Outlets of Little Rock sold to N.Y. operator
A New York-based mall operator specializing in distressed properties has acquired the Outlets of Little Rock for $10 million.
The price tag was a fraction of the $60 million value at which the Pulaski County assessor's office had assessed the 30-acre property near the Interstate 30/Interstate 430 interchange.
The buyer was Little Rock Outlets Realty Holding LLC, which is led by Mehran Kohansieh, who also is known as Mike Kohan. He leads the Kohan Retail Investment Group, which is based in Great Neck, N.Y., and has a portfolio of 36 malls around the United States.
The seller was NED Little Rock LLC, an arm of New England Development, a Boston-based company that developed Outlets of Little Rock. It boasts about 55 tenants, down from the 75 it had shortly after it opened five years ago.
The Kohan website said the company is open to reimagining malls, relying less on national big-box stores and chain retailers and more on locally-owned small businesses.
"This is a great time for businesses to consider large spaces that can be transformed into localized shops at affordable prices," according to the website. "Kohan Retail is extending a hand in this transformation by offering spaces to grow new businesses."
-- Noel Oman
Peco Foods to add to Pocahontas plant
Peco Foods, a chicken supplier with operations in northeast Arkansas plans to expand its operations in Pocahontas.
Peco Foods, based in Tuscaloosa, Ala., said in a news release Thursday that it will be "scaling back" its processing and live operations, resulting in the closure of three Mississippi locations.
The 83-year-old company's resources are expected to be "further invested" in a new processing plant in West Point, Miss., and additional operations in Sebastopol, Miss., and Pocahontas.
The company said it will try to find jobs for displaced Mississippi workers at other Peco Foods facilities. Changes are expected to be made final by summer.
Plans for northeast Arkansas were not detailed in the news release. A spokesman gave no immediate comment when asked about it.
Peco Foods employs about 7,000 people throughout Alabama, Arkansas and Mississippi.
-- Nathan Owens
Day ends in uptick for Arkansas Index
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Thursday at 505.36, up 2.94.
"Bullish sentiment remained strong in anticipation of further government stimulus as technology shares led along with the consumer discretionary sector ahead of Friday's monthly payroll report," said Leon Lants, managing director at Stephens Inc.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.