Joint Venture Nabs Philly-Area Shopping Center

By Tudor Scolca

Forks Town Center

A joint venture between Triple Crown Corp. and J.C. BAR Properties Inc. acquired Forks Town Center in Easton, Penn., from Retail Properties of America Inc. Thomas Gorman, senior vice president of debt and structured finance at CBRE, obtained an acquisition loan of $18 million on behalf of the buyer for the 100,250-square-foot Philadelphia metro retail center. CBRE’s Executive Vice President Brad Nathanson along with Sales Associate John Colussi negotiated on behalf of the seller and procured the buyer.

Forks Town Center was built in 2002. It is located at 301 Town Center Blvd. in Easton, Penn. Within a five-mile radius, the average household income is approximately $79,000 for a population of over 120,000 residents. New York is a 90-minute drive away via Interstate 78, while Philadelphia is 60 minutes away, via I-476.

Grocery-anchored retail center 

At the time of the transaction, the shopping center was 98 percent occupied. It is anchored by a 66,792-square-foot Giant Food Store with contiguous shopping space. Other tenants include PNC Bank, Dunkin’ Donuts, Verizon and Subway.

“With the primary demand today being in grocery-anchored neighborhood shopping centers, investors are flocking to the market leader as an anchor as a flight to safety. With Giant’s leading market share, Forks Town Center was highly demanded nationally given its prominence in an expanding submarket as the Lehigh Valley,” said Brad Nathanson in a prepared statement.

Image via Google Street View