Hachems buy Bay View Plaza

ST. PETERSBURG -- Hachem Investments Inc. purchased Bay View Plaza in St. Petersburg from Springfield Crossing LLC.

While a purchase price has not yet been published in public records, the property had been listed for $5.2 million. The buyers chose not to disclose the price in a release announcing the deal.

Built in 1990, the shopping center at 11100 4th St. N. offers 78,781 square feet of retail space. The Plaza was 93% occupied at the time of sale, with 14 tenants.

Springfield Crossing is a private investment group based in Ohio. The company had owned the property for 15 years prior to this week's sale. Mark Shellabarger, a Senior Vice President with CBRE's Private Capital Group in Tampa, represented the seller in the deal.

Buyers Sam and Laurice Hachem are experienced investors in the Tampa Bay market. The pair purchased the Hillsborough Center in Tampa for $3 million last October; the Columbus Plaza in Tampa for $2.8 million in February 2010; and an office building on Ashley Drive for $4.1 million, five days before buying Columbus Plaza.

The couple invested more than $36 million in Tampa-area apartment buildings in 2008.