Staff Report
Published Sept. 27, 2011

Milestone Plaza on Pelham Road in Greenville was one of 36 shopping centers in the Southeast and Maryland sold by Equity One Inc. for $473 million to Blackstone Real Estate Partners VII.

The 89,721-square-foot shopping center is anchored by Bi-Lo. Other tenants include Ruby Tuesday, Advance Auto, Great Clips, Allstate and RadioShack.

The other shopping centers sold as part of the Blackstone acquisition are predominately located in the Atlanta, Tampa, Fla., and Orlando, Fla., markets, with additional properties located in North Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee and Maryland.

The portfolio generated net operating income of approximately $35.4 million for the 12-month period ended June 30 and was 91% occupied, Equity One said.

Equity One intends to use the proceeds from the sale to retire debt, fund its redevelopment pipeline, fund future acquisitions and other corporate purposes.

"We are very pleased to enter into this transaction with Blackstone," CEO Jeff Olson said. "Together with our $600 million purchase of Capital & Counties and other recent acquisitions, this sale significantly advances our strategic plan to concentrate our portfolio in the urban retail markets of New York, Miami, Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles."

Closing of the transaction is subject to customary conditions and is expected to occur in the fourth quarter of 2011.