DLC Management Corp. has acquired West Street Shopping Center, a 206,319-square-foot grocery-anchored retail property in Keene, New Hampshire, through an off-market transaction structured as a joint venture with Cohen & Steers. The deal pushes DLC's total footprint in the Keene market past 500,000 square feet, deepening a local presence the company has built over more than two decades.
The Anchor Asset
West Street's principal draw is a Hannaford supermarket that ranks as the No. 2-performing location in the grocer's national network — a distinction that underscores the site's outsized traffic generation for a mid-sized market. Hannaford has operated at the center continuously since 1984, providing the kind of long-tenured grocery anchor that investors in grocery-anchored retail treat as a recession-resistant traffic driver. Hobby Lobby serves as a co-anchor, with additional national tenants including Maurices, UPS, AAA, and Tropical Smoothie rounding out the tenant roster.
The property currently sits at 80.0% occupancy, leaving roughly 40,000 square feet of second-generation retail space available — a leasing pipeline that DLC characterized as an immediate value-creation opportunity. Adam Ifshin, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of DLC, said the firm's market familiarity gave it a distinct edge in sourcing the deal before it reached the open market. "We know this market, understand the fundamentals, and see significant upside in this asset," he said.
Market & Strategy
Keene functions as the primary commercial hub for southwestern New Hampshire, drawing from a tri-state trade area straddling the New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts borders. Demand anchors beyond the grocery tenant include Keene State College, Antioch University, and Cheshire Medical Center — a mix that stabilizes retail traffic across student, healthcare, and general consumer segments. New Hampshire's tax-free retail environment adds a cross-border pull that is particularly relevant for higher-ticket discretionary purchases.
Chris Ressa, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of DLC Management Corp., framed the deal in terms of net operating income growth through proactive leasing and tenant curation. "With a dominant grocery anchor driving traffic and significant leasing upside, we put that knowledge to work and drive NOI growth," he said. The acquisition extends DLC's ongoing joint venture with Temerity Strategic Partners, which has been a vehicle for the firm's open-air retail expansion strategy.
Why It Matters for F&B Operators
For food and beverage tenants and foodservice operators evaluating community and power center locations, the West Street deal illustrates a broader dynamic: grocery-anchored centers with high-performing supermarkets continue to attract institutional capital, compressing availability and raising the competitive bar for prospective co-tenants. DLC manages more than $4.0 billion in assets across 90-plus properties totaling 24 million square feet, giving it scale to offer preferred-tenant programs that can accelerate lease-up at newly acquired assets like West Street.
The deal also highlights growing investor conviction in secondary-market grocery real estate, where college towns and regional hubs can deliver traffic density comparable to larger metros at lower acquisition cost. With 40,000 square feet to fill, West Street represents a near-term opportunity for regional and national food and beverage concepts seeking a proven, high-traffic New England trade area.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is this Hannaford location worth an off-market deal?
Hannaford's West Street location ranks No. 2 nationally in performance—that's top-tier traffic generation for a 206,000-square-foot property in a mid-sized market. The grocer has anchored this center continuously since 1984, delivering the kind of stable, recession-resistant tenant that institutional investors like Cohen & Steers demand.
What's DLC's play here beyond the acquisition?
DLC now controls over 500,000 square feet in Keene after more than two decades of market presence, giving them leverage on local leasing and operations. The center sits at 80% occupancy with 40,000 square feet available—DLC identified immediate value-creation upside in backfilling that space.
Who else anchors this property?
Hobby Lobby serves as co-anchor, with secondary tenants including Maurices, UPS, AAA, and Tropical Smoothie. This mix balances the grocery foundation with consumer services and retail, typical of successful grocery-anchored centers.
Why structure this as a joint venture with Cohen & Steers?
Cohen & Steers brings institutional capital and appetite for stable, income-producing grocery-anchored assets. JV structures like this allow operators like DLC to control the asset while leveraging co-investor balance-sheet strength and risk distribution.
What makes Keene a defensible market for grocery-anchored retail?
Keene anchors a tri-state trade area spanning New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts, with Keene State College, Antioch University, and Cheshire Medical Center providing stable local demand. These institutional anchors insulate the market from typical retail cyclicality.
