J.K. Dinee, San Francisco Chronicle

An ambitious retail and restaurant plan set to be revealed Thursday for the new Transbay Transit Center on Mission Street is intended to make the transportation depot a thriving hub for eating, drinking and shopping.

Before the end of the year, the Transbay Joint Powers Authority will solicit proposals for a private retail development and leasing group to build out, lease and manage 100,000 square feet of restaurants and shops at the center. In comparison, San Franciscos Ferry Building has 65,000 square feet of retail, and New Yorks Grand Central Terminal has 135,000 square feet.

The retail is a very important and exciting part of the Transbay program, said Maria Ayerdi-Kaplan, who heads up the authority, which is managing construction of the transit center. When we open the station and the park at the end of 2017, we want to have the active retail component up and running.

Retail will eventually sprout on three levels, with a 15,000-square-foot food court modeled after Mario Batalis highly successful Eataly in New York, on the second level. There will also be three or four full-service restaurants, including one on the 5.4-acre rooftop park, and smaller coffee bars, newsstands, a gym, and shops selling everything from electronics to clothing to eyeglasses.

And an additional 60,000 square feet of retail could be added to a lower level when or if high-speed rail and Caltrain are added to the transit center.

Rooftop amphitheater

The group picked for developing and managing the stations retail will also be responsible for programming both the 1,000-seat rooftop amphitheater and the stations grand hall, which will also be used as a performance space.

The mix of retail, dining and performance space might help temper the criticism that the $4.5 billion transit center project is the worlds most expensive bus station.

The Transbay retail is quite important for three reasons, said Gabriel Metcalf, the executive director of SPUR, a San Francisco urban think tank. Its an amenity for transit riders, its a source of revenue for the TJPA, and its an amenity for the neighborhood.

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Transbay Transit Center grand vision includes thriving retail hub

Redwood Citys blueprint for downtown development is being tweaked to increase the allowable office space but overall density will remain the same by reducing housing and retail limitations.

The council, with Councilman Ian Bain voting no and Councilwoman Diane Howard abstaining, directed staff to move ahead with the proposed changes and required environmental review. Both plus a recommendation will be back to the Planning Commission and City Council in early 2015.

Amid the recession in 2010, the existing Downtown Precise Plan predicted 2,500 residential units, 500,000 square feet of office space, 100,000 square feet of retail space and 200 hotel units.

Four years later, amid an unprecedented downtown construction boom drawing new projects and tenants like Box, Inc. the projections for office space have just about reached the maximum allowed.

The proposed conversion adds an extra 168,930 square feet to the office space amount, maintains the hotel units, drops residential units by 740 and shaves 85,000 square feet from the retail space.

Councilman John Seybert said, while the numbers are different, the plan amendments still adhere to the original community intent and will contribute to the quality of life.

Despite numerous speakers who disagreed with the proposal or worried about housing reductions and traffic, the council majority emphasized that it does not change the plans overall density.

Were not talking about unlimited development, Mayor Jeff Gee said.

The increased office space might actually lower traffic in the area because employees like those at Box are prone to using public traffic which is why developers pay high prices for the location, Community Development Director Aaron Aknin said.

Aknin said the office space itself doesnt create new jobs but instead job growth drives the need for office space.

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Downtown Redwood City plan tweaked in favor of office space

Published: Wednesday, December 10, 2014 at 4:37 p.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, December 10, 2014 at 6:55 p.m.

PORT ORANGE Construction of Riverwalk Park is set to begin in spring and will include a kayak launch, green space, boardwalk and trails in the northern city limits along Halifax Drive.

During a presentation to Port Orange council members on Tuesday, Shailesh Patel, principal of Dredging & Marine Consultants, said complete construction of the park is expected to be finished by the summer of 2016.

Last year the city approved $210,000 in contracts for the firm to provide design and consulting services for Riverwalk. That included a workshop last year where the public weighed in on the overall design.

Plans for a second phase of the park include additional trails, a playground, splash pad, restrooms, concessions stands, an iconic feature and utility improvements. The park is designed to accompany a private development with high-rise condos, a boat marina, retail space and a riverboat restaurant.

Other key features of the park include 180 parking spaces, lighting, a sea wall and a fishing pier.

The city is budgeting $3.1 million for construction of the park and has received $200,000 in grants. Wayne Clark, Port Orange community development director, said that the city will have a budget of $4.1 million for the park if it receives all the grants its seeking.

This is a high-profile park in the city, Clark told council members. Instead of coming back with construction bids, we wanted to come to you first for input.

Council members expressed overall approval of the design plans and are expected to bid on construction work early next year. However, a few members did not support the construction of a splash pad, which is expected to cost $275,000.

Do we really want a splash pad? Councilman Bob Ford said. That is a logistical nightmare to maintain and control.

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City aims to finish Riverwalk Park by summer of 2016

It's not Abercrombie & Fitch, but it's a start.

Downtown Allentown developer City Center Investment Corp. announced Monday that it has signed business services and printing company Minuteman Press to occupy 2,000 square feet of retail space in its 11-story Two City Center office tower at Seventh and Hamilton streets.

