One of Alabama's busiest retail and lifestyle centers has been sold to a partnership led by a Houston, Texas-based group.

The Shoppes at EastChase and its neighboring Eastchase Plaza in Montgomery are now owned by a group led by investment and management firm 5Rivers CRE. The deal closed at the end of 2022. A sale price wasn't released, but a release from 5Rivers called it "one of the Southeast’s largest retail center transactions of the year."

The center has more than 85 stores and restaurants, including Ross, PetSmart, Aldi, H&M, Sephora, and Lululemon, and it is shadow-anchored by Target and Dillard’s. EastChase spreads over 388,700 square feet.

"EastChase represents the quality of asset we're targeting in the Southeast and Texas,” 5Rivers Head of Acquisitions Analee Bivins said in a release. “It was particularly important for us to maintain our position as a key owner of Class A retail product in the state of Alabama. Dominating this market has enabled 5Rivers to offer retailers the opportunity to establish a profitable presence in the region in high visibility centers."

Last October, 5Rivers purchased Riverchase Promenade in Hoover. The company also owns three other major Alabama centers: the 334,000-square-foot Oxford Exchange in Oxford, the 196,000-square-foot Wildwood Center in Homewood, and the 270,000-square-foot Eastern Shore Plaza in Homewood.

Expect more deals on the horizon.

"5Rivers is continuing to pursue properties in Texas, Alabama and other Sunbelt states, particularly in the healthy lifestyle retail sector,” Bivins said. "5Rivers has been successful finding opportunities in the midst of a complex lending environment with a tighter debt market and we anticipate a steady flow of acquisitions throughout the year."

Brad Harper covers business and local government for the Montgomery Advertiser. Contact him at bharper1@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Montgomery's Shoppes at EastChase sold to Houston-based 5Rivers