The purchase rights to the San Francisco Centre, the once-grand 1.5 million-square-foot mall that was shuttered in January, has been awarded to a partnership of Presidio Bay Ventures and Prado Group.
The San Francisco Chronicle, citing input from unnamed “sources with insight into the mall’s sale,” reports the price guidance was set at $100 million. The property was foreclosed on in November, selling for $134 million. More than a decade ago, the 5-acre complex was valued over $1 billion.
However, the companies will first conduct a due diligence inspection of the property, which could take up to three months. The joint bid by Presidio Bay and Prado was chosen over inquiries from two other local developers (TMG Partners and the San Francisco Recovery Fund) and at least one national firm (Miami-based Crescent Heights).
It is unclear what the companies plan to do with the property, although the unnamed sources in the Chronicle’s reporting claim their plans for the mall was not a deciding factor in selecting their winning bid.
However, there is a complicating factor in the mall’s future: the San Francisco Unified School District owns a roughly 76,000-square-foot portion of the land occupied by the complex, with a lease that runs through 2043 and includes a 15-year renewal option.
