EVERETT — A growing south Everett shopping center anchored by Target and Gart Sports has sold for $13.9 million to a property firm based in Bellevue.
Bloch Properties LLC bought the Greentree Plaza Shopping Center, located along Everett Mall Way at Third Avenue Southeast. The seller was P.O’B. Montgomery &Co. of Dallas, Texas.
Bloch Properties’ portion of the strip mall includes the Gart Sports’ building and 20 small shop spaces, for a total of about 80,000 square feet. The larger space occupied by Target was not part of the deal, as that retailer owns its own building.
Darren Bloch, manager for Bloch Properties, said the amount of traffic around the shopping center and Target’s ability to draw in customers made Greentree Plaza an attractive buy.
"I’m happy with the retail that’s in there and that’s coming online," he said.
Already under construction is a new building that will house a Starbucks Coffee outlet with a drive-through window and a Baja Fresh Mexican restaurant. Those will open in the summer, Bloch said.
The rest of the shopping center is almost fully leased, with one 4,000-square-foot space available.
Greentree Plaza is the biggest property Bloch’s family-owned firm has ever purchased, he said. It’s also the first the firm has bought in Snohomish County, although it operates the Tony Roma’s and Chevy’s Fresh Mex restaurants in Lynnwood in leased spaces.
Bloch said he’s intrigued by the area’s long-term potential, especially with the Boeing Co.’s decision to assemble its new 7E7 jetliner locally and the Port of Everett’s waterfront redevelopment plan.
"I particularly like what’s going on in Everett," he said.
Bloch added that his company may eventually buy more properties in the county, "if the right thing comes along."
Greentree Plaza’s seller, P.O’B. Montgomery, bought the shopping center in 2001 when Burnham Pacific Properties of California sold it for an undisclosed price. Recently, P.O’B. has sold other properties in the county, including the Marysville Town Center in September 2002.
Don Fosseen, a vice president with CB Richard Ellis who represented Bloch Properties in the sale, said shopping centers and other retail properties are still attracting buyers. Last year, at least four retail buildings or shopping centers in the county sold for more than $13 million.
"Retail’s the most active arena right now," Fosseen said.
Part of the reason is that firms are looking to invest in real estate while interest rates remain low. And compared to the high vacancy rates for the office and industrial buildings, retail properties have stayed relatively full through the economic downturn.
Reporter Eric Fetters: 425-339-3453 or fetters@heraldnet.com.
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