CIM Group Inc. has sold the nearly 60,000-square-foot downtown retail property that houses Ralphs Fresh Fare market to MDC Realty Advisors USA Inc. for nearly $19 million.

The retail site is located on the ground floor of the Market Lofts, a 267-condo development at 645 W. Ninth St., at Flower Street. The residential condos were not part of the sale.

CIM acquired the property, a development site, in 2001 and put the retail portion of the property up for sale in September. The 350,000-square-foot mixed-use project was completed 2007.

Kroger Co.’s Ralphs, which occupies more than 50,000 square feet in the project, opened up in June 2007 and was the first full-service grocery to open in the area in more than 50 years. The location is among the top grossing stores in the chain. Other retailers on the ground floor include the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Supercuts.

“The sale signifies an increasingly active retail environment in downtown Los Angeles,” said Adam Tischer, vice president of Colliers International downtown who was not involved in the deal. “It is evidence of investor interest in the evolving retail landscape of downtown Los Angeles.”

The transaction was brokered by Hanley Investment Urban Retail Advisors of Irvine, which represented both the buyer and the seller.