Pennington Avenue Shopping Village at 359 Pennington Ave. in Trenton — Courtesy: Iron Ore Properties LLC
By Joshua Burd
An affiliate of Iron Ore Properties LLC has purchased a grocery-anchored retail center in Trenton, the Milburn-based firm announced Thursday.
Known as Pennington Avenue Shopping Village, the complex at 359 Pennington Ave. spans more than 59,000 square feet across nearly 5.5 acres. Iron Ore paid an undisclosed price for the 92 percent leased property, which is anchored by a Super Foods supermarket.
“This is the paradigm example of necessity, neighborhood retail,” said Josh Mann, the firm’s co-managing member. “The tenant base in the center has, for the most part, served the neighborhood for a long time. It is surrounded by tons of housing with a bus stop at the property. The previous owners did a wonderful job maintaining it.”
First Bank provided financing for the deal, while Michael Lombardi, an executive vice president with Horvath & Tremblay’s New Jersey office, represented a longtime holder in the sale.
“Multiple competing bids were produced within the first week of marketing,” Lombardi said. “There is a strong level of interest for grocery-anchored centers including upside potential.”
In announcing the deal, Iron Ore said the Pennington Avenue site provided a chance to balance its portfolio of mostly residential and mixed-use assets. It currently has no plans to fully redevelop the site, whose other tenants include Boost Mobile, Metro PCS, a recently renovated laundromat, the YMCA, restaurants and other neighborhood retailers.
“This is a terrific diversification for ourselves and our investors, and we are excited about the site in its current form,” Mann added. “We recently sold a commercial asset in downtown Newark, and this replaces that in our portfolio. Down the line — who knows? But one way or another — we believe that this retail center is an important anchor in the neighborhood and we look forward to further investment in the property.”
