United Kingdom Retail Development Update

(Eldon Square Shopping Centre)

Capital Shopping  Centres, one of UK’s largest developers and owners of 13 regional shopping centres totaling 14 million sq ft announced today they are planning £78 million in capital projects.  The purpose for this investment is due to the strong growth in retail and a “reduced supply of new high-quality retail space”. 

Once again the news from the UK is bullish on retail development.  We have seen similar statements from Land Securities and their investment in Trinity Leeds, as well as this post about construction spending at it relates to supermarkets and Europe in general.

Here is the article from Building.co.uk:
CSC Plots £78m of Retail Development

For the brief in its entirety see CSC's website:
Interim Management Statement


  

Phoenix Market City - Mumbai

(All Images Above from Phoenix Mills Ltd Website)

Phoenix Mills Ltd (no connection with the Mills Corp, recently acquired by Simon Malls) is in the process of developing mega-regional shopping centers in India called Phoenix Market City (Cities) that create mixed-use developments that bring retail, entertainment, hospitality, and commercial space together in a dynamic and highly designed environment.  There are currently 4 of these centers currently under development.  Indian cities where these are in planned include Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, and Chennai.

Consistent about these centers are their inward focus away from their dense (and often undesirable) surroundings.  They are modern (and western) as a development but as you move inside between the mass of the building, each development has carved out an open air oasis that is meant to provide the shopper a respite from the hustle of the  city (11,000,000 population of Mumbai), while at the same time keeping them focused on the shops and restaurants.  This area is luxuriously land and hardscaped with water features, trees, and plants that are then fronted by the retail and restaurants.

One of the centers, The Phoenix Market City – Mumbai is in the eastern Mumbai suburb of Kurla.  Stats of the 25 acre Mumbai project are immense and include the over 4 million sf of development including 1.7 million sf of retail, 1.0 million sf of office, 3,500 parking spaces, over 30 restaurants, 11 screen multiplex, 7 department stores, and over 350 retailers.  The development will also include a 5 Star Marriott with 155 keys and 500,000 sf of landscaped open air central core.

Retailers that have announced their commitment to the development thus far include Addidas, Big Cinemas, DKNY, DLF Home, Ed Hardy, Hidesign, PlanetM, Provogue, Punjab Grill, and Ted Lapidus.

The Phoenix Market Cities were designed by international architectural firm Benoy and the Mumbai location is scheduled to open in 2011.  These centers are as urban as they get and it will be interesting to follow them to see how the these developments transform not only the retail opportunities for the Indian population but what happens to the immediate surroundings adjacent to these shopping meccas.  Will they benefit from the “economy” of the center or will they remain depressed.  I will report back.

   

More Shovels to Turn Near Orlando

Metro Orlando is about ready to welcome another mixed-use center to its retail directory.  We recently discussed Creative Village, an aggressive redevelopment of the Amway Arena properties in Downtown Orlando.  The city of Winter Haven has just announced a letter of intent to move forward with a project on Lake Lulu at the site of the Winter Haven Chain of Lakes Complex.  The city owned Chain of Lakes Complex is currently comprised of several baseball fields as well as an aquatic and cultural center.  The complex has been the perennial host for MLB Spring Training camps since its construction in 1966 including the Boston Red Sox and most recently the Cleveland Indians. 

The Landings WH Partners, LLC, headed by Orlando consultant Tony Benge and Birmingham Alabama’s Taylor Pursell is the team charged with redeveloping the site.  The property sits on 70 acres and is across US Highway 17 from The Landing, another project under way by the Pursell-Benge duo.  Forty of the 70 acres will be developed with the remaining acres dedicated to public space.   The development is to include retail, two hotels, restaurants, office space, a parking garage, as well as an arts center. It will also be accessible to the public use of Lake Lulu frontage and include a splash park, amphitheater, a marina and a water taxi that will shuttle people to Legoland Florida theme park, which is scheduled to open in the fall of 2011.

The current property, which has outlived its usefulness, has been considered for development for some time after the loss of the Cleveland Indians in 2009.  The current amenities are being replaced with new facilities as part of the master plan or in other areas of Winter Haven and the city has pledged to replace those services before any existing are demolished.

This would appear to be a win-win for the city of Winter Haven and their development team.  They have secured a developer that shares their vision for the city owned property, preserved the shore of Lake Lulu as a public park, and as a result, they have given the green light for a development that will create 800 jobs and $1.0 million in annual tax revenue.

