CTO Realty Grows Atlanta Footprint With $80M Buy

March 4, 2025

This acquisition brings the firm's portfolio to 5.2 million square feet.

Aerial shot of an intersection flanked by two retail properties. — CTO Realty Growth’s retail portfolio encompasses 5.2 million square feet. *Image courtesy of CTO Realty Growth*

CTO Realty Growth has purchased Ashley Park, a 559,000-square-foot retail center in Newnan, Ga., for $79.8 million. The previous owner was Apollo Global Management, which had bought it for $89.8 million in 2015, according to CommercialEdge information.

CTO acquired Ashley Park below replacement costs, President & CEO John Albright said in prepared remarks. Having below-market rents, the asset provides an opportunity for strategic lease-up, he added.

Ashley Park occupies 60 acres at 354 Newnan Crossing Bypass, near the intersection of Interstate 85 and Georgia State Route 34, about 38 miles southwest of downtown Atlanta. The shopping center receives roughly 6 million visits per year.

Dick’s Sporting Goods, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, Regal and Dillard’s anchor the property, which was 93 percent leased at the time of sale. Dick’s Sporting Goods is also CTO’s fifth-largest tenant.

Greater Atlanta’s retail vacancy rate stood at 3.7 percent in December, 50 basis points below the five-year average, according to a report by Colliers. A shortage of supply—only 544,000 square feet of product were underway in December—and several retail chain closures contributed to the tight index.

CTO’s growing retail footprint

With this purchase, CTO’s portfolio reached 5.2 million square feet, marking a 12 percent growth. Last year, the company expanded its footprint by 1.3 million square feet across six retail properties and one vacant parcel.

The most important deal closed in August, when the firm purchased three open-air shopping centers totaling roughly 1.2 million square feet for $137.5 million. The properties are in Charlotte, N.C., Tampa, Fla., and Orlando, Fla.