Redevelopment of San Mateo towers could provide boost to nearby Trade Winds Shopping Center

After years of challenges, the owner of a former Route 66 motel-turned-shopping center is positioning the property for a rebound, as incoming housing projects are slated to bring more people and a greater need for services to the area.

It’s been a tough few years for Trade Winds Shopping Center — a set of four commercial buildings spanning roughly 38,400 square feet and seeking tenants near the corner of San Mateo and Central SE.

The property houses Crown Studios, Torres Birria & Taco Shop and El Faraon Event Center, but has never been fully occupied, said Edward McKeegan, managing member of MBLA Partners, the shopping center’s new owner. With the recent exit of Fiesta Auto Insurance, the 5400 Central SE property is roughly 35% occupied, McKeegan said.

The area’s higher levels of homelessness have presented challenges for the shopping center, McKeegan said. But he’s optimistic that the shopping center — and the surrounding area — will turn a corner soon with the help of new planned housing.

Just across the street from Trade Winds, developers plan to convert two long-vacant office towers along San Mateo NE into a residential community dubbed Serenade at Park Central. The smaller, 10-story tower — the first to be redeveloped — will include 110 apartments, 41 of which will be affordably priced.

The housing project was one of the factors that made MBLA Partners — a California-based real estate investment group — decide to acquire Trade Winds in a deal that closed in April 2025.

“We contacted the owners of Serenade, discussed their plans and they had high hopes,” McKeegan said. “We saw them as real players in making that project become a reality, so now you’re going to have a dense residential market there, which is going to need services.”

It might be a while before those services are needed, as developers just broke ground on the tower project earlier this month and aim for completion in the first quarter of 2027.

But playing the long game isn’t a concern for MBLA Partners, which possesses what McKeegan described as “staying power,” or the ability to maintain a commitment despite difficulty.

“We don’t do flips. We’ll hold this (property) for 10 or 15 years, maybe longer,” McKeegan said. “Our goal is that within three years, we can see it being in the 80 to 90% occupied range.”

The property was 40% occupied when the group acquired it last year. They purchased the property from Santosh Mody, president of Excel Hospitality Inc., which operates and manages several hotels in the Albuquerque area.

The Mody family had owned the property since the 1980s. At the time, it was the site of Trade Winds Motor Hotel, which opened in the late 1950s and was demolished in 2009, according to Journal archives.

Mody began developing the $2.2 million Trade Winds Shopping Center in 2014, and it was completed in 2015.

“They did a very good job building it,” McKeegan said. “You could tell that when they built it, they were planning on keeping it for a long time. They did quality work.”

“I could tell there was a certain level of frustration with Santosh, though, because he ran into one issue after another,” McKeegan added, citing years of Albuquerque Rapid Transit busway construction on Central Avenue and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Despite the challenges the shopping center has faced, McKeegan thinks Trade Winds has a lot going for it, with its high visibility and ties to Route 66, which are reflected in the property’s name and signage.

With competitive lease rates, flexible term options, enhanced property security, the owner’s willingness to work with both national and local tenants — including startups — and the incoming housing projects, McKeegan said he thinks Trade Winds is on the verge of tapping into its full potential.

“We’re not expecting to lease it all up in one day or one year,” McKeegan said. “We just hope it’ll become an asset for the community and can provide services that will be needed by not only the residents there now but also the future residents. I have high hopes for it.”

 Kylie Garcia covers retail and real estate for the Journal. You can reach her at kgarcia@abqjournal.com.