Commercial real estate

Benderson eyes development near Target stores
Benderson Development Co. continues to be in buying mode in Southwest Florida, most recently solidifying its ownership of two outparcels for development near a pair of Target Corp. stores in Sarasota County.

The developer spent $2.5 million to purchase two Target stores' parking lots for potential outparcel development.

A Benderson affiliate, TOC UTC LLC, paid $1.3 million for a University Town Center SuperTarget parking lot, while subsidiary TOA STC LLC spent $1.2 million to acquire the Minnesota-based retailer's parking on Fruitville, county property records show.

The purchase of the Target store's parking lot at the Fruitville Road and Honore Avenue location was completed to make way for two 2,500-square-foot restaurants and 5,000 square feet of general retail, according to permits filed with Sarasota County.

Benderson executive Mark Chait verified that the purchases were for the parking lots of the Targets, not the stores.

Benderson is a joint venture partner in the Mall at University Town Center and 57 other retail properties in Florida, stretching from Tallahassee to Miami and including the Gateway Shoppes in Naples, Pelican Plaza in Sarasota and the Cocoplum Village Shops, in North Port.

This story has been updated to correct that Benderson purchased the outparcels near two Sarasota Target stores, not the stores themselves. It also corrects the price of those purchases.

Marriott deal would have Gulf Coast ripples
If Marriott International's proposed $12.2 billion acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts goes through, it would have a considerable impact on Gulf Coast hospitality.

In Sarasota, for instance, both Starwood's new aloft and Westin hotels under construction downtown would fall under the Marriott flag, joining the Ritz-Carlton Sarasota, a proposed Marriott and various limited-service offerings near the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport.

In Tampa, another eight Starwood properties would change brands, including a Le Meridien, four Sheraton hotels, an aloft and a pair of Westin lodging offerings.

If completed, the combined chain would become the world's largest hotelier, with 5,500 hotels and more than 1 million rooms in all.