Walgreens continues its divestment in South Florida, recently finalizing the sale of a retail outlet near Coral Gables. This marks the tenth retail property the national chain has divested in the past 10 months.
The single-story retail building, located at 3490 Bird Road, spanning 12,900 square feet, was acquired by an entity managed by Steve Creekmore in Fort Smith, Arkansas, for $12.7 million, as per records and Vizzda. Notably, Walgreens has entered into a fresh 15-year lease agreement, featuring 5 percent rental rate escalations every five years.
Back in 2006, Walgreens initially purchased this nearly 1-acre site for $5.7 million, culminating in the store’s completion three years later.
In the broader context, Walgreens has sold a total of nine stores across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties since December. Under the leadership of CEO Rosalind Brewer, the retailer has strategically repositioned its business focus to incorporate more medical services. As part of this shift, the publicly traded company has doubled its ownership stake in VillageMD, a network of primary care clinics. The overarching goal is to integrate VillageMD services within Walgreens drugstores, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
Walgreens’ strategic approach also involves retaining its market presence in high-traffic neighborhoods by leasing back select high-performing stores. Simultaneously, the divestment of real estate assets bolsters the company’s capital reserves for forthcoming business expansion initiatives.
In the preceding month, Walgreens concluded the sale of two stores in Miami and Hialeah, fetching a combined total of $15.6 million, according to available records. Miami-based Limestone Asset Management acquired a 16,800-square-foot store in Hialeah, completed in 2011. Additionally, the firm secured a store in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood, covering 18,750 square feet, which Walgreens originally acquired for $5.4 million in 2007.
In April, an investor based in Beverly Hills finalized the acquisition of a 17,300-square-foot store in North Miami Beach from Walgreens, transacting at $9.3 million. The previous month witnessed Miami-based Orion Real Estate Group purchasing a 17,200-square-foot Walgreens situated in unincorporated southwest Miami-Dade for $7.8 million.
From December through February, Walgreens executed the sale of five stores across Boca Raton, Jupiter, Miami, Plantation, and Weston, accumulating a combined total of $47.2 million in transactions.
