Phillips Edison Enters Ohio Market

By Scott Baltic, Contributing Editor

John Bessey, Phillips Edison

In its first acquisition in its home state of Ohio, Cincinnati-based Phillips Edison Grocery Center REIT II Inc. has purchased Harvest Plaza, a 75,866-square-foot grocery store–anchored shopping center on an 8-acre site in Akron, Ohio, the buyer announced Wednesday.

A SEC filing by the REIT noted that the $8 million purchase took place on Monday and involved an indirect wholly owned subsidiary. Harvest Plaza is anchored by Giant Eagle, the Akron area’s number-one grocer by market share. Other national and regional tenants at the center, which is fully leased, include Papa John’s, Subway and Super Cuts.

Phillips Edison funded the purchase, from Garrison Central Harvest Plaza L.L.C., with proceeds from its ongoing initial public offering. Phillips Edison & Co. will manage and lease the center.

“Phillips Edison has a national focus, and we look at opportunities all over the country. From there, we zero in on a robust set of factors, including the strength of the grocer, the quality of the specific asset and the ‘micro-market,’ the three-mile trade area around our centers,” John Bessey, the REIT’s chief investment officer, told Commercial Property Executive.

“Harvest Plaza has solid real estate fundamentals and is anchored by the market leading grocer, Giant Eagle.” he continued. “The center is also 100 percent occupied with national tenants. We believe the acquisition of this asset further enhances our portfolio diversification strategy by geography, grocer, tenancy and creditworthiness.”

Phillips Edison Grocery Center REIT II Inc. is a public non-traded REIT co-sponsored by Phillips Edison Limited Partnership, a leading owner/operator of grocery-anchored shopping centers and by AR Capital L.L.C., a real estate investment program sponsor. As of the purchase, it owned and managed a portfolio of 22 grocery-anchored shopping centers totaling 2.4 million square feet.