HFF Closes Sale and Arranges $81.36 Million Financing for The Waterfront in Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HFF announced today that it has closed the sale of The Waterfront, a 764,691-square-foot regional retail center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and also arranged acquisition financing for the buyer.

HFF marketed the property exclusively on behalf of the seller. M&J -- BIG Waterfront Town Center, LLC, a joint venture between BIG Shopping Centers USA and M & J Wilkow, Ltd., purchased The Waterfront for an undisclosed amount.

HFF also arranged an $81.36 million, 10-year, 4.35 percent, fixed-rate acquisition loan through Ladder Capital on behalf of the buyer. The securitized loan will be sub-serviced by HFF.

The Waterfront is situated on 265 acres at 100-146 W. Bridge Street close to the affluent residential communities of Squirrel Hill and Shadyside as well as the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh. Completed in 2001, the 89 percent leased property is a redevelopment of a steel mill and is comprised of Market on the Waterfront, Waterfront Market Amity, Amity Square at the Waterfront, The Stacks at the Waterfront and Waterfront Towne Center. Anchors include Dick’s, Best Buy, Michaels, Petco, TJ Maxx, Bed Bath & Beyond, Marshalls, Barnes & Noble, Loews Cinema and Dave & Busters.

The HFF team was led by executive managing directors John Pelusi and Gerard Sansosti, senior managing director Coleman Benedict and managing director Nick Matt.

M & J Wilkow, Ltd. is in the business of acquiring, managing and selling shopping centers and office properties for its own account, as well as on behalf of institutional investors. Established in 1939 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, M & J Wilkow is a full service commercial real estate company, whose mission is to create value in real estate through an array of integrated services. Whether serving as a fiduciary for investors or a consultant for clients, M & J Wilkow’s record of success has fostered strong relationships with many institutional partners in joint venture and other financial arrangements. The company’s portfolio consists of 32 office and retail properties, located throughout the United States. The aggregate size of the portfolio is approximately 5,800,000 square feet, with an estimated market value of $950 million. The Company employs approximately 75 employees working out of 10 regional offices. For more information, visit - http://www.wilkow.com/.

BIG Shopping Centers USA, a subsidiary of Israeli parent company, BIG Shopping Centers (TASE: BIG), is a shopping center investment company based in Beverly Hills, California. Through joint ventures, BIG Shopping Centers USA provides an equity partner for leading U.S. shopping center operators to acquire individual as well as portfolios of quality shopping centers for long term cash flow.

HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) and HFFS (HFF Securities L.P.) are owned by HFF, Inc. (NYSE: HF). HFF operates out of 21 offices nationwide and is a leading provider of commercial real estate and capital markets services to the U.S. commercial real estate industry. HFF together with its affiliate HFFS offer clients a fully integrated national capital markets platform including debt placement, investment sales, advisory services, equity placement, loan sales, and commercial loan servicing. www.hfflp.com.