Sale of Summerlin grocery store fails to go through

When Haggen announced in early October that Smart & Final bid on its store at Trails Village Center in Summerlin, many thought that would be a good choice to fill the vacuum in the shopping center.

Smart & Final, a warehouse-style supermarket chain which operates seven traditional stores in Las Vegas, planned to make the center its second Smart & Final Extra store format in the valley. The Extra stores are a specialty concept emphasizing fresh meat and product, including organic produce.

But the sale wasn't included late Friday by Haggen when it released a list of its stores that the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware approved for Smart & Final. Only 28 stores valued at $56 million based solely in California were listed for Smart & Final.

Haggen hasn't provided any details. Smart & Final would only say they're not acquiring the store. They had previously announced plans to close the sale by the end of the 2016 if it was the successful bidder.

It's raised questions as to what happened and who will eventually fill the shopping center built in 1998. Commercial brokers list its tenant mix as including CVS Pharmacy, McDonalds, Starbucks, Wells Fargo Bank, and Bank of America. It's adjacent to TPC Summerlin golf course, and the Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center. It has immediate access to Summerlin Parkway.

"I would assume that would be an attractive location for someone to do business given the residential density in that immediate area," said Brian Gordon, a principal with Applied Analysis that tracks the retail market. "It has done well for nearly two decades and Summerlin remains a premier master planned community in not only Southern Nevada but the nation as a whole. It's a well-positioned location."

Gordon, who said some of the nearest grocery stores are in the Charleston and Lake Mead corridors, said there could have been a problem with the price or that Smart & Final did more due diligence and learned elements of the transaction it didn't like.

The center is owned and managed by an investment group with offices in Orange County, Calif.

"We have no comment at this time but within a few weeks we should have good news," a spokeswoman said, referring to the ownership as a Nevada partnership.

Supermarket analyst David Livingston said the sale could have fallen through because there was a lack of agreement of the lease terms or there might have been a problem with the tenants in the center.

"Smart & Final is not a full-service grocer and they don't have a bakery or deli," Livingston said. "They are more like a small club store. Sometimes co-tenants in a shopping center have it on their lease that they have to have a full-service grocery store. If there isn't, their rent goes down. That could be part of it, but I don't know."

Bellingham, Wash.-based Haggen is scheduled to appear next in Bankruptcy Court on Nov. 24 and more details about the process could be released at that time. Haggen is exiting the Las Vegas market after opening seven stores under the Haggen brand in June as part of a larger acquisition of 146 stores in Oregon, Washington, California, Arizona and Nevada from Albertsons and Vons as part of their merger.

Haggen, which said it will close its seven Las Vegas stores by the early December at the latest, said Friday it has sold four of the seven. It's part of a larger sale of 55 stores in Nevada, Arizona, California, Oregon, and Washington to Albertsons, Sprouts and other operators announced Friday.

The former Albertsons stores sold to Haggen and slated to reopen under the Albertsons brand are in Henderson at 2910 Bicentennial Parkway, 575 College Drive and 190 N. Boulder Highway. It would bring Albertsons' market share to 30 stores.

Albertsons officials declined to comment on Monday. Haggen has a $1 billion lawsuit alleging Albertsons hindered its ability to operate successfully.

A fourth Haggen store is slated to reopen as a Sprouts Farmers Market. It's a former Vons at 7530 W. Lake Mead Blvd. and would bring the chain's total to six when it reopens.

Sprouts spokesman Diego Romero said they don't have a timeline of any announcement. Sprouts announces store openings at the beginning of each quarter for the following quarter.

"You probably won't hear anything from us for a while," he said.

Romero said Sprouts has done well in Las Vegas and said there is a high demand for healthy foods at great prices.

"We're interested in Nevada and the Las Vegas market and the stores do well, and we believe there's room for growth. We're always looking for the best locations whether that's an existing location or an opportunity to build new."

A former Vons store in Boulder City and one at 820 S. Rampart did not have any bidders. Analysts said those locations may not reopen as grocery stores.