Two Dallas commercial real estate firms are merging.

Lincoln Property Company announced Tuesday a strategic investment in Dallas-based Centennial, a nationwide owner and operator of retail properties.

The parties did not disclose the terms of the transaction or the value of the investment.

Lincoln provided an undisclosed dollar amount of investment capital to help Centennial expand its portfolio. Lincoln also made a significant investment in Centennial’s operating company, said Steven Levin, Centennial’s founder and CEO.

The partnership benefits both companies, providing Centennial with capital and resources for national expansion while providing Lincoln with new opportunities for mixed-use development projects.

“We’re interested in investing much more in great leadership and great organizations that expand our capabilities, either from an investment and/or service perspective. And Centennial is just a perfect fit,” said David Binswanger, Lincoln’s co-CEO. “(Lincoln) has never really been in the large-format, mixed-use retail business.”

Centennial operates over 250 million square feet of retail and mixed-use properties in 18 states and has experience operating shopping centers. Lincoln, one of the largest diversified real estate services companies with offices in the U.S., U.K. and Europe, will bring its expertise in offices, apartments, hotels and other real estate products.

The partnership will focus on developing and investing in community-focused projects. They will explore opportunities to acquire underperforming properties. The companies have worked together on several joint ventures over the past decade, they said.

“There are too many enclosed malls or large open-air malls … being built today,” Levin said. “The best projects in America, in our opinion, are mixed-use projects — with a strong retail component, but bringing together a residential, work and complementary use environment. … Lincoln, as a leading complementary use developer, is the other part of the equation that really produces these great projects.”

Lincoln’s investment is the latest step in its focus on the retail segment. The company has a joint venture with California-based retail investment firm Paragon Commercial Group.

This new move comes after Lincoln received a large investment last year from Connecticut-based Stone Point Capital LLC.

Neither Dallas-based company provided details about possible joint projects in North Texas that they may have in mind.

Earlier this year, Lincoln acquired a 4-acre parcel on Cedar Springs Road between Fairmount and Routh Streets south of Turtle Creek for a Class A mixed-use development.

Lincoln plans to develop the site into 37,000 to 46,000 square metres of office space, approximately 250 luxury apartments, a 200-room five-star hotel and residence, and 23,000 square metres of food and beverage retail space. A timeline for the development has not yet been set.