BRISTOL, Va. Construction of retail stores and restaurants at The Falls could be closer to starting following approval Monday of land subdivision details by the citys Planning Commission.

A final plat was unanimously approved by the board and will be considered by the City Council at its June 10 meeting, according to commission member and Mayor Guy Odum.

Interstate Commercial Real Estate Services applied to planners for final clearance on the land proposal, which would subdivide 44 acres into 13 separate parcels, including seven parcels that are already earmarked for commercial development, according to city documents.

Odum said Mondays decision and a final council vote will turn the parcels over to the Industrial Development Authority and then to the respective companies so they can begin construction.

The city is developing the giant retail center in the Exit 5 area of Interstate 81. Workers are already placing final touches on the building pad for Cabelas, the outdoor sporting goods retailer that has agreed to place its first Virginia store in Bristol.

Mondays vote will assist already announced tenants who will occupy up to 1 million square feet of retail space. Restaurant chain Zaxbys, Tennessee-based Calhouns and Smoky Mountain Brewery, and the Sheetz convenience store chain are among other retailers that have been announced as tenants. Lowes Home Improvement warehouse also is expected to open a new store there.

Odum said the move for final plat approval had been delayed because of a closer look at an easement issue conducted by Bristol Virginia Utilities that has been resolved.

Everyone is getting their piece of the pie today, Odum said.

Financiers with the commercial center are currently out selling bonds to help finance the estimated $200 million cost of development.

The project got much needed support from Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who penned legislation, approved by the Virginia General Assembly, which will allow the city to being collecting tax revenues as soon as each store or restaurant is operational. The governor signed the bill in April, during a stop at The Falls.

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The Falls lots are divied up to deliver to retailers, restaurants

Fourth Street in Mission Bay has been billed as the emerging neighborhood's answer to Cortland Avenue in Bernal Heights or Clement Street in the Richmond.

But five years after the first residential tower opened at 1201 Fourth St., residents of the new San Francisco neighborhood still have no place to buy an apple, a pair of socks or a half-gallon of milk - never mind a steak or a bottle of Pinot Noir.

Retail specialists say it's the old chicken-before-the-egg conundrum. Few savvy retailers - except the sort of national chains that nobody in the neighborhood wants there - have the patience and money needed to build businesses before the neighborhood fills out.

But as residents grab new units in Mission Bay as quickly as they become available, some are starting to question whether Fourth Street will ever offer the eclectic mix of working, living and shopping that animates a city neighborhood - while others see a brighter future.

"I'm concerned about" Fourth Street, said Retail West Partner Matt Holmes, who represents retailers ranging from startups to Whole Foods. "I see retail spaces sitting in the shadow of these large buildings, without difference or distinction. They look like office buildings that have drooped down to the street."

Mission Bay South - a neighborhood bordered by Mission Creek to the north, 16th Street to the south, the bay to the east and the Caltrain tracks to the west - now has 1,497 completed housing units. About 90 percent of these are occupied. There are 575 rental units, 491 condos and 431 UCSF student housing units. An additional 1,045 units are under construction, including 149 affordable units, 263 condominiums and 633 market-rate rentals.

It's likely that within the next 12 months Mission Bay South will have between 4,000 and 5,000 residents. That is in addition to a $1.6 billion UCSF hospital, opening in 2015, and a corporate roster that includes Old Navy, FibroGen and Cisco.

But retailer brokers say some relief may be on the way.

Los Angeles-based Primo Hospitality Group is moving ahead with a 7,500-square-foot cafe and marketplace in Channel Mission Bay, a 315-unit apartment community being built at the corner of Channel and Fourth Street.

Primo operates two cafes in Los Angeles, one in Hollywood and one downtown. Both offer an extensive menu: salads, pizzas, gelatos, wraps, frittatas, crepes, rice bowls and smoothies.

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Without retail Mission Bay missing neighborhood feel

Wellington's commercial property market has improved during the last six months as the city begins to feel the positive effects of a growing economy, reports CBRE.

Prime CBD office space remains in strong demand and this has been reflected by increasing rents in the past six months.

