Department Store

Phoenix -- Vestar Development Co. and Rockwood Capital on Tuesday acquired Tempe Marketplace for $280 million by buying out an original partner. In conjunction with the closing, Tempe Marketplace received a new $200 million permanent financing package from GACC.

Vestar was the developer of Tempe Marketplace and had previously partnered with DLJ/Credit Suisse. Both Rockwood and Vestar made significant investments in the acquisition. Under terms of the deal, Vestar will be the managing partner.

The Nov. 24 edition of SiteTalk invited readers to suggest what they thought would be most talked-about in the aisles of the International Council of Shopping Centers New York deal-making conference. Here is what one reader had to say:

 "I expect to hear people complimenting our new Roundtables (Tuesday, Dec. 7, 8-9 a.m.) at the Sheraton. Also, if Black Friday and the start of holiday shopping season match retailer expectations (as shown in our pre-holiday tenant survey), I expect to hear about more deals being made."

New York City -- Activist investor Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management raised its stake in Borders Group from 31.5% to 37.3% and is prepared to finance an offer by Borders to buy larger rival Barnes & Noble, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission Monday.

According to the statement, Ackman is prepared to finance an offer by Borders to buy all of Barnes & Noble’s stock in an all-cash transaction valued at $16 per share, which would amount to about $960 million, based on the shares outstanding.

Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether to certify the largest class-action employment discrimination lawsuit in U.S. history, a long-standing dispute involving Wal-Mart Stores and alleged gender bias in pay and promotions.

Apollo Beach, Fla. -- Tampa, Fla.-based RMC Property Management Group announced that Dollar Tree will open a new 9,500-sq.-ft. store at Summerfield Crossing Plaza, located in Apollo Beach, Fla.

The Dollar Tree Store will be constructed adjacent to a new 80,000-sq.-ft. Bealls department store.

Dollar Tree is slated to open April 2011.

New York City -- The National Retail Federation on Friday released its 2010 list that annually ranks the 10 stores with the best customer service.

The list is based on surveys of more than 9,000 shoppers, all asked the following question: “Thinking of all the different retail formats (store, catalog, Internet or home shopping), which retailer delivers the best customer service?”

In total, the NRF ranked 46 stores, and will release the complete list in January.