DC Introduces The Yards

(All Images above from The Yards website)

The Capital Riverfront district is a 500 acre area south of the United States Capitol on the Anacostia River that includes the Nationals Park (baseball) and the Washington Navy Yard.  Forty-Two acres of these post industrial parcels will be transformed into a mixed-use waterfront development called The Yards in the coming months and years.

The area The Yards inhabits was formerly known as the Navy Yard Annex as it sits adjacent to the Washington Navy Yard.  It has had many uses since its founding in 1799 including the original port of the U.S. Navy, a wharf where many ships delivered raw materials, light industrial business, as well as playing key roles in the British, Spanish-American, and both World Wars.  The multitude of buildings including warehouses, manufacturing, as well as many other buildings that have historic significance will be renovated for housing, retail, office, and entertainment venues.

2012 Olympics, of Retail Development: Westfield Stratford City is Off to a Fast Start

(All Images Above from Westfield's Website)

Aside from thousands of athletes and visitors, the Olympics bring unprecedented development to the host city. Sports venues, the Olympic Village, infrastructure and transportation improvements are planned years in advance and begin to take shape as the opening day draws near. 

To capitalize on the millions of visitors and the international spotlight the Olympics generate, developers have been equally busy planning and building retail developments to serve those visitors and claim a piece of the economic pie. Visa, in its London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Expenditure and Economic Impact report estimates that the 2012 Olympics could generate in excess of $1 Billion in additional consumer spending and those dollars, pounds, euros, and countless other currencies will be spent lodging, shopping and eating in these strategically placed developments.

Retail Development Meets LEGO KidsFest

(Jordan)

Editor’s Note:  I will be traveling to India to work for a week so in my place, my 10 year old son Jordan will be taking over the blog for a post.


Hi, Jordan here.  I know that my dad really likes retail development but I also know he LOVES LEGO.  So I wanted to let all you guys know, there are two LEGO KidsFests left this year.  One is in Cleveland, OH and the last one is in Hartford, CT.  

(Image from LEGO KidsFest Website)

Union Village, $1.5 Billion for Retail Medical Mixed-Use

(All Images from Union Village Website)

All Things Retail Development has covered a lot of territory in our first year of reporting Mixed-Use centers all over the world, but here is a new twist on “Mixed-Use”: a $1.5 Billion, 150 acre medical and retail complex planned for Henderson, Nevada.

The project, first announced in April of this year, is called Union Village and will be one of the first such integrated “health villages” in the nation.  The project will be made up of 4 different components as described in this article from the Las Vegas Sun:

Part 6 - Ohio Lifestyle Center Series: Newport on the Levee

(All Photos from Newport on the Levee website)

Our next center in this ongoing Ohio Lifestyle Center series is Newport on the Levee.  Many familiar with this development will immediately point out that Newport, across the Ohio River from Cincinnati in Kentucky, is NOT in Ohio and that certainly is the case.  However, the development is significant enough that the main driver of its visitors are from the Cincinnati metro area and the development has access by boat, car, as well as the Purple People Bridge that connects downtown Cincinnati via a pedestrian bridge that connects directly with the center.

$110 million Development for Sligo, Ireland

(All Renderings from the Sligo City Centre website)

Sligo is a town in the Northern part of the Republic of Ireland that dates back to the early 13^th century.  It is a popular tourist attraction and although its population is just under 20,000 people, it is purported to have the top retail spend in North West Ireland which is supported by two peak selling seasons; Christmas and Summer.

Sligo Town Centre, is a $110 million project at the heart of Sligo, with the intent of redeveloping the Sligo city centre.  The development, originally proposed in 1999 will finally move forward with the signing of Debenhams department store who will join Penney’s (Primark, not JC), Dunnes Stores and Tesco as the anchors for the project.  An additional 26 retailers will also be part of the project as well as prime office space, 20+ apartments, and a parking garage that can accommodate 900+ cars.  The nearly 400,000 sf mixed-use project will dedicate 260,000 to retail.  Construction is expected to start late this year and be completed by 2013.  For a brochure provided by Treasury Holdings, the developer of the project, click here.

Grandview Yard Update 2

Grandview Yard, the $500 million, 90 acre development located just west of Downtown, Columbus announced recently their desire to add 154 apartments in three four-story buildings.  Initial plans for Grandview Yard included as many as 600 housing units over time.

This is welcome news for a young urban development that has had early success.  The fact that Nationwide Realty Investors, developer of the property, is willing to invest further is a good sign for the Yard as well as for the Columbus market.  Here is a list of the businesses that have called Grandview Yard their home:

                Hyatt Place

                Urban Active

                Jason’s Deli

                The Buckeye Hall of Fame Grill

                Massage Envy Spa

                Schindler Dentistry

                M&A Architects

O’Neill Properties Getting to The Point in New Jersey

(Image from O'Neill Properties)

(Image from O'Neill Properties)

(Image from O'Neill Properties)

(Image from O'Neill Properties)

O’Neill Properties Group recently announced the unveiling of The Point, one of the largest mixed-use, lifestyle centers in the United States, 30 miles from Manhattan in Sayerville, New Jersey. 

The Point, planned to be a 8 million sf development is a city within itself and will include 3 million sf of mall/lifestyle retail, an entertainment district, waterfront and recreation activities, as well as 2,000 residential units including 650 homes and 1,350 apartments.  The Point will also be home to one of the largest Bass Pro Shops in the country.

What’s Up Our Sleeve? Check Out Our Pocket!

