Developers Diversified and Coventry Real Estate Advisors Announce the Acquisition of Suburban Seattle, WA Shopping Center
CLEVELAND, Jan 22, 2004 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Developers Diversified Realty (NYSE: DDR) and Coventry Real Estate Advisors ("Coventry") today announced the acquisition of Totem Lake Malls, a 290,000 square foot shopping center in suburban Seattle, Washington. The property is approximately 78% leased and is anchored by Trader Joe's, Ross Dress For Less, CompUSA, Famous Footwear, Rite Aid and Big 5 Sporting Goods.
Totem Lake Malls was built in 1973 as a two-story enclosed regional mall. Although several anchor tenants in the mall reported the highest sales volumes of their respective chains, the property went through a period of transition during which the property changed ownership and many of the local and regional tenants closed. The property, which is located five miles north of downtown Kirkland, Washington along I-405, is extremely well-located with outstanding visibility and access. The population count within a five-mile radius of Totem Lake Malls is approximately 200,000, with an average household income of over $110,000. Considering the attributes of the site and the supply constraints present in the Kirkland market, the property represents a key location for new retail formats seeking entry in the Seattle Eastside submarket. Developers Diversified will pursue a large-scale redevelopment of the mall.
Totem Lake Malls is the second property acquired by the Coventry Real Estate Fund II (the "Fund"). The Fund was formed with several institutional investors and Coventry serves as the investment manager. The Fund and Developers Diversified have agreed to jointly acquire value-added retail properties in the U.S. The Fund invests in a variety of well-located retail properties that present opportunities for value creation, such as retenanting, market repositioning, redevelopment or expansion.
Developers Diversified co-invests 20% in each joint venture and is responsible for the day-to-day management of the properties. Pursuant to the terms of the joint venture, Developers Diversified earns fees for property management, leasing and construction management plus a promoted interest, along with Coventry, after return of capital to investors.
Developers Diversified owns and manages approximately 360 retail operating and development properties totaling over 82 million square feet of real estate in 44 states. Developers Diversified is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) operating as a fully integrated real estate company which develops, leases and manages shopping centers. You can learn more about Developers Diversified on the internet at www.ddr.com. Coventry Real Estate Advisors is an investment manager offering a broad array of services to institutional investors in the value-added retail property sector. Coventry acquires under-performing retail properties where identifiable opportunities exist to enhance free cash flow and create substantial value through leasing, redevelopment and intensive management.
Developers Diversified Realty Corporation considers portions of this information to be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, both as amended, with respect to the Company's expectation for future periods. Although Developers Diversified believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved. For this purpose, any statements contained herein that are not historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause the results of Developers Diversified to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including, among other factors, local conditions such as oversupply of space or a reduction in demand for real estate in the area, competition from other available space, dependence on rental income from real property or the loss of a major tenant. For more details on the risk factors, please refer to the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year-end December 31, 2002.