The Publix-anchored Shoppes of Sweetwater in Longwood has a new landlord, with Graphite Real Estate scooping up the neighborhood shopping center for $14 million. The plaza at 3857 Wekiva Springs Road totals roughly 64,253 square feet and is home to a mix of national and local shops built around the busy Publix. Graphite says it plans to finally wake up a long-vacant corner pad and bring in tenants designed to lift both rents and foot traffic.
As reported by Orlando Business Journal, Graphite paid $14 million for the property and intends to reposition part of the site. Offering materials on Crexi show the center sits at the signalized corner of Wekiva Springs Road and Hunt Club Boulevard, and that a corner outparcel could be re-platted to roughly 0.8 acres.
New owner zeroes in on sleepy corner pad
Graphite is concentrating on tenant categories that typically perform well at grocery-anchored centers, including medical, fitness, and personal services, in an effort to boost rental income and make better use of the corner lot. Leasing materials and the property's listing on LoopNet highlight the center's grocery-anchored, e-commerce-resistant mix and its built-in neighborhood demand.
Graphite’s Florida grocery play continues
The Longwood purchase fits squarely into Graphite's ongoing run of grocery-anchored acquisitions in Florida, a strategy that has attracted investors looking for stable foot traffic and income. Coverage of Graphite’s 2024 acquisition of Holiday Centre, another Publix-anchored plaza, underscores that pattern, according to ShoppingCenterBusiness.
For shoppers in Longwood, changes are expected to roll out slowly. The most obvious shifts will likely be any new construction on the corner pad and a refreshed lineup of storefronts, while leasing activity and permit filings will reveal how aggressively Graphite moves to re-tenant the site. We will be watching those filings and leasing notices to see which users land next at the Shoppes of Sweetwater.
