By James Lomuscio
In another sign of Westport’s commercial real estate resurgence, a Main Street building has sold for $33.5 million, more than double what it sold for less than five years ago.
The recently renovated building at 125 Main St. sold for for more than double its purchase price in 2007. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
“It’s a great sale and a great testament to the strength of downtown Westport,” said developer David Waldman of Westport, a partner in the sale of 125 Main St., which took place Friday and was recorded in the Town Clerk’s Office today.
Waldman, principal of David Adam Realty, is a partner with the White Plains, N.Y.-based Acadia Realty Trust which purchased the property for $16.5 million from Sue Senie in the fall of 2007.
The sale of the recently renovated building housing the Gap stores is also a boon to municipal coffers as the town gets $83,740 in conveyance taxes.
Southport-based Campana 125 LLC is the new owner of the 27,000-square-foot, four-story building that also is home to Brooks Brothers Women and Fringe 125, a salon. The tenants that arrived in 2011 have more than 10-year leases, according to Waldman.
State records list Stuart L. Bell of Southport as manager of Campana 125 LLC. Bell is former chief financial officer of CUC (Comp-U-Card) International Inc.
“These are long term leases, so the buyer was able to purchase the building at the price he paid, making his investment secure with two long-term, credit worthy tenants in the heart of downtown,” he said.
“And the fact that he has the only four-story, 27,000-square-foot retail building in the downtown gives him a real advantage of renting in the future,” Waldman added.
The view of 125 Main St. from the Parker-Harding Plaza side. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
“Because of the contiguous nature of the space, Gap decided to move there because it allowed a similar footprint at a substantially lesser rent by moving into one building.”
Waldman worked with Acadia as the developer, lease representative and property manager. He noted that the redevelopment price tag was about $6.5 million.
“As a result of the full redevelopment of the property by Acadia and Waldman and the credit worthiness of the tenants, we were able to get the price we did,” he said.
Waldman, who represented the buyer, said he will remain as Campana’s property manager and broker, noting that 3,000-square-feet of retail space is still available on the building’s Parker-Harding side.
HK Group’s Matthew Keefe, president, and David Lindland, vice president, represented the joint venture seller in the transaction.
Waldman, president of David Adam Realty, represented the buyer in this transaction.
Old time Westportes will remember 125 Main St. as the home beginning in 1950 of Nat Greenberg’s Westport Hardware and later W & J Sloane furniture store. The building was destroyed in a 1976 fire and opened the following year as The Market Place Shopping Center.
