Unison Realty & Blue Vista Capital Acquire Hunt River Commons Shopping Center in North Kingstown, Rhode Island
BOSTON, MA (January 25, 2018) – A joint venture between Unison Realty Partners and Blue Vista Capital Management announced its purchase of Hunt River Commons, a 147,270-square foot neighborhood shopping center in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, for $15.85M.
Anchored by Stop & Shop and Marshalls, Hunt River Commons is currently 84% leased with other creditworthy tenants including Planet Fitness, GNC and Citizen’s Bank. The center was constructed in 1989 and is strategically located on Frenchtown Road, a connector road at the intersection of Highway 4, Route 403 and Route 1, with a combined average traffic volume of approximately 120,000 vehicles per day. Situated twenty minutes from Providence, Hunt River Commons serves an affluent suburban community, with over 24,000 residents earning an average annual income of more than $124,000 within a 3-mile radius.
Unison and Blue Vista have retained The Wilder Companies, a leading retail-specialist real estate services firm headquartered in Boston, as both property manager and leasing agent for the center.
“In contrast to some of the retail headlines nowadays, Hunt River Commons is the posterchild for the virtues of the neighborhood grocery-anchored retail sector,” says Jason Schwartz, Principal of Blue Vista Capital Management. “Anchored by dominant retailers Stop & Shop and Marshalls, the center is well-positioned for continued growth, and we’re excited to embark on this venture with Unison as our New England-based retail operating partner.”
The acquisition of Hunt River Commons is the first joint venture between Unison Realty Partners and Blue Vista Capital Management.
“We plan to maximize the potential of Hunt River Commons through a hands-on leasing and management approach,” says Karim Fadel, Founder and Principal of Unison Realty Partners. “We look forward to partnering with Blue Vista on the project, who has a shared vision for value-add investment opportunities in today’s middle-market real estate sector.”
Nat Heald, Executive Vice President at JLL, served as broker in this acquisition.
About Unison Realty Partners
Unison Realty Partners is a private equity real estate firm 100% dedicated to value-add retail investing. Based in Boston and founded in 2010, the firm has acquired over $200 million of shopping center space, totaling 1.6 million square feet across 15 properties since inception. As an independent owner / operator, Unison implements a value-add investment strategy throughout the Eastern U.S. Unison targets necessity-based, neighborhood and community shopping centers representing $10-$50 million in property value. Learn more at www.unisonrealtypartners.com.
About Blue Vista Capital Management
Founded in 2002, Blue Vista Capital Management, LLC is a leading real estate investment management firm focused on helping investors maximize returns in real estate through best-in-class investment strategies focused exclusively on middle market equity and debt, and student housing in the U.S. and select international markets. To date, Blue Vista has participated in direct investments and joint ventures representing approximately $7.5 billion in total capitalization and the firm has raised in excess of $2.0 billion in equity through various closed end funds and separate account relationships.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Unison Realty Partners
Brendon McCarthy, CFA
Acquisitions
+1 617-702-8506
bmccarthy@unisonrealtypartners.com
John DiOrio, CAIA
Joint Venture & Investment Solutions
+1 617-702-8507
jdiorio@unisonrealtypartners.com
Blue Vista Capital Management
Jason Schwartz
Principal
+1 312-324-6064