N.Y.-based Kimco Realty Corp., a firm that owns and operates shopping centers across the country, announced on Tuesday that its third quarter transaction activity for 2016 has exceeded $360 million.
Included in these recent acquisitions was the 97,000-square-foot Gateway Shopping Center, located at 13314 Bothell Everett Highway in Mill Creek, a northern suburb of Seattle. The firm paid $18.1 million to increase its ownership by 84 percent for an older shopping plaza developed by Oregon-based Gramor Development N.W. Inc. “The company’s total ownership level in this property is approximately 99 percent,” said David F. Bujnicki, the senior vice president of investor relations and strategy for Kimco, in an email.
The plaza’s grocery store is currently vacant, and has remained so since Safeway left in July of last year. In a press release, Kimco announced that the grocery-anchored center is a prime redevelopment opportunity. No further comment was made.
According to Kidder Mathews 2016 third quarter Seattle Retail report, the retail market is strong in the core markets of Seattle and on the Eastside, where most of the employment growth is occurring. The report added that there is positive absorption, new construction and a strong investment climate for stabilized centers and single tenant net leased properties.
Retail sales grew 6.2 percent over the last year, ranging from 5.1 percent up in Snohomish County to 8.7 percent in Kitsap County. Sales are projected to grow another 4.7 percent by the end of 2016, says the same report.
