A potential property sale in Lido Village could add another notable redevelopment project to the marina-centric area that includes Newport Beach’s existing City Hall.
DJM Capital Partners Inc., a San Jose-based private equity real estate group that owns the Bella Terra shopping center in Huntington Beach and other local properties, is said to be nearing a deal to buy part of Lido Marina Village, a 17-acre retail and office center near the intersection of Newport Boulevard and Via Lido.
Terms of the sale and the specific buildings involved in the transaction have not been announced.
More than a dozen office, retail and restaurant buildings are in the Lido Marina Village.
The properties expected to trade hands are owned by New York-based Vornado Realty Trust, according to a recent report in The Log, a boating and fishing trade publication that first reported the deal.
A sale of the buildings could be concluded as soon as next month, DJM executives told the paper.
DJM is said to be considering a plan to upgrade the properties in a bid to create a more vibrant retail destination, and improvements to the marina on the site also could be part of the redevelopment.
Vornado and other property owners in the area—including Fritz Duda Co., the Dallas-based owner of the nearby Via Lido Plaza retail center—have had on-again, off-again talks with the city over the years about refurbishing the area.
Newport Beach city officials told the Business Journal that they have not seen formal plans or applications from DJM for the Lido Marina Village.
A deal for the property would represent another notable coastal development opportunity in Orange County for DJM. Last year the company bought land designated for the commercial portions of the long-stalled Pacific City development in Huntington Beach.
DJM hopes to break ground on its portion of the 31-acre project later this year.
The potential involvement of DJM in the Lido Marina Village project comes as the city of Newport Beach gets closer to selecting a partner to help redevelop its current city hall site.
Some 15 development groups initially expressed interest in turning the land into a residential or hotel project after the city moves to its new civic center location in Newport Center later this year.
That list has been winnowed to six development teams.
The city said it expects to select the winning team in May and that the proposed project-site design review may be ready for public hearings late this year.
Three hotel development teams are still in the running for the project: Pacific Hospitality Group and RD Olson Development, both based in Irvine as well as Los Angeles-based Sonnenblick Development LLC.
The three remaining developers proposing a mixed-use residential project at the site are Newport Beach-based Olen Properties, Shopoff Group in Irvine and Chicago-based AMLI Residential Partners.
$100M Here
Irvine-based Sares-Regis Group said it has raised $100 million to help fund a new round of apartment acquisitions.
The real estate investor and developer said it has closed a multifamily fund whose equity commitments can be used to buy more than $300 million in apartment assets.
Sares-Regis co-sponsored the fund with Penn Square Real Estate Group, which is based in Radnor, Pa.
The fund—raised from a number of larger institutional investors—intends to acquire properties primarily in coastal California, Seattle and Denver, as well as Portland and Phoenix, according to Geoffrey Stack, Sares-Regis’ group managing director, who is running the fund.
“Garden-style, midrise and high-rise assets will be considered,” Stack said.
Sares-Regis said it manages a portfolio of more than 13,000 apartments for its partners and investor clients valued at more than $2.5 billion.
$100M There
Costa Mesa-based shopping center owner Donahue Schriber said it has secured $100 million in equity commitments to help fund the company’s growth plans over the next three to five years.
The money comes from the privately held company’s major investors, the New York State Teachers’ Retirement System and J.P. Morgan Strategic Property Fund.
The company said it remains focused on expanding its holdings of grocery-anchored shopping centers in high-barrier-to-entry, supply-constrained markets on the West Coast.
“We are well positioned to take advantage of new market opportunities,” Chairman and Chief Executive Patrick Donahue said.
Last year the company sold off about $250 million of nonstrategic assets while buying four other properties valued at about $200 million.
