HENRICO, Va. — A New York buyer with an appetite for struggling malls has found its latest acquisition in Henrico County.
Virginia Center Commons, a suburban mall at 10101 Brook Road that has been hindered in recent years by high vacancy rates and the recent loss of an anchor tenant, was purchased this month by Great Neck, New York-based Kohan Retail Investment Group for $9 million.
Mike Kohan, principal of the firm, confirmed Tuesday afternoon that the deal closed Jan. 10.
Kohan’s purchase includes 577,000 square feet comprising the main arteries of Virginia Center Commons, but does not include the buildings occupied by J.C. Penney, Sears and the former Macy’s. Those retailers each own their respective buildings, comprising about 338,000 square feet.
The mall’s total square footage is 915,000.
Last year, the property was assessed at $28.5 million, according to county records. That’s down from a $30.7 million assessment in 2015.
Kohan Retail specializes in purchasing and renovating distressed malls and retail centers in the Midwest and Southeast, according to its website.
Kohan did not disclose future plans for Virginia Center Commons, or what attracted him to the property.
Virginia Center Commons, one of the last all-indoor suburban malls constructed in the region, opened in 1993.
The mall had been owned, managed and operated by Indiana-based Simon Property Group, according to tax records.
Simon spokesman Les Morris said the firm later spun off Virginia Center Commons, along with a number of other smaller mall assets, into a separate company, Washington Prime Group, in 2014.
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