Lakeland open-air lifestyle center sells for $78 million
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Sep 21, 2023

A prominent Central Florida mixed-use retail property has sold for just under $78 million.

Lakeland’s Lakeside Village sold to Baltimore-based Continental Realty Corp. in June, according to Polk County property records. Berkadia, which secured a $53.7 million loan for the acquisition, announced its role in the deal this week.

Scott Wadler, Matt Nihan and Alec Fox of Berkadia South Florida secured the five-year loan from City National Bank of Florida.

“City National Bank was attracted to Lakeside Village’s substantial barriers to entry and the sponsor’s successful track record repositioning similar assets,” Wadler said in a statement. “Lakeside Village enjoys an excellent location adjacent to I-4, with the nearest comparable lifestyle center located more than 35 miles away. Further, it is complemented by several market-leading hotels and newly built apartments situated just steps from the property.”

Lakeside Village was developed in 2005 and is similar in nature to many open-air shopping centers of that era. The entire property is 541,465 square feet; of that, 454,872 square feet of retail and office uses were sold to Continental Realty Corp. Four hotels on the property, a total of 383 keys, are separately owned and not part of the transaction.

It is anchored by CMX Cinemas, Kohl’s, Belk and Books-A-Million.

Danny Finkle, Eric Williams, Jorge Portela and Kim Flores of JLL’s Retail Capital Markets team represented the seller, Casto-Oakbridge Venture Ltd., in the transaction. Jennifer Power, vice president of capital markets at Continental Realty Corp., represented her company in the transaction.

“We have recently experienced strong investor demand, increasing conviction and capital formation around large format retail strategies,” Williams said in a statement. “Dominant regional centers like Lakeside Village are well-positioned for future success, and investors recognize the long-term value proposition.”