Nuveen, Taconic and NAP buy Ridge Hill mall from QIC for $220m

Nuveen Real Estate, Taconic Partners and North American Properties (NAP) have bought a $220m (€190m) retail complex in New York from QIC.

The buyers said they have acquired Ridge Hill, a mixed-use lifestyle centre in Yonkers, with the plan to rebrand and transform the 74-acre property into an outdoor lifestyle centre.

Developed in 2011, Ridge Hill is a 1.2m sqft mixed-use lifestyle centre with retail and office space. Ridge Hill is currently 71.7%t occupied and home to a mix of retail and office tenants.

As a part of the partnership, NAP will begin operations and repositioning of the property.

The latest deal expands the relationship between Nuveen Real Estate and Taconic Partners which started in 2015. The pair have invested more than $2bn across over 2m sqft in New York. The acquisition of Ridge Hill is the partnership’s first investment into value-add retail and an opportunity to diversify beyond its existing life science, office and industrial holdings.

The Ridge Hill deal is the third partnership between Nuveen and NAP. The two companies recently acquired the open-air lifestyle centre The Forum on Peachtree Parkway in Peachtree Corners in Georgia.

Nadir Settles, managing director at Nuveen and head of the New York property fund, said the acquisition of Ridge Hill reflects a “generational opportunity” to re-position an already dominant lifestyle centre that sits in the heart of one of the country’s most affluent and densely populated regions.

Chris Balestra, president and CIO at Taconic Partners, said: “This unique retail asset will be a great addition to our fund and we look forward to being a part of its successful redevelopment.

Tim Perry, a managing partner at North American Properties, said: “Over the last decade, Ridge Hill has become a core component of the Yonkers community and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to enhance it by applying our high-touch, hospitality-driven approach toward management.”

JLL marketed the property on behalf of the seller, QIC US Management.

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