Atlanta-based developer Ben Carter — who’s involved in significant projects in Pooler and along Savannah’s Broughton Street — is considering selling his half of the St. Johns Town Center retail complex in Jacksonville, Fla.
Carter told the Jax Daily Record he is marketing the property to investors with the help of New York brokerage firm Eastdil Secured.
The other half of St. Johns is owned by Simon Property Group, a leading commercial real estate firm in the United States with 240 million square feet of retail space in its portfolio.
The upscale mixed-use development opened in 2005 and features 1 million square feet of retail, dining and entertainment space. A second phase opened in 2007.
Reports suggest the sale could net the developer as much as $750 million, though he did not confirm the value.
He said Simon Property wants to continue to operate its half and would prefer an institutional partner.
This is not the first partnership Carter has cashed out — the developer’s past and present projects have often involved a 50/50 partnership with a reputable retail investor.
On one of his earliest developments, Carter partnered with Simon Property Group to build the Mall of Georgia in Gwinnett County outside Atlanta in the mid-90s and later sold his stake back to Simon just before it opened in 1999.
Just recently, Carter partnered with North Carolina-based Tanger Factory Outlet Centers to develop a 400,000-square-foot mall in Pooler. His firm is developing another outlet mall in Augusta, but no partnership has been announced there.
These types of partnerships, according to commercial brokers, provide equity and give the project strong backing.
Carter’s latest project is the acquisition of 25 properties on historic Broughton Street in downtown Savannah, which he plans to lease to retailers and restaurants. The Broughton project, estimated at $75 million, is gaining steam with 16 more properties expected to close by the end of April. He said he hasn’t ruled out purchasing more properties beyond that.