On May 28, 2026, a joint venture between DLC Management Corp. and DRA Advisors closed on Shadow Lake Towne Center, a 640,327-square-foot regional shopping center in Papillion, Nebraska, for $95 million. The seller was PREP Property Group. JLL Capital Markets represented the seller.
The center sits on 83.5 acres and was 89% occupied at closing. Tenants include Dick's Sporting Goods, JCPenney, T.J. Maxx, Burlington, HomeGoods, Michaels, and Ross Dress for Less. The Hy-Vee grocery store on site was carved out of the transaction.
DLC and DRA are betting that a well-located, necessity-based retail center with strong national credit tenants can generate stable cash flow in a rate environment that has crushed speculative office and mall values. The 89% occupancy leaves room for upside through leasing the vacant 70,436 square feet.
The exclusion of the Hy-Vee parcel is the most telling detail. Grocery anchors command cap rates 100–150 basis points lower than inline retail. By selling the grocery separately, PREP likely captured a premium on that asset while the JV acquired the rest at a yield more reflective of the tenant mix.
Shadow Lake Towne Center is a power center, not a mall. Its tenant roster is dominated by off-price and discount retailers—Burlington, Ross, T.J. Maxx—that have thrived as consumers trade down. JCPenney is the only traditional department store, and its footprint is likely smaller than legacy anchors.
The Omaha metro area has benefited from population growth and a diversified economy anchored by Berkshire Hathaway, Mutual of Omaha, and a growing tech sector. Papillion, a southern suburb, has seen residential development that supports retail demand.
DLC Management, based in Tarrytown, New York, owns and manages over 130 shopping centers across the U.S. DRA Advisors is a New York-based real estate investment manager with $12 billion in assets under management. The joint venture structure is standard for institutional retail acquisitions: DRA provides the equity, DLC provides the operating platform.
The $95 million price implies a per-square-foot value of approximately $148, excluding the Hy-Vee parcel. That is below replacement cost for new construction in the Omaha market, which typically runs $200–$250 per square foot for similar power center product. The discount reflects the interest rate environment and the market's skepticism toward retail.
This deal is a microcosm of the broader retail real estate recovery. The best-positioned centers—those with grocery or off-price anchors, in growing suburbs, with strong demographics—are trading. Secondary and tertiary assets without those attributes are not. Capital is bifurcating between essential and discretionary retail.
The JV's ability to lease the vacant space will determine the ultimate return. At 89% occupancy, there is meaningful NOI upside if the remaining 70,436 square feet can be leased at market rents. The tenant roster suggests the JV will target additional off-price or service-oriented users, not apparel or electronics.
For lenders, this deal provides a data point on retail underwriting. A $95 million acquisition with 89% occupancy and strong national tenants can secure financing at 55–60% LTV, likely from a regional bank or a debt fund. The carve-out of the Hy-Vee parcel simplifies the underwriting by removing the grocery's below-market lease dynamics.
The transaction closed in late May 2026, a period when the 10-year Treasury yield hovered around 4.5%. Retail cap rates for power centers in secondary markets have compressed modestly from 2023 peaks but remain 100–200 basis points above 2021 troughs. The JV's basis reflects that reality.
Shadow Lake Towne Center is not a distressed sale. It is a calculated acquisition by two experienced operators who see value in a well-located, partially vacant power center with strong demographics. The question is whether the leasing market in Papillion can absorb the remaining vacancy at rents that support the underwriting.