The limited pool of prime office stock has also seen tenant and investor interest in seismically acceptable secondary CBD office space.

Despite an increase in CBD shop vacancies, demand for quality well-located retail space remains high.

But secondary CBD retail property faces a difficult year as a number of leases are about to expire, with a reduction in the number of potential tenants.

Prime industrial stock saw a slight increase in rents as the sector continues to rebound from weak conditions in late 2012 and early 2013.

The agency's latest Marketview report says 2014 is likely to see an increase in investment activity.

A number of CBD office buildings are already on the market and several more potential listings are understood to be in the pipeline.

"Growing confidence in the Wellington economy, coupled with the ongoing appeal of New Zealand commercial property yields to overseas investors, means that investment conditions in the city remain favourable."

Low interest rates and continued strong growth in New Zealand's construction sector had been key drivers in the country's economic recovery.

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Positive CBD property outlook

Fourth Street in Mission Bay has been billed as the emerging neighborhood's answer to Cortland Avenue in Bernal Heights or Clement Street in the Richmond.

But five years after the first residential tower opened at 1201 Fourth St., residents of the new San Francisco neighborhood still have no place to buy an apple, a pair of socks or a half-gallon of milk - never mind a steak or a bottle of Pinot Noir.

Retail specialists say it's the old chicken-before-the-egg conundrum. Few savvy retailers - except the sort of national chains that nobody in the neighborhood wants there - have the patience and money needed to build businesses before the neighborhood fills out.

But as residents grab new units in Mission Bay as quickly as they become available, some are starting to question whether Fourth Street will ever offer the eclectic mix of working, living and shopping that animates a city neighborhood - while others see a brighter future.

"I'm concerned about" Fourth Street, said Retail West Partner Matt Holmes, who represents retailers ranging from startups to Whole Foods. "I see retail spaces sitting in the shadow of these large buildings, without difference or distinction. They look like office buildings that have drooped down to the street."

Mission Bay South - a neighborhood bordered by Mission Creek to the north, 16th Street to the south, the bay to the east and the Caltrain tracks to the west - now has 1,497 completed housing units. About 90 percent of these are occupied. There are 575 rental units, 491 condos and 431 UCSF student housing units. An additional 1,045 units are under construction, including 149 affordable units, 263 condominiums and 633 market-rate rentals.

It's likely that within the next 12 months Mission Bay South will have between 4,000 and 5,000 residents. That is in addition to a $1.6 billion UCSF hospital, opening in 2015, and a corporate roster that includes Old Navy, FibroGen and Cisco.

But retailer brokers say some relief may be on the way.

Los Angeles-based Primo Hospitality Group is moving ahead with a 7,500-square-foot cafe and marketplace in Channel Mission Bay, a 315-unit apartment community being built at the corner of Channel and Fourth Street.

Primo operates two cafes in Los Angeles, one in Hollywood and one downtown. Both offer an extensive menu: salads, pizzas, gelatos, wraps, frittatas, crepes, rice bowls and smoothies.

Excerpt from:
Mission Bay still missing neighborhood feel

Officials said construction on the 23,969 square foot space would start later this summer.

H&M will have both interior and exterior entrances to the mall.

The store, along with the states first American Girl, will be located in the redevelopment of the former Sears Store. The plans for that location include creating 160,000-square feet of new retail space with a newly created mall entrance. More top retailers were expected to be announced as the project progresses.

We are excited to bring H&M to CoolSprings Galleria to further solidify its status as the premier shopping destination in the region and demonstrate our commitment to investing in the malls continued growth, commented CBLs President and Chief Executive Officer, Stephen Lebovitz. H&M is an international fashion leader that will bring its fashion-forward styles for men and women to many excited CoolSprings Galleria shoppers.

Other plans for CoolSprings Galleria include a $12.6 million expansion and renovation of Belk this fall, along with the Cheesecake Factory set to open near Belk on the Mallory Lane side in November.

H&M opened its first store in Tennessee at Opry Mills Mall in June 2013.

