Garden Commercial is diving into South Florida’s Publix-anchored shopping center frenzy for its first purchase in the tri-county region.

The Short Hills, New Jersey-based firm, a subsidiary of Garden Homes Management, paid $37 million for Plaza Del Mar at 201 South Ocean Boulevard in Manalapan, records and real estate database Vizzda show. Garden Homes is led by CEO Joseph Wilf.

The price breaks down to $435 a square foot for three retail buildings spanning 94,999 square feet. Sitting on 10.3 acres, Plaza Del Mar was completed in 1983. In addition to Publix, tenants include Soma fashion shop, Illustrated Properties and Art Basil Restaurant.

The property sold for a slight discount from its previous sale almost two decades ago. The seller, Kitson & Partners, led by CEO Sydney Kitson, paid $37.6 million for it in 2006, records show. 

Garden Commercial owns 37 shopping centers, single-tenant retail buildings and gas stations in Connecticut, New Jersey and Rhode Island, according to the firm’s website. 

Last year, shopping center trades dominated South Florida retail deals. Of the top 10 retail sales of 2024, seven involved shopping centers, including two purchases by Publix totaling $110 million. The Lakeland-based grocery chain bought shopping centers anchored by its supermarkets in Coral Springs and Davie. In a third deal, Publix paid $32 million for another shopping center in Davie anchored by one of its stores. 

In September, New York-based Benderson Development paid $83.7 million for Shops at Midtown Miami, a big box shopping center anchored by a Target store with a supermarket. That deal was the priciest retail deal of 2024. 

Last month, Boca Raton-based investor Yevgeniy Yermakov joined the shopping center buying spree. He paid SJC Ventures $49.2 million for the recently completed Boynton Beach Marketplace in Boynton Beach. The shopping center is anchored by a Whole Foods supermarket, with other tenants including Madison Reed hair salon, Pacific Dental Services and Orangetheory Fitness.