Avison Young Closes $13M Sale of Augusta’s Enterprise Mill
The property is made up of approximately 119,000 square feet of office and retail space, along with 60 upscale residential lofts.
Augusta, Ga.—One of the largest sales of the year in Augusta, Ga., has been completed by Toronto’s Avison Young, with its sale of Enterprise Mill in downtown Augusta. The nearly 180,000-square-foot, Class A, mixed-use property was sold for $13 million. An Avison Young team based in south Florida represented the seller, Mellaver/Enterprise Mill LLC.
The property is made up of approximately 119,000 square feet of office and retail space, along with 60 upscale residential lofts. Combined occupancy is more than 90 percent. New ownership is thus able to profit from the asset’s exceptionally stable income.
Located in the historic Riverfront District of downtown Augusta, Enterprise Mill is encircled by a broad array of amenities that range from retailing hubs to educational institutions.
Nearby is the Medical College of Georgia, the three major hospitals that together form Augusta’s medical complex, high-end boutiques and a smorgasbord of both fine dining and casual restaurants. Also close at hand are several of the region’s most heavily trafficked thoroughfares. They are State Road 4, Board St. and U.S. 1/Gordon Highway.
“The challenge we faced during this transaction was the very short window for closing,” Avison Young Principal David Duckworth told MHN. “There [were] only 90 days between the time the prepayment penalty clause in the loan expired and the expiration of the loan. As such, if the closing occurred too soon, the seller would face punitive prepayment penalties. On the other hand, if we were unable to close within the 90-day window, our client would be in the default of the loan.
“Carefully taking all into consideration, our team was able to secure a hard contract several months in advance and delay the closing until the prepayment penalty clause expired.”
Avison Young’s far-reaching web of Miami-based investors enabled the commercial real estate services firm to land what it considers the perfect purchaser. “With the cap rate compression seen in the South Florida market, there is a trend of investors looking [farther] north for greater yield, as demonstrated by this sale,” Duckworth said.
Also representing the seller on behalf of Avison Young was A.J. Belt III. “With 118,928 square feet of office [and] retail space and 60 upscale residential lofts, Enterprise Mill was one of the few trophy value-add properties remaining in the Augusta market,” Belt said.
