L.A. Investment Group Buys Mission Viejo Mall

The Kaleidoscope, a stylish shopping and entertainment center in Mission Viejo that opened three years ago at a cost of $55 million, has been sold to a Los Angeles investment group for $28 million.

Kam Sang Co., which historically has bought underleased shopping centers, purchased the Kaleidoscope this month from the original owner, Samsung PDP in La Mirada, according to commercial brokerage Grubb & Ellis, which handled the deal.

Samsung PDP, a unit of the giant Korean conglomerate Samsung, put the center up for sale earlier this year.

The property, billed as a “shoppertainment” venue, has tenants such as Zany Brainy, Edwards Theatres and Burke Williams Spa.

But the 222,000-square-foot center, located in an affluent and growing part of south Orange County, has struggled to live up to expectations.

The six-story complex was only 70% leased at the time of sale, Grubb & Ellis said.

A representative at Kam Sang could not be reached for comment.

Kaleidoscope sits across the street from the Shops at Mission Viejo, a center that has added the first Nordstrom in south Orange County and other upscale retailers during a broad-scale make-over.

But analysts said one of Kaleidoscope’s biggest problems was its multilevel garage.

Although such garages have not deterred shoppers from visiting malls such as the Beverly Center, analysts said shoppers in Orange County prefer to walk directly into a mall’s entrance from large parking lots, as they do at South Coast Plaza.

Dixie Walker, a Grubb & Ellis agent, who along with Michael Randall brokered the deal, said Kam Sang will be working to boost vacancy.