Henderson Park, the international private equity real estate firm, together with Lowe, a national real estate investor, developer and manager, have acquired Plaza Bonita, a 1,031,000sq ft enclosed regional shopping mall in National City, California, a suburb of San Diego.
The joint venture partners plan to upgrade and reposition the mall through significant capital improvements and leasing investment into a dominant regional enclosed mall.
Henderson Park will utilise both its international and domestic retail experience, with Lowe applying its extensive local knowledge and dedicated retail platform, Retail reVision, to operate the property. Together the partners aim to implement a business plan to refresh the existing retail spaces and reposition this well-located and strong performing grade A- mall, leveraging the mall’s growing demand base and long-standing appeal in the local community and extensive catchment area.
Originally built in 1981, Plaza Bonita is set on more than 78 acres and serves the communities of National City and Chula Vista in San Diego. The easily accessible and highly visible location provides direct access to major area thoroughfares, I-805 and Highway 54. The centre currently offers a mix of over 150 shops and restaurants including popular retailers Macy’s, Target, JC Penney, AMC Theatres, Nordstrom Rack and Round1.
Plaza Bonita has demonstrated consistent operating performance. Henderson Park and Lowe will aim to maintain it while driving value through strategic re-merchandising, leasing and capital investment initiatives. Supported by an experienced leasing team and a disciplined, data-driven approach to rent optimisation and tenant curation, the plan is designed to elevate the overall merchandising mix, drive sustained revenue growth and enhance long-term asset value.
Dennis Schiloff, Managing Director at Henderson Park, commented: “We remain strong believers in the long-term value of physical retail and we see great potential in Plaza Bonita as an asset with very compelling underlying fundamentals. By leveraging our experience in repositioning large-scale assets, we aim to create a more dynamic and engaging environment for both consumers and retail partners, while strengthening Plaza Bonita’s role as a destination for the local community. This is a well-established centre that has already demonstrated its staying power, drawing strong and growing visitation year after year. Through a disciplined program of capital investment and leasing initiatives, we are confident in our ability to meaningfully grow the property’s performance and reposition this asset from A- to A quality.”
