Marcus & Millichap is pleased to present the opportunity to purchase Coolwood Plaza, a grocery anchored retail center located in Valparaiso, Indiana, approximately 45 minutes east of Chicago, Illinois. Strack & Van Til, which was recently acquired by Hy-Vee, occupies 85% of the property, primarily as a 69,000 square foot grocery store, along with a commissary that is used to supply bakery items to the larger Strack & Van Til grocery chain. Strack’s grocery store lease expires in just under 11 years, in December of 2035. The lease also features 10% rent increases every five years, with the next increase coming in January of 2028. Strack also just affirmatively exercised a 5-year extension option on the bakery space, increasing their rent by 12% starting in January of 2026.
Coolwood Plaza has been a grocery anchored center for 40 plus years, and with the recent acquisition of Strack & Van Til by Hy-Vee, the center now has a national “best of breed” grocery operator driving traffic to this site. Positioned on US Highway 30, at a lighted intersection with an internally illuminated pylon sign, the tenants enjoy exposure to over 30,000 vehicles per day. This shopping center is easily the best sited and most accessible retail property on either Highway 30 or Highway 49 – the two dominant retail corridors in Valparaiso.
Positioned roughly 2 miles west of Valparaiso University and near scenic downtown Valparaiso, the property benefits from excellent retail fundamentals. With annual household incomes exceeding $100,000 per year, Valparaiso is a historic yet growing submarket in Northwest Indiana. Known for its business-friendly government and affordable yet high quality of life, this area of the country has been an excellent environment for real estate investment over the last market cycle.
Coolwood Plaza is being marketed without an asking price, so please reach out to the listing brokers to discuss the likely pricing range for the asset. This is an opportunity to buy a grocery anchored retail center at a highly appealing price per square foot, with modest in-place rents that can be increased through a more aggressive leasing program, in a location with significant demographic tailwinds at play.