Eden Prairie Center, listed for $99M, sold to Dallas firm

Eden Prairie Center is changing hands.

The 1.1-million-square-foot, two-level mall with more than 100 stores has been sold by General Growth to Cypress Equities of Dallas for an undisclosed amount.

The mall had been listed by a ­Pittsburgh-based mortgage broker for $99 million.

"Eden Prairie Center is an excellent addition to our portfolio of first-class retail properties," Chris Maguire, CEO of Cypress Equities, said in a statement.

The only other Twin Cities property owned by Cypress is Centennial Shops, a lifestyle center on France Avenue near Interstate 494 in Edina. It features West Elm, Container Store and Pinstripes as tenants.

Eden Prairie Center, which is 99 percent leased, is anchored by Target, Sears, Von Maur and J.C. Penney, and has an 18-screen AMC movie theater that is the third-highest-grossing in the Twin Cities.

The mall opened in 1976 and was renovated and expanded in 2001. Before the remodeling, it gained a measure of infamy as the main location in the 1995 movie "Mallrats," about teenagers and young adults who hang out at a mall.

Today, it is known for restaurants such as Wildfire Steaks, Biaggi's, Panera and is getting a new destination called the Prairie Tap House. More than 12 million shoppers visit annually.

General Growth, based in Chicago, is one of the largest owners of shopping malls in the country and owns Ridgedale Center in Minnetonka, Apache Mall in Rochester, River Hills Mall in Mankato and Crossroads Center in St. Cloud.

After undertaking a bankruptcy restructuring in 2010, General Growth sold ­Knollwood Mall in St. Louis Park the following year and has reduced its holdings elsewhere.

Cypress was attracted to the property for its strong economic profile and continued growth in the southwest part of the Twin Cities, Todd Minnis, managing partner, said in a statement. The average household income within 3 miles of Eden Prairie Center is $110,000, according to Nielsen Co.

Cypress has been building a portfolio of diverse commercial properties in about a dozen states. They include six mixed-use complexes, three lifestyle centers, and regional malls and more than 10 auto dealerships.

The sale of Eden Prairie Center is the largest involving a Twin Cities mall since last year's sale of the Galleria in Edina to Hines Global REIT for $127 million.

John Ewoldt • 612-673-7633