News bits from the ICSC New York Deal Making show floor

• Phillips Edison & Co. closed out its 2017 acquisitions with the $13.9 million purchase of Mountain Crossing, a 96,600-square-foot, Kroger-anchored center in Dacula, Ga. That makes 23 grocery-anchored centers the firm has acquired this year on behalf of itself and its sponsored programs. The aggregate purchase price came to about $443 million, representing some 2 million square feet across eight states.

The firm also launched a national marketing campaign called PECO Grow, designed to emphasize the company’s long-term commitment to the communities it serves. Phillips Edison’s objective supports strengthening relationships with tenants and community leaders and influencers. 

“Our new PECO Grow initiative echoes our philosophy of being locally smart and is centered on the principles of partnership, collaboration and giving back to the communities where each of our properties are located,” said Scott Adair, CSM, vice president of economic development.

• L.L.Bean took an anchor position at Madison Marquette’s Montgomery Promenade, a specialty center set to open in 2019 near Princeton, N.J. The outdoor lifestyle retailer will occupy 17,000 square feet within Montgomery Promenade’s 270,000 square feet of retail space. The outpost will be the brand’s first in central New Jersey. 

“We could not ask for a better anchor for our new Montgomery Promenade project than L.L.Bean,” said Peter Tomai, the firm’s managing director for investments. “Madison Marquette and L.L.Bean share a vision for engaging and convenient locations where people gather for shared experiences. L.L.Bean’s long-standing reputation for quality and authenticity is a perfect fit for Montgomery and our local community.”

The Madison Marquette vision involves a “community responsive” tenant mix that includes shopping, dining and opportunities for active pursuits and experiences, according to Jamie Gull, L.L.Bean’s vice president of retail real estate. “Having a store in the Princeton market has long been a goal of ours,” said Gull, “and this location is well placed to serve our customer base in the area.”

• Starwood Retail Partners and parent Starwood Capital Group named Jeff Zeigler COO of the former. “We are pleased to add an executive with Jeff’s deep expertise in both leasing and development to Starwood Retail Partners’ team,” said Starwood Retail Partners CEO Michael Glimcher. “His extensive industry experience positions him to assist me to execute our plan to create multifaceted centers that will become the cores of their communities.”

Zeigler brings about 25 years of real estate experience with a specialization in retail development and leasing to the post.

“I’m excited to join the Starwood team, a brand that has become known for its innovative approach to leasing, management and marketing,” Zeigler said. “I’m looking forward to working with Michael and our team to reinvent the experience we bring to our guests as we add new uses, today’s critical retailers to our centers and new programs to engage our audiences.”

Before joining Starwood Retail Partners, Zeigler was at Continental Real Estate, The Herring Group, OliverMcMillan, Steiner & Associates and Westfield Group.

• North American Properties announced Riverton, a 418-acre, shovel-ready waterfront redevelopment on New Jersey’s Raritan River, in a joint venture with New Jersey–based PGIM Real Estate. In what the firm calls the largest mixed-use project in that state’s history and one of the most comprehensive and aggressive plans in the U.S. on the whole, North American Properties is poised to deliver a $2.5 billion community that combines residential, retail, entertainment, marina, office and hotel uses. “We create great, walkable places that connect people to each other, cities to their souls, partners to opportunities, and individuals to experiences that move them,” said Mark Toro, the firm’s Atlanta-based managing partner. “We are bringing together a world-leading visionary team to create New Jersey’s next great hometown.”
Public approvals for this site were initially obtained in 2014, but the firm has updated the redevelopment plan and is now in the process of securing the state and local approvals needed for Riverton.