The Firm represented The Blackstone Group and its joint venture with Glimcher Realty Trust in connection with their $245 million acquisition of Pearlridge Shopping Center in Honolulu, Hawaii from an affiliate of the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company. Pearlridge Center is the second largest mall in Hawaii with total leasable area of over 1.1 million square feet, and has more than 170 tenants. The transaction closed on November 1, 2010 and was partially financed by a $175 million mortgage loan. An affiliate of Blackstone holds 80% of the equity interests in the joint venture and is the managing member. An affiliate of Glimcher manages the day-to-day operations of the shopping center under a management contract with the venture. Glimcher is a real estate investment trust specializing in shopping center management, acquisition and development.
Earlier this year, the Firm represented an affiliate of Blackstone in the acquisition of a 60% interest in 2 other shopping malls in the U.S., Lloyd’s Center in Portland, Oregon and Westshore Plaza in Tampa, Florida. That transaction, also a joint venture with an affiliate of Glimcher, involved a gross asset value of $320 million, including assumption of existing debt, and closed in March 2010.
The Simpson Thacher attorneys who worked on this transaction include: Sas Mehrara, Ari Stavsky and Brandon Greer (Real Estate), Nancy Mehlman and Christian Miller (Tax), Greg Grogan, Jeanne Annarumma, David Schneider and Paula Han (Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits), Scott Dyer (Labor).