The longtime owner of one of the very first Whole Foods-anchored properties in Connecticut said it has sold the real estate for $40.5 million.
Maryland-based real estate investment trust One Liberty Properties, which acquired the Blue Back Square property and grocery lease in 2010 for $18 million, did not disclose the buyer.
The buyer’s identity was also not immediately available through CoStar, nor through public land records.
Whole Foods first opened the 50 Raymond Road store in 2005.
One Liberty put the property on the market several months ago.
“As we continue to transform our portfolio to industrial focused properties in well-located markets, this sale again demonstrates our ability to create meaningful value over time,” One Liberty President and CEO Patrick J. Callan Jr. said in a statement. “Similar to the sale of other non-core assets that we believe reached maximum value, this transaction allows us to reduce our leverage and increase our financial capacity to fund future growth.”
The reported sale comes less than one month after a Greenwich-based investor acquired the six commercial, retail and residential properties that comprise the 450,000-square-foot Blue Back Square mixed-use lifestyle center adjacent to Whole Foods.
While the 50 Raymond Road Whole Foods property has apparently appreciated in value since 2010, Blue Back saw a steep drop from its 2013 sale price of $105 million. Ironically, Blue Back sold in May for $40 million, almost the exact same price as 50 Raymond sold for this week.
