Kimco buys Louisville retail centers for $295m

Kimco Realty said in a Nov. 2 press release it acquired Paddock Shops and Shelbyville Road Plaza in Louisville for $295 million.

Kimco said in the Nov. 2 press release the deal carries a low 6% blended going-in capitalization rate, more than 100 basis points above its approximately 5% average cap rate on 2026 dispositions.

The two properties, in Louisville’s East End, cover more than 741,000 square feet and are anchored by Trader Joe’s and The Fresh Market, Kimco said. The company said each center receives more than 4 million visits a year, citing Placer.ai.

“Paddock Shops and Shelbyville Road Plaza are exactly the kind of centers we want to own: grocery-anchored, in the strongest trade areas of a supply-constrained market,” Conor Flynn, chief executive officer of Kimco Realty, said in the press release.

Kimco framed the purchase as capital recycling, using proceeds from lower-growth asset sales to buy properties it expects to grow faster. A capitalization rate measures a property’s income yield against its value; a higher acquisition cap rate than the sales cap rate can support returns if income assumptions are met.

The company said the transaction was primarily funded with 1031 exchange proceeds from 2026 dispositions and was leverage-neutral. A 1031 exchange is a U.S. tax mechanism that can defer capital-gains taxes when real-estate sale proceeds are reinvested in similar property.

Kimco said Paddock Shops is a 351,000-square-foot lifestyle center that is 94% leased. It said the property’s shopper base has a median household income of about $122,000, nearly twice the Kentucky statewide figure, and about 60% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, citing Placer.ai.

Shelbyville Road Plaza is a 390,000-square-foot center in St. Matthews that is 92% leased, Kimco said. Tenants across the two centers include REI, Total Wine & More, Pottery Barn, West Elm, ULTA Beauty, Nordstrom Rack, Burlington, Ross Dress for Less and Old Navy.

The acquisition expands Kimco’s Louisville footprint alongside Festival at Jefferson Court, an existing Kroger-anchored center. Kimco said it now owns three grocery-anchored centers in the city totaling 911,000 square feet.

Kimco said it underwrote net operating income growth of about 4% a year over the next 10 years, based on below-market rents and changes to the tenant roster. That forecast is the company’s underwriting and was not independently verified in the release.

The market backdrop is part of the investment case. Kimco cited Cushman & Wakefield data showing Louisville shopping-center vacancy at 3.9%, compared with 6% nationally, and no shopping-center space under construction in the market.

The press release did not name the seller or provide property-level purchase prices. Kimco also did not disclose a dated closing step beyond announcing the completed acquisition on Nov. 2.

Source: company press release, Kimco Realty via GlobeNewswire, Nov. 2, 2026