Lakewood gaming site generates $22.1 million in sale to noted sale-leaseback agent
A Lakewood card room recently changed ownership, but the seller appears to be retaining control of operations.
Macau Casino, 9811 South Tacoma Way, was acquired Sept. 2 for $22.1 million by an LLC representing Oak Street Real Estate Capital in Chicago. The sale was recorded Sept. 20 by the county.
The seller was an LLC representing Maverick Gaming, with headquarters in Kirkland, which first purchased the site in 2019 for $6 million.
Maverick acquired the site as the state Gambling Commission entered into a $1.25 million settlement with the previous owners following the investigation of an alleged loan-sharking and money-laundering operation at the Lakewood site and the Tukwila Macau Casino.
Oak Street is known for sales-leaseback transactions, notably in recent years in high-priced deals involving retailers. CNBC reported Sept. 2 that it had made an up-to $2 billion offer to retailer Kohl’s in a potential sale-leaseback.
Oak Street has made similar deals with Bed Bath & Beyond in a $250 million sale-leaseback in 2020, before the pandemic, and a $725 million sale-leaseback deal with Big Lots, also in 2020.
The company’s website describes itself as “a leader in direct and indirect real estate investing, specializing in sale-leaseback transactions with investment grade and creditworthy tenants across multiple asset classes and geographies.”
It did not respond to request for comment on the Lakewood sale Wednesday.
Lakewood Macau is listed on Maverick’s website as one of its operations. Its Facebook page also appears to be run by Maverick.
When asked about the transaction, Catherine Lewis, marketing director for Maverick, told The News Tribune via email, “We do not have any information to share at this time.”
Maverick says on its website that it operates 18 card rooms in Washington and also has operations in Nevada and Colorado. Earlier this year it filed a federal lawsuit seeking to expand certain types of gaming, notably sports betting, beyond tribal casinos.
