Real Estate

Chicago -- Peet’s Coffee & Tea is growing its footprint in the greater Chicago area, opening 16 stores in a phased rollout across the market this fall. Chicago is part of Peet’s aggressive U.S. expansion effort that began last year, which will bring its store total to nearly 300 locations nationwide by the end of the year.

Brooklyn, N.Y. -- Home furnishings retailer West Elm will open a store in Pittsburgh, on Sept. 4.

Located in Bakery Square, the new store will feature a curated selection of products made in Pennsylvania, part of West Elm’s Local initiative. The initiative, launched this year, taps into local entrepreneurship by empowering the teams in West Elm stores to find area makers and designers, building and nurturing a creative network that celebrates craftspeople and differentiates the brand with regional assortments.

Goodlettsville, Tenn. -- The battle for Family Dollar moved into higher gear on Tuesday with Dollar General raising its bid for Family Dollar to $9.1 billion, or $80 per share, up from $78.50 per share in its previous offer. Dollar General also warned that it would attempt a hostile bid if Family Dollar refused to enter into talks regarding the new offer.

Murad, the skin care brand founded by Howard Murad, plans to open in October the company’s first official stand-alone retail boutique.

The freestanding store, which will serve as Murad’s global flagship retail location, will be located in Los Angeles. The opening of the 1,500-sq.-ft. store front coincides with the celebration of Murad’s 25th anniversary this year.

Chicago -- Pine Tree Commercial Realty has acquired Poplar-Prairie Stone Crossing, a class-A power shopping center located in the Northwest Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The recent acquisition is Pine Tree’s 70th and brings the company’s current portfolio to 3.4 million sq. ft. in 19 separate properties.

The 312,000-sq.-ft. shopping center is shadow-anchored by Target and features TJ Maxx, Michaels, Ross Dress for Less, PetSmart, Lane Bryant, and Sports Authority.

Richmond, Va. -- Divaris Real Estate, Inc. announced the signing of four leases, totaling 14,362 sq. ft. of office, industrial and retail space in metropolitan Richmond, Virginia.

The Hohman Group signed a lease for 6,307 sq. ft. of industrial space located at 3409 Leigh Street. The Hohman Group is an industrial design firm, which designs and prototypes products and furniture. In addition, their company, Action Figures, builds sets and decorates locations for motion pictures.

Chicago -- Mid-America Asset Management recently secured new retail leases on behalf of two shopping centers in Chicago’s northwest suburbs. DSW Shoe Warehouse signed a lease for 23,773 sq. ft. at Village Square of Northbrook located at the southeast corner of Lake Cook Road and Skokie Boulevard in Northbrook, Ill. The 334,995-sq.-ft. center is anchored by Nordstrom Rack, Marshall’s, The Container Store, PetSmart, Cost Plus World Market, and Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th. DSW, expected to open in spring 2015, is taking the space vacated by Loehmann’s.

Orlando, Fla. -- JLL continues to build its retail brokerage practice in Florida with the addition of Andrew Dieringer, Terrence Hart and Brandon Delanois. The trio bring more than 40 years of retail agency leasing and tenant representation experience to the team, and will be based in the firm’s Orlando office. Together, they will partner with John Lambert, Florida Retail Market Lead for JLL, and Justin Greider, VP of JLL, to help investors achieve their asset goals and work with retailers to identify and secure optimal new locations.

Smyrna, Ga. -- A groundbreaking ceremony has officially launched construction on Belmont, a 48-acre mixed-use development that will feature restaurants, retail shops, single-family homes and luxury rental apartments on the site of the former Belmont Hills Shopping Center in Smyrna, Georgia.
 
The development will include a 153-home single-family residential subdivision by David Weekley Homes; a 274-unit luxury apartment community by Wood Partners; and a 47,593-sq.-ft. neighborhood retail center, which developer Halpern Enterprises will build.

San Antonio, Texas - Tryperion Partners, a private real estate investment firm, has acquired Gateway Plaza, a 97% occupied, 138,510-sq.-ft. community shopping center anchored by Burlington Coat Factory that is located in San Antonio’s burgeoning metropolitan area. The acquisition, which is Tryperion’s second of a San Antonio REO property in less than a year, includes additional land for future development.