Simon, Farallon Bid for The Mills

Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group Inc. and San Francisco-based Farallon Capital Management LLC have announced a proposal to acquire The Mills Corp., a real estate investment trust based in Chevy Chase, Md., for $24 per share in cash.Simon, a retail REIT, and Farallon, an investment management firm, said the proposal represents a higher price than is offered in the existing Mills agreement with Brookfield Asset Management Inc. and "would enable Mills shareholders to receive payment at least six months before the publicly announced expected closing date for the Brookfield transaction." Funds managed by Farallon own approximately 10.9% of The Mills' outstanding common stock, making them the largest reported Mills shareholder, the companies said. The Mills said the merger agreement with Brookfield is still in effect, but that its board will "promptly consider" the Simon/Farallon proposal. The companies can be found online at http://www.simon.com, http://www.faralloncapital.com, and http://www.themills.com.