See recent article from the Winter Haven News Chief:

Project Would Reshape Vast Winter Haven Property


And here is an update to this article via the The Ledger as of 12/7/2011:

Winter Haven to Apply for Rezoning for Mixed-Use 'Landings' Development

    

Part 3 - Ohio Lifestyle Center Series: Levis Commons

(Photo from Levis Commons Website)

(Photo from Levis Commons Website)

(Photo from Levis Commons Website)

Part 3 in my series of Lifestyle centers around Ohio is Levis Commons.  J. Preston Levis Commons, the "official" name of this center opened on October 26th of 2004.  The center is a large mixed-use project located in the Toledo suburb of Perrysburg, Ohio.  The Town Center of Levis Commons is the center piece of the project which includes 400 acres of planned development including retail and entertainment (1 million sf),  office (650,000 sf), as well as housing (1,000+ units).

When completed, J. Preston Levis Commons will be a $500 million development that has been deemed an "urban village". 

Dillin Corp is the master developer of the project and Hill Partners, Inc is the primary developer of The Town Center at Levis Commons and manages the leasing.  MBH Architects (Alameda, CA) was the architect for the center.

Dillin Corp has become a well known Toledo name announcing a project in Downtown Toledo, the Marina District on the Maumee River, as well as The Village at Southwyck, a 550,000 sf open air community on the former Southwyck mall site in Southwest Toledo.  Also planned (according to their website) is a project in Delaware County named The Village at Liberty Walk, a 300,000 sf town center development at the intersection of Seldom Seen and Sawmill Parkway.

Larry Dillin, President of Dillin Corp has also been the target of much criticism over the past several years for spearheading large projects only to see them languish for years including the Marina District and The Village at Southwyck.  And recently Dillin has faced tax delinquency for undeveloped parcels of land at Levis Commons that Mr. Dillin anticipated would be built out by now and generating revenue to cover the tax bill.  However, the sour ecomomy has stalled that phase of the development and the property is still waiting future development.  Mr. Dillin has also paid a third of his tax obligation and has worked out a payment plan for the rest.  In the meantime - the hope is the economy will continue to improve and Levis Commons can attract investment that will begin to produce a return on investment for Dillin.

Levis Commons demographic is the suburban female shopper and is certainly evident in the store mix.  A quick review of the store directory reveals cosmetics, women’s apparel, accessories, and shoes, as well as salons and home furnishings.  Although I have personally enjoyed spending time in the development – there is very little for the male shopper beyond a few select stores.  This is by design, however as the development matures a strategy may want to include stores that have a greater appeal to the male demo.

As mentioned in my first Lifestyle Center post, The Shops at Fallen Timbers is located just 6 miles to the west of Levis Commons and although the economy has suffered over the past few years, both centers appear to be doing well.

  

Creating a Creative Village for the Creative Class

(Image from Creative Village Proposal)

(Image from Creative Village Proposal)

(Image from Creative Village Proposal)

(Image from Creative Village Proposal)

Orlando has a plan for a 68-acre tract downtown that is currently home to the aging Amway Arena, a handful of buildings, and the sea of parking lots surrounding them.  With the Orlando Magic moving to the new Amway Center in October of this year, the large parcel of land is being reconstituted into what planners are calling the “Creative Village”.  The goal, according to the City of Orlando Concept Team Report, is to build a community that is focused on technology and to attract “the lifestyle of creative people and become a supportive, business-friendly environment in which digital media and related companies can thrive”.

The village would consists of housing, retail, technology focused business, green space, as well as other amenities that would support a 20 – 40 year old demographic.  Plans call for over 1,200+ housing units, 1,000,000 sf of office space, 125,000+ sf of commercial/retail, 200 hotel rooms, 325,000+ sf of educational facilities.

Craig Ustler, President of Ustler Development Inc and a well know Orlandian restaurateur turned developer has submitted the winning proposal to develop Creative Village with his extended team under the banner, Creative Village, Development, LLC.  For a detailed review of their plan – see their proposal submitted to the City of Orlando.

This will be another interesting development to watch.  This is one of the first concepts that I am aware of that is targeting the creative industry specifically as an anchor for redevelopment.  We have seen technology components in various developments, including Southfield (see previous post here) where a $100 million film studio was incorporated into the project.  Orlando obviously has a rich history of technology when you consider the innovation that exists in the numerous amusement parks located there.  This could be a coup for them and a way to lure a creative class to an urban development that will redefine their downtown.