The office services store is unlikely to rival the late Hess's as a Christmas shopping destination any time soon, but it is the first non-restaurant retail tenant City Center or any other downtown developer has announced for any of the downtown properties being developed or rehabbed along Hamilton Street.

"We always knew retailers, just by their nature, are kind of followers," said J.B. Reilly, City Center CEO. "They want to see the development in place before they commit."

The city's Neighborhood Improvement Zone tax incentive zone has added hundreds of new office workers and several new restaurants to Allentown's central business district, but so far, other forms of retail, especially national brand name stores, have been slow to follow.

That's about to change, Reilly promised.

"The interest in our retail is exploding, in that 2015 my expectation is that downtown Allentown will become a retail destination," he said.

The downtown will never return to its department store heyday, he said, but it will become a place that draws shoppers looking for "authentic shopping experiences."

"You're not going to have a department store downtown, nobody is building department stores anywhere anymore," he said.

City Center, which controls 60,000 square feet of retail space in its various properties both open and under construction, is in final discussions with a number of "unique quality retailers" Reilly said he expects to announce as tenants within the next two to three months.

Continued here:
Allentown's City Center inks first retail tenant

A GREEN space which form the centrepiece to a multi-million pound housing plan in west Rhyl is taking shape.

After months clearing and levelling the site, turf is now being laid down for green space in the heart of the Gerddi Heulwen regeneration area in West Rhyl this week.

Homes on Gronant Street, Aquarium Street, John Street and Abbey Street are being demolished to make way for housing as well as leisure and office or retail space.

The green space project is being led by Denbighshire Council and the work is being carried out by Brenig Construction.

Cllr Hugh Evans, leader of Denbighshire Council, said: "The green open space, along with the surrounding Gerddi Heulwen Housing Improvement Scheme, is one of the most significant housing-led regeneration schemes in Wales.

"Once completed, it will create a vibrant community where families and businesses wish to settle and grow and will benefit from new energy efficient homes, green open space and new shops.

"It will be integral to the regeneration of Rhyl as a town."

Clwyd Alyn Housing Association, part of the Pennaf Housing Group, has now received planning permission for demolition and to create new-build affordable homes for sale and rent along Gronant Street and Abbey Street.

North Wales Housing Association is also working in partnership with the West Rhyl Community Land Trust to offer an urban rental opportunity for two and three-bed family homes which are due to go before the council's planning committee on Wednesday.

The Welsh Government is also in discussion with private developers to also create additional homes for sale in the area.

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Green space at heart of Rhyl housing development is taking shape

OLEAN The long-awaited return of economic activity to dormant industrial land in north Olean inched forward Monday.

The Olean Planning Board took little action that evening on plans for an approximate $17 million redevelopment project submitted by Krog Corp. through its limited liability company, Olean Gateway, for 1404-1406 Buffalo St.

During the boards two-hour meeting, Krog Corp. representatives made a brief presentation the project. Their presentation was followed by board members going through the project application line-by-line for about an hour-and-a-half. At the end of their review, the board began a process to serve as the lead agency completing an environmental review of the project. A SEQR (state environmental quality review) is required for all major construction projects in New York.

Krog Corp., an Orchard Park-based development firm, plans a five-phase project for the almost 60-acre lot. Major elements of the project include the construction of a four-story hotel and neighboring retail complex comprising five buildings. HK Olean Hotel LLC is overseeing the hotels construction and development, while Olean Gateway LLC is overseeing retail complex component of the project. Both limited liability companies fall under Krog Corp.s umbrella.

Krog Corp. representatives focused their presentation on the projects first phase building the hotel and some of the retail spaces, as well as a restaurant. In addition they discussed their planned construction of a new city street leading into the property at the intersection of Buffalo Street and Constitution Avenue, and the installation of new water and sewer utility lines. Other aspects of the project include putting in new sidewalks and a driveway for the neighboring Verizon building.

We dont have any specific tenants yet for the spaces and its premature to discuss any (hotel chains) looking at the hotel, Chris Wood, an engineer from Carmina-Wood-Morris, the Buffalo-based architectural firm designing the project.

Arnie Cubins, a senior project manager from Krog Corp., told the Times Herald after the meeting that his company is currently taking with several retailers interested in leasing space.

Construction is targeted for a May start and would take most of the next year, should the project garner all the approvals it needs from local and state authorities. The remaining four phases would be completed by 2020.

During actual construction, Krog Corp. would put the new city road in and eventually, deed it back to the city, Mr. Wood said.

The hotel and retail complex is the first major project at the site, which has sat unused for decades. The Buffalo Street property is part of the citys brownfields, a 500-acre former industrial area abutting Interstate 86 in North Olean where contamination has impeded redevelopment.

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Board hears plans for hotel, retail plaza in citys brownfields

December 8, 2014, 11:24 PM Last updated: Monday, December 8, 2014, 11:41 PM

After years of staying behind the scenes, the developer of the mega-entertainment and shopping complex American Dream stepped onto the big stage Monday in New York. As a list of major, committed tenants and other details of the project surfaced over the weekend, Triple Five Group made sales pitches to other potential tenants for the untried retail concept at the International Council of Shopping Centers annual retail convention.

