Loveland VA Clinic occupies much of the two-story building, which was built in 1999. A Long Beach, California investor purchased the Bourquin Apartments, an 18-unit condominium development in Evans that was being operated as a rental property. Rich Ratkelis purchased the property at 2916-2924 Glendale Drive from the Estate of John V. Accashian. It consists of three contiguous buildings totaling 12,888 sf. Ratkelis also owns a property in Greeley. “As available supply eludes mom-and-pop investors in metro Denver, an increasing number of buyers are chasing yield in more tertiary markets. Markets like Greeley, Colorado Springs and Pueblo have all seen a surge in demand as returns in Denver have continued to compress,” said Erik Toll of Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors. Toll and Pinnacle’s J.B. Hochman handled both sides of the transaction.