Queen City Quarter, a food and entertainment complex at 201 E. Trade St. in uptown Charlotte, is going up for sale, with three of its tenants currently facing eviction, The Charlotte Observer reported. 

The Sea Grill restaurant at Queen City Quarter in Charlotte

It is a long fall for what once was a storied spot in uptown Charlotte. In its former life as the Epicentre, the complex was a popular nightlife destination that hosted events including NBA All-Star Weekend festivities. 

Now, a few years after its rebrand into a family-friendly entertainment center, only about 12 of its 50 retail spaces are occupied, and the center has experienced a net loss of eight businesses in just the last half year. 

Most recently, the planned Philadelphia-based Taste Cheesesteak Bar, which was slated to open in October 2024 but never did, is facing eviction. A complaint was filed this month stating that the restaurant owed $25,608 after not paying its monthly rent of $4,823 and other charges since January.

An eviction order was also placed on the Sea Grill Restaurant & Bar, which opened in the complex less than two years ago. That restaurant reportedly owes nearly $96K in back rent, having missed payments since last October. A complaint filed on Jan. 28 claimed that rent owed reached more than $144K after factoring in various fees.

Privee Clothing Rhema’s Boutique, a designer brand retailer that opened in the Quarter in 2023, is also under threat. A complaint for eviction was filed last September for $3,082 past due in rent. This case is currently pending an appeal, the Observer reported.

Separately, two other units, a CVS store and the Tailored Smoke Cigar Lounge, have been reported as closed in the one-block complex. 

Property management firm CBRE said on March 11 the complex will go up for sale “in a few weeks.” An exact date was not provided.

Some Queen City Quarter tenants were surprised by the news of its pending sale and hope the next owner will work to drive more foot traffic to the complex.

The Epicentre originally opened in 2008. In 2014, California real estate firm CIM Group purchased it for $130.5M, when it was almost fully leased and boasted 16 restaurants. 

The Charlotte Observer reported that the complex first began to falter due to an increase in crime and the effects of the pandemic on retail and restaurant spaces. In 2021, when the center was 70% vacant, it was forced into receivership after it defaulted on an $85M loan. 

In 2022, lender Deutsche Bank took control of the complex for $95M at a foreclosure auction, before renovating and rebranding it as the Quarter.

This string of Charlotte retail closures comes despite the city being named one of the top retail markets in the country in a recent report by Marcus & Millichap. Metro Charlotte saw slowed construction and increased net absorption in 2025, making for a 3.5% vacancy rate — one of the 10 lowest among major markets. Much of the city’s retail success was driven by big-box, single-tenant move-ins.

The Sonesta Extended Stay Hotel in southwest Charlotte was sold to a New York-based nonprofit on Feb. 12 and is reportedly earmarked to become housing for veterans.

Marcus & Millichap announced it had brokered the sale, representing the private seller. The announcement declined to name the buyer, but Mecklenburg County records lists the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation as the owner.

The 75K SF property sits on 3.39 acres at 7925 Forest Pine Drive off Interstate 77.

WSOC-TV reported last October that the Staten Island-based Tunnel to Towers Foundation was looking to purchase and renovate the hotel site into 117 apartment units for veterans.

The foundation states it offers several programs to assist military veterans and former first responders, including constructing smart homes for those who have been injured, providing mortgage-free homes to families with young children who have lost a parent in the line of duty, and working to end homelessness among the veteran community.

The foundation pulled in revenue of $559M in 2024 with expenses at $381M, according to the organization’s 2024 IRS 990 form, published by ProPublica. Its total assets were $653M at the end of that year.

In mid-2024, the foundation was tied to a post-bankruptcy filing of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani’s lawyers disclosed that he was receiving just over $16K a month in income from his internet show and that the money was coming “mainly” from the nonprofit, according to a New York Times report.

Creditors sought subpoenas to further understand the nature of the financial agreement between the politician and the charity, Law & Crime reported.

The foundation did not respond to multiple requests for comment for this story. 

Prime US REIT has unloaded One Town Center in Boca Raton, Florida, for $82 million, a considerable loss. The company paid $99.5 million for the property in 2021.

Prime US REIT sold the 200,858-square-foot office building and 435-space parking garage at One Town Center Road to Gatsby Enterprises. Wells Fargo Bank provided the buyer with a $51 million mortgage.

One Town Center was 99.7% leased. As of December 2023, it was valued at $84.8 million with a cap rate of 7%, compared to $90.3 million with a 6.25% cap rate a year earlier.

The 10-story office was built on the 9.9-acre site in 1990. It includes a fitness center, an on-site café, EV charging stations and on-site auto detail. It’s near the Town Center at Boca Raton mall and many restaurants.

Hawkins Way Capital has purchased a 122-unit student housing building at 300 West 20th Street in New York City from The New School for $30 million. Located in Chelsea, the seven-floor residential property has been serving as student housing since its opening in 2003.  

Despite efforts to attract students, The New School decided to sell the building due to low demand and student dissatisfaction with its layout. The transaction was arranged by CBRE’s Doug Middleton and Jack Stillwagon, though financial details were not disclosed. Hawkins Way Capital plans to continue leasing the property to students from various Manhattan schools. 

Foxtrot’s assets were sold at auction Friday for more than $2.2 million, reported Crain’s. The buyer was holding company Further Point Enterprises. The auction was conducted by JPMorgan Chase Bank, a debtor of Foxtrot, through its counsel, DLA Piper. 

The sale of the assets follows the sudden move by Outfox Hospitality, the group that owned Foxtrot and small-format grocer Dom’s Kitchen & Market, to abruptly close all stores in multiple states last month. Chicago-based Foxtrot had 33 locations in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Dallas and Austin, while Dom’s had two stores in Chicago.

According to Crain’s, Foxtrot’s auctioned assets included goods, equipment, inventory, intellectual property, figures and more. Leases were not included. Assets belonging to Dom’s Kitchen and Market were also put up for bid but were not sold. The company is also facing several lawsuits from employees who allege the sudden closures did not provide the required 60-day notice under the Fair Notice Ordinance before jobs were terminated. 

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A rent-stabilized, five-story, walk-up building in Washington Heights has been sold for $5 million. The building at 560-562 West 175th Street features 60 apartments and two commercial spaces, totaling 56,300 square feet. Built in 1924, it was sold for a cap rate of 8.8 percent and a GRM of 5.2, at a price of $81,000 per unit and $89 per square feet. 

Rosewood’s Ben Khakshoor and Alex Fuchs represented both the buyer, Adam Goodstein, and the seller, Jeff Farkas. “This purchase not only promises steady returns but also offers the invaluable advantage of long-term tenant retention and consistent cash flow,” said Khakshoor. 

Merrimack Village LLC has acquired Merrimack Village Center, an 82,292-square-foot neighborhood shopping center in Merrimack, NH., from CP Merrimack LLC for $16.6 million.  

The center, constructed in 2006 on over 10 acres, is located adjacent to Everett Turnpike. The property was 99% occupied at the time of the sale, with tenants including Shaw’s, the State of New Hampshire liquor store, and McDonald’s. 

Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), a division of Marcus & Millichap, represented the seller and facilitated the transaction with the buyer. “The property generates a risk-averse stream of revenue as 80% of the space is occupied by the Shaws grocery store, the State of New Hampshire liquor store and a McDonalds,” said Jim Koury, the IPA senior managing director who led the marketing process.