We are excited to announce the launch of Designers’ Pocket, a website resource for the design community.  You say there are already a ton of those?  Perhaps, and we have thought through this pretty carefully and hope the content we bring you will be both informative and refreshing.  Where we think we are different is the fact that we are and will be looking at the designer’s needs holistically.   If you have a creative block, we hope the imagery and right-brain articles will help inspire you to push through to the next step.   And if you need help with a budget, creating an invoice, or writing a contract, our left-brain articles are sure to help round out your creative skills with some solid business acumen (check out the Six DOs and DON'Ts of Asking for a Raise).

Every few weeks we will feature a member of the design community.  They could be just getting started, a veteran in the industry, or an entrepreneur that has one (or both) feet in design (check out the story of Tada Creative Studios).  We also have an ever expanding list of resources to supplement both halves of your brain.

Crocker Park Update

(Proposed Rendering from Bialosky + Parnters)

(Proposed Rendering from Bialosky + Parnters)

Crocker Park, the lifestyle center located in Westlake, Ohio announced this past week that American Greetings' new world headquarters will relocate there.  The 700,000 sf office building, new investment, and the 1,750 new employees will also spark a new hotel and 50% more retail to be built on existing land owned by the center.  


The $100 million investment is reported to include the hotel, 250,000 sf of additional retail offerings, a parking garage as well as other green space and amenities.

International Retail Development Update

(Paradise Center in Sofia, Bulgaria)

(Paradise Center in Sofia, Bulgaria)

(Paradise Center in Sofia, Bulgaria)

More bullish news on the international front:


Bulgaria
Bulgaria’s Paradise Center, the country’s largest shopping mall in the city of Sofia, is set to open at the end of 2012. The 1.1 million sf center will have 860,000 sf of retail and 270,000 sf of entertainment venues. Built as a lifestyle center with both interior and exterior venues, the center will also have an ice rink, be connected to the city’s transit system and provide 1900 parking spaces.


RTKL (London) designed the center and the Management company that will lease the development is Forton International. Forton is a regional alliance partner with Cushman & Wakefield. CA research recently confirmed Bulgaria saw the largest growth of shopping centers in Europe.  This will be one of 5 centers that are expected to open by 2013 in the city of Sofia. For an overview of the Bulgarian Retail Market (Q1 2011) see this document from Forton.


Peru
And an article from Living in Peru stated that their country will add 22 new malls by 2013 which equates to an investment of $687 million. To understand the scale of this economic growth you only have to look back to 2000 when Peru had only seven shopping centers of which six where in the capital city of Lima. Since that time, Peru has added on average 3 centers per year and now has a total of 39 centers. These new projects will bring the total to over 60 retail centers throughout the country.


I spent several months in Peru in 1996 and the lack of retail centers was quite evident then. At the time it was a two class society of the very poor or the very rich. There was little or no middle class that would support such centers. And as an editorial comment – what an amazing and wonderful country. The poverty that I witnessed there was not due to lack of effort. I have never experienced more hard working people than the Peruvians. I hope these new retail centers are an indication that Peru is developing that middle class.


Read more about Bulgaria:
   Bulgaria’s Next Largest Shopping Mall to Open 2012 End
   Bulgaria Sees Highest Growth of New Shopping Centers in Europe in 2010
   Sofia Citizen to Enjoy 5 New Shopping Malls by 2013


Read more about Peru:
   Peru Will Have 22 New Shopping Malls by 2013


And for past posts relating to other international retail development projects:
  Turkey and US Retail Development Update
  India Shopping Center Explosion: 94 New Malls by 2012




  

Part 5 – Ohio Lifestyle Centers: Legacy Village

(Image from Dorsky Hodgson + Partners Website)

(Image from Dorsky Hodgson + Partners Website)

(Image from Dorsky Hodgson + Partners Website)

(Arial View Looking North)

We head back to Metropolitan Cleveland for this ongoing Ohio Lifestyle Center series.  Opened in 2003, Legacy Village is located just east of Cleveland in the upscale community of Lyndhurst. 

Dorsky Hodgson + Partners (Cleveland) designed the $145 million development that sits on a 67-acre parcel and contains 650,000 sf of retail and restaurants in a “Main Street” configuration.  An additional 25,000 sf of office space resides above the retailers.  When originally opened, the center boasted that 60% of the retailers were new to Northeastern Ohio.  Stores like Expo Design Center, Crate & Barrel, Galyan’s, Cheesecake Factory, Z Gallerie,  and Restoration Hardware were all new and exciting destinations entering the Cleveland Market.

Although Legacy Village has done quite well since its opening, many of those original stores have since closed (exiting the center have been Expo, Joseph-Beth Booksellers, and Z Gallerie to name a few, while Galyan’s was purchased and became Dick’s Sporting Goods)

First Interstate Properties LTD developed the property and the project is noteworthy not only because of its high end destination for east siders, but also because of its proximity to the 1.2 million sf Beachwood Place, a well known and visited mall across the street.  And before Legacy Village and Beachwood Place, there was Shaker Square, built by the legendary Van Sweringen Brothers in 1929.  It is purported to be the second planned shopping center in the country at that time.  With upscale apartments, office space in proximity, and Cleveland’s RTA (commuter trains) running right through the center of the square – it truly was an original mixed-use project that still maintains itself as true town center.  Here are some aerials of Shaker Square.

Today, the center boasts over 70 stores and still maintains an impressive store directory.  Although the Lifestyle Center model may have taken a hiatus over the past several years, those well placed and with the right tenant mix continue to thrive.


Here are some relevant books that you may be interested in (mouse over for the details).