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H&M To Open At CoolSprings Galleria In May 2015

This area focuses on four main types of retail businesses - shopping centres, hypermarkets, community malls and specialty stores.

A shopping centre is a large building consisting of various types of retail businesses conveniently connected by walkways.

A hypermarket is an integrated format that fuses qualities of a department store and a supermarket.

A community mall is new type of format that reflects an adjustment to the changing lifestyles of most consumers who want to shop in a place that has everything near their home.

Retail shop spaces in community malls are rented easily due to the ease of access of customers who only have to drive two to five minutes from their home.

A specialty store is a retail business that sells a specific group of products with many subcategories. These stores will have to stock a lot of supply and the operators will have service expertise in relation to the product.

Surasak Limpa-arayakul, executive director and head of consulting and valuations, said last week that the southwestern outskirts house many residences, encompassing single family homes, townhouses and most recently, many condominiums that have been completed or are under construction.

This area features many work locales, such as manufacturing facilities, so it is densely settled.

The purchasing power of this populace is not as high as in the eastern part of the city, but well-known brands are expanding their presence along with the expansion of the capital, and the public infrastructure and transport network is improving.

These factors are encouraging more and more people to move to the suburbs, distancing themselves from the crowded city. Other economic issues include the high cost of living in the city and the increasingly high cost of gasoline. This has encouraged people to buy goods and services close to their homes.

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High potential for shopping malls in southwest Bangkok

Market Street's most prominent derelict dirt lot is finally ready to join the Mid-Market revival.

Two years after buying a collection of properties on the south side of Market between Fifth and Sixth streets, developer Cypress Equities is set to start construction on a $150 million, 250,000-square-foot retail development.

Cypress has bought out its partner, the Carlyle Group, and will start construction in September, CEO Chris Maguire said. The development, known as Market Street Place, will be speculative - meaning Cypress will build it without having any tenants signed up.

"We just need to get it out to bid, get mobilized, and get building," Maguire said.

The development - the only major, ground-up retail project on the horizon in San Francisco - will probably end up quite a bit different from the original plans.

Taking the script from the previous property owner, Cypress had chased value-based retailers such as Target, Marshalls, JC Penney and Nordstrom Rack. All four of those stores considered the property, but Target ended up at the Metreon, Marshalls at 760 Market St. and Nordstrom Rack on the ground floor of 901 Market St. at the corner of Fifth.

As Cypress marketed the property, it became clearer that the off-price retailers weren't the project's best bet, so the project now is looking to be more upscale.

"We were not thrilled with the options we had on the tenant site. We started considering whether we should think about alternative types of uses," Maguire said. "We had more interest from fashion-forward, speciality retailers."

Cypress considered switching the site to housing or office space, but the politics could have been risky and time-consuming. Meanwhile, retail demand for the property was strong enough to justify construction.

In addition to fashion, the building has drawn interest from grocery, sporting goods and furniture stores as well as entertainment use. The fourth and fifth floors - the top story will have 18-foot ceiling, balconies and views - could work as a combination of food and entertainment, Maguire said, and a group that builds bowling alleys has looked at the plans, as has a cinema developer.

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Derelict dirt lot to join Mid-Market revival

By Cheryl Allison callison@mainlinemedianews.com

A tentative sketch plan for a new retail and office development on the former Verizon parking lot and some adjoining parcels will be up for review by the Lower Merion Planning Commission June 2, on an agenda that also includes major redevelopment proposals in two other communities in the township.

One is the plan Kimco Realty has been floating in meetings with local civic associations for construction of a parking garage and new retail space at Suburban Square in Ardmore.

The night could also see the commissions final review of a plan for a residential conversion of historic Odd Fellows Hall and the Gladwyne Methodist Church in Gladwyne Village, the subject of many meetings and hearings over the past two years.

The Bryn Mawr garage. Photo Cheryl Allison

In 2006, when township officials and the community were writing the Bryn Mawr Master Plan, the large, open Verizon lot and adjoining service building were the focus of much attention as an interruption in the streetscape and prime opportunity for redevelopment.

For the past few years, current owner Blank Aschkenasy Properties