Washington Square Goes from Paragon’s Radar to Buy Column

Washington Square, a 215,761-square-foot multi-tenant grocery-anchored retail shopping center in Petaluma, recently sold for an undisclosed price, according to Paragon Commercial Group LLC and Canyon Partners Real Estate LLC. This acquisition marks the ninth investment by the JV and is Paragon’s fifth retail acquisition in 2021.

“This property has been on Paragon’s radar for some time, given its accessible location and robust tenant roster,” said Patrick McGaughey, director of investments for Northern California for Paragon.

Washington Square is a dominant shopping destination for Sonoma County that is anchored by one of the top-performing Safeway locations in the Bay Area. The center enjoys very low historical vacancy and features strong junior anchor and shop tenants including Bank of America, Wells Fargo and WestAmerica Bank, Planet Fitness, Party City and Pet Food Express. Paragon is in discussions with additional anchor tenants for the one remaining vacant junior anchor space in the center, and plans to institute an extensive capital improvement program that will update and modernize the shopping center.

“The expansion of our retail portfolio throughout 2021 continues to demonstrate that neighborhood-serving retail is a strong performing subsector within the broader retail category,” said Jim Dillavou, principal, Paragon. “As we modernize the center over the next 18 to 24 months, our roster of shop tenants will grow and we expect this center will become the neighborhood center of choice in Petaluma, a key market within Sonoma County.”

Originally developed in 1971 and owned by the same company for 35 years, the property is located on highly trafficked corner of South McDowell Boulevard and East Washington Street on the North Bay Retail Corridor.