Harold’s Square was built by Harold Cooperman in 1962 and anchored by Harold’s grocery store, No Frills. The real estate has remained in the family but the grocery business has not. With the latest merger of Nash Finch to Spartan Nash they closed a handful of underperforming stores across the region. The Harold’s Square No Frills happened to be one that was closed in March of 2016, leaving the small shops in limbo not knowing who would backfill the 52,098 SF of dark grocery. To complicate matters, Spartan Nash’s lease runs thru June of 2028, leaving the property ownership and the small shops in a passive roll and at the mercy of Spartan Nash to backfill their space. We decided the best course of action was to take the property to market and find an investor who will take an active role in the grocery backfill. When we went to market, we had lots of interest, and three solid prospects stood up and made near ask offers. All of the prospective buyers are full time in the commercial real estate profession. We ended up awarding the property to a full price offer with a short diligence and shorter close; 44 days total contract to close.
