Plaza sells for $56 million

Carson Valley Plaza has been purchased by a Missouri limited-liability company for more than $56 million.

Seven parcels in all, including the L-shaped section from Best Buy to Borders Books, were included in the deal. On Aug. 31, Carson Valley Center, LLC, acquired the property at 911 Topsy Lane from the developers AIG Baker Shopping Center Properties of Birmingham, Ala., LLC, after less than two years of ownership.

"It's not quite the whole center," said Douglas County Assessor Douglas Sonneman.

An official at Carson Valley Center, LLC in Columbia, Mo., refused to comment Wednesday.

The 300,000-square foot plaza in north Douglas County was first purchased by AIG Baker in December 2002, according to Douglas County Assessor's office records. The cost for multiple parcels was almost $9 million.

Douglas County Manager Dan Holler said the initial purchase price does not include the cost of improvements and the value of the businesses.

When the property was first purchased, Holler said, the county made a deal with AIG Baker that if they did a full build out on one of the parcels, the county would pay them back $3 million over the next 10 years. This parcel is the 12,000-square-foot building where Pier 1 Imports and American Mattress are located.

This was a good deal for the county since it got the building built, according to Holler. He explained that the county revenues from the businesses on the 2-acre parcel cover what the county has to pay to AIG Baker.

"We end up paying them back over time. They're eating the interest," said Holler. "We pay it each year out of our revenue generated out of cash flow from the project."

In addition to bringing in revenue for the county, prior to construction, AIG Baker paid about $800,000 in water and sewer fees that went directly into the county's water and sewer fund, according to Holler.

AIG Baker still owns two parcels directly across Highway 395 from Carson Valley Plaza, totaling approximately five acres. A 713,000 square-foot regional shopping center called Riverwood is planned for this area, according to the company's Web site aigbaker.com. The complex is to include "three major department stores, a wholesale club, a state-of-the-art multiplex theater and a host of national, regional and local retailers and restaurants."

Businesses that were part of the transaction are: Cold Stone Creamery, Carson Valley Billiards, Gamestop, Quizno's Sub, Crystal Kaleidoscope, Famous Footwear, Play It Again Sports, Home Treasures, Pier 1 Imports, America's Mattress, Nevada Backyard, Petco, Old Navy, The Candy Bar, AT&T Wireless, Taqueria La Salsa, Countrywide Home Loans, Hollywood Beauty Center, Boondocks Gifts & Collectibles, Bed Bath & Beyond, Cost Plus World Market, Michaels Arts & Crafts, Marshalls, Payless Shoe Source, Claire's, Crescent Jewelers, Oreck Floor Care Center, At Home with JM Furniture, Nextel Retail Store, 702 Skate and Snow, Carson Valley Eyecare, Sports Clips, Best Buy and Maurices.

No one was available to comment at AIG Baker Shopping Center Properties at press time.

Contact Jo Rafferty at jrafferty@recordcourier.com or 782-5121, ext. 213.