The Norman Hugh Group (NHG) and KAI Asset Management have purchased one acre of property at the northeast intersection of Osborne Street and Stradbrook Avenue for $4.25 million and immediately decided to invest nearly $1 million to upgrade the existing strip mall for its half-dozen tenants.
The retail corner is located in one of Winnipeg’s trendiest neighbourhoods.
“The previous owner hadn’t improved the property in more than 20 years. There’s some pretty dated architecture there,” said David Bell, president and CEO of NHG.
The plan is to attract more customers by giving the businesses a cleaner, simpler and more modern look. If revenues go up as hoped, rents could follow, Bell said.
The corner has 16,000 square feet of gross leasable area, including the Jekyll & Hyde’s pub and the Stradbrook Chiropractic Centre.
NHG is a part owner and developer of the project while KAI is the majority owner.
Robert MacKay, founding partner of KAI, said they were attracted to the corner because it has one of the highest traffic counts in the city, and with 50 parking spots – a rarity in the neighbourhood – it can offer convenience that other businesses in the area can’t.
“We’d rather be more centrally located because you have a bit of a natural edge when it comes to competing real estate developments,” he said.
Neither Bell nor MacKay expressed any concern about the trouble neighbouring property owners have had filling some retail spaces over the last couple of years.
“A lot of good developers are coming in and buying up parcels. I think it will turn around,” Bell said.
