Case Studies

The following case studies should offer an insight into how we help our clients and how we elevate the usage and value of property.

Adding Value: Turning a Lemon into Lemonade - Germantown Plaza
Redevelopment: Paper Mill to Shoppers' Will - Hyde Park River Street
Repositioning: Creating Treble Value - Saugus Plaza
Complete Renovation: Off Hours and On Target - University Mall

Adding Value: Turning A Lemon into Lemonade

Germantown Plaza - Germantown, TN

Germantown Plaza represented the kind of challenge desired by any developer. Finard Properties was presented with an opportunity to acquire an older shopping center in the middle of the central retail market of affluent Germantown, Tennessee. The center was clearly the least attractive option for retailers looking to locate in the market and was anchored by a second generation retailer paying low rent in a 30 year old former Kmart prototype. Deferred landscaping and substandard maintenance completed an unexciting picture. With a focused eye trained on underutilized aspects of the site and a strong development team, Finard Properties set out to turn the property around.

A consulting team was immediately assembled including civil engineers and accomplished local architects. Steps were then taken to solidify the relationship between ownership and the City. Finard Properties offered a well researched plan to local zoning authorities to alleviate overlooked traffic issues. In addition, a modified parking plan was proposed to pave the way for an expanded retail footprint. The City approved the plan. In the meantime, the maintenance plan was accelerated and the center was given a higher level of attention and care than had been given historically.

The result of this work is the creation of a thriving shopping center once again on the retail radar screen. Selected leases were bought out to make way for a more dynamic roster of tenants. The expanded square footage of the center as well as the overall appearance of the property is a source of pride for the community and of a quality that is consistent with other Finard Properties.

Redevelopment: Paper Mill to Shoppers' Will

River Street Development - Hyde Park, MA

This 350,000 square foot former Bay State Paper Mill sits in the heart of Hyde Park, which is in the Greater Boston Metropolitan area. The property abuts the Neponset River on the northern bank of Milton and is in dire need of attention. There are many zoning, permitting, political, and logistical hurdles to overcome in the process of developing this into a vibrant shopping center. Finard Properties is currently in the process of working and negotiating with the City of Boston, as well as various retail tenants and experts in all of the required engineering fields in order to coordinate the development of this site. This project is custom made for Finard Properties. A wide variety of subcontractors need to be organized in a timely and focused manner in order to create a successful retail development at what is today a vacant and defunct paper mill. Stay tuned! We will update this website as the project moves forward.

Repositioning: Creating Treble Value

Saugus Plaza- Saugus, MA

Saugus Plaza first opened in the early 1960's and evolved over a long succession of changing tenant prototypes, consolidations, bankruptcies, and changing demographics before Ames, its discount department store anchor, entered its last stages of bankruptcy and liquidation. The instability of Ames had interfered with the maintenance and merchandising of the center due to the uncertainty of their continuing operation, lack of market rate income, and the inability to refinance with the future of a major anchor in question.

Finard Properties launched a program that included buying back, or simply not renewing, some smaller tenants in order to create larger leasable spaces as well as aggressively participating in the Federal Bankruptcy Court proceedings surrounding the Ames liquidation. We were able to navigate successfully through the process and buy back the Ames lease. This was the catalyst for the rebirth of the center that was most critical. With renewed control of the major portions of the center's leasable area, and the realistic prospect of significant new leases, Finard Properties was able to structure creative interim financing to cover a variety of leasing scenarios and begin discussions with several significant new tenants. Negotiations were successfully concluded with Kohl's, Bed Bath & Beyond, Famous Footwear, and Modell's Sports, each one a powerful retailer in its own right and, taken together, capable of creating tremendous synergy to drive customer traffic and sales.

The last step in the process was placing permanent financing on the property to pay off the interim lender and stabilize the debt service for the long term. The appraisal confirmed that the value of the asset had been increased by 300%. The property was physically transformed and fully tenanted with a stable cash flow. The transformation was complete.

Finding the way to unlock the full value of a property is one of the things Finard Properties does best.

Complete Renovation: Off Hours And On Target

University Mall - South Burlington, VT

University Mall is the largest enclosed mall in Vermont. In 2005, more than a decade had passed since it had undergone a complete renovation. Construction within an operating mall is always difficult. Typically a mall operator cannot undertake any significant work during the retailers' "black out" periods or during the workday. As a result, work is planned during shoulder seasons and off hours. Always a balancing act, the opportunities for scheduling construction projects are even more limited when you operate in the middle of a four season environment like Vermont.

Finard Properties worked closely with an architectural firm experienced in retail design to develop a renovation concept within a justifiable budget and then select a contractor with experience in scheduling construction between 10:00pm and 6:00am, leaving the mall clean and functional every morning when tenants opened for business.

In addition to the physical challenges, some of the partners in the property did not want to use cash flow to fund the renovation, although they understood its importance. Finard Properties was able to arrange mezzanine financing to fund the renovation which allowed the work to be scheduled over the summer, halted briefly during the height of the back-to-school selling period, and completed by mid-November. There were no shopper complaints, sales did not decline, and the design and construction process was praised by tenants and shoppers alike.

Since the completion of the renovation, sales per square foot, already significantly higher in the mall than the industry average, have increased. Also, average rents are increasing in every category. Responding to the substantial challenge posed by location, schedule, and existing businesses, Finard Properties crafted a solution that disturbed no one and benefited everyone.

Difficult challenges and creative solutions are some of the things Finard Properties does best.