Amstar and Renaissance Open Piazza Samsun Shopping Center in Samsun, Turkey

SAMSUN, Turkey, April 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Amstar announced today the opening of Piazza Samsun Shopping Center in Samsun, Turkey. The project of 66,000 m2 (710,000 sf) leasable area is the largest shopping center in the Black Sea region of Turkey and is expected to become the premier shopping destination for the more than 1.3 million residents of the Samsun region. This is the fourth shopping center delivered by the joint venture between Amstar and its partner, Renaissance Development.

Piazza Samsun was constructed over a 19-month period and was 98% leased at grand opening. The project offers a diverse mix of 165 international and domestic retailers, a ten-screen cinema, bowling alley, skating rink, thirty-one restaurants and approximately 1,700 parking spaces.

"Piazza Samsun's best-in-class design and construction quality coupled with its strong retail, dining and entertainment offerings will help to make it the preeminent shopping center of the region," said Jason Lucas, President of Amstar Global Partners. "The successful development and lease-up of this property is a prime example of Amstar's investment strategy of developing institutional-quality real estate in high growth, under-supplied markets."

Major tenants of the shopping center include Migros, MediaMarkt, Decathlon, H&M and Inditex Group (including Zara, Bershka, Pull & Bear and Stradivarius). The project also includes Samsun's first five-star hotel, the 163-room Anemon Samsun, which will open in May 2013.

About Amstar in Turkey

Amstar, in partnership with Renaissance Development, owns and manages three operating shopping centers in Turkey (including Piazza Samsun) and is currently developing two additional Turkish shopping centers in Kahramanmaras and Sanlirufa, which are scheduled to open in April and October 2013, respectively. Combined, these five shopping centers will comprise 250,000 m2 (2.7 million sf) of leasable area, making Amstar one of Turkey's largest retail property owners.

Over the past several years, Amstar and Renaissance's properties have been recognized with several of the industry's most coveted awards. Kozzy Shopping Center, which opened in Istanbul in April 2010, was awarded Europe's Best New Retail Project (under 20,000 m2/215,000 sf) by ICSC. Adana Optimum, which opened in Adana in April 2011, was recognized by Turkey's Trade Council of Shopping Centers & Retailers as Outlet of the Year in 2011.

About Amstar

Established in 1987, Amstar is a real estate investment manager with more than $2.3 billion in assets under management (as of December 31, 2012). Amstar's clients originate from across the globe and include U.S. and European institutions, insurance companies, private banks, funds of funds, and family offices. For more information on Amstar, visit www.amstar.com.

About Renaissance

Renaissance Development is the investment branch of Renaissance Engineering and Construction of Turkey, the world's third largest international retail contractor and 18th largest international general building contractor. Renaissance, which has more than 2.8 million m2 (30 million sf) of commercial space and 11 shopping centers in Turkey, was awarded "Best Real Estate Developer in Turkey" by Euromoney Magazine in 2011. For more information on Renaissance visit www.rendvlp.com.