Triple Five, based in Edmonton, Alberta, paid to have the American Dream logo pasted on the entrances of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, and signed on as a corporate sponsor of the convention. Its booth at the event features flat-screen televisions that flash artists renderings of the Meadowlands project as well as promotional materials. Triple Five also took an ad in the convention program with the words Shop American Dream. Opening Holiday 2016.

Related: Retail giants lining up, American Dream says

In a status update on the project, Triple Five listed by name 50 retailers such as Victorias Secret and Gap as committed to American Dream, and said it had letters of intent to lease from 155 retailers and 93 completed leases from unspecified retailers. Yet despite the raised profile, a spokeswoman at the Triple Five booth Monday said the developer was not doing any press interviews about the project.

Even as Triple Five rolled out its tenant list for American Dream, there are lingering doubts that the project will get off the ground, given the history of failed retail ventures at the Meadowlands. Commitments to the project are not necessarily signed contracts. Opinions among the real estate executives interviewed at the convention Monday were evenly divided about whether the complex rising next to MetLife Stadium is a sure thing or a tough sell.

However, North Jersey real estate brokers agreed that American Dream is different enough to not affect deals they have in the works, even though the project is looking to sign several hundred retailers.

North Jersey brokers said they are seeing high demand, and even bidding wars, for prime locations in retail categories, from downtowns to freestanding stores, to shopping centers. This years convention drew 9,500 attendees, a record number, and almost 2,000 more than last year, a sign, brokers said, of the strength of the retail sector.

But even in a booming market, American Dream could be a tough sell, some brokers said. One particular problem is that retailers have heard a sales pitch before for a mall in the Meadowlands.

Now they have to be resold, said New York broker Faith Hope Consolo, who does deals with the types of luxury and fashion retailers Triple Five is hoping to land. She noted that Triple Five is the third developer to pitch the project in the past 11 years. Reselling is harder than selling, she said. Retailers have heard the pitches but have also seen the shell of the former Xanadu version of the mall sit empty, Consolo said.

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American Dream pushes its vision at retail convention

PLANS for the second phase of Prestatyn Retail Park look set to be given the green light.

An expansion of the multi-million retail park is to be discussed by Denbighshire Council's planning committee at a meeting on December 10 with planning officers recommending the application for approval.

The proposals include the demolition of the existing retail units at the former Iceland and Bevans Homewares site, and the construction of a terrace of four new retail units, the reconfiguration of the existing customer car park, associated landscaping, pedestrian and vehicle access works and an extension to the existing staff car park.

The councils economic and business development team said: The completed phase of the Shopping Park has already brought additional visitors to Prestatyn and created new jobs in the town centre.

This new phase will enhance the town's retail offer still further and the improvements to the connections between the Shopping Park and the High Street proposed in the revised scheme should help other parts of the town centre to benefit from the additional footfall which will arise from this investment.

Objections have been made to the plans in regards to concerns about increased visitor traffic, lack of turning space for delivery lorries, the height of development being above the existing roofline, loss of retail parking space, poor pedestrian safety at Glyn Avenue and Nant Hall Road roundabout and poor visual aesthetics from Nant Hall Road.

The plans have been reccommended for approval by planning officers. The report stated: Further retail development of the type proposed will enhance the offer in the

town bringing a further boost to jobs and the economy of the area. Any potential negative impacts are outweighed by the positive economic benefits.

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Phase two of Prestatyn Retail Park set for green light

BROOKHAVEN One of the only large open parcels of land in Brookhaven is a step closer to becoming a shopping center.

The borough approved zoning changes and preliminary development plans last week for a controversial proposal to build a supermarket and retail space.

Some residents have spoken out against the development, arguing that their borough has little remaining open space and many vacancies in its existing shopping centers.

The property, on Edgmont Avenue, is owned by the Chester Water Authority and also holds a baseball field leased by the borough. The water authority plans to sell the property to New Jersey-based Retail Sites.

No timeline is set for construction; the developers still must present final plans to the council, said Borough Solicitor Mike Maddren.

- Laura McCrystal

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Development plans approved for new Delco shopping center

NASA Headquarters, in Washington, provides overall guidance and direction to the agency, under the leadership of theAdministrator. Tenfield centersand a variety of installations around the country conduct the day-to-day work in laboratories, on air fields, in wind tunnels, and in control rooms. Together, this skilled, diverse group of scientists, engineers, managers, and support personnel share the Vision, Mission, and Values that are NASA.

To implementNASAs Mission, NASA Headquarters is organized into four principal organizations called Mission Directorates:

Aeronautics: Pioneers and proves new flight technologies that improve our ability to explore and which have practical applications on Earth.

Human Exploration and Operations: Focuses on International Space Station operations and human exploration beyond low Earth orbit.

Science: Explores the Earth, moon, Mars, and beyond; charts the best route of discovery; and reaps the benefits of Earth and space exploration for society.

Space Technology: A catalyst for the creation of technologies and innovation needed to maintain NASA leadership in space while also benefiting America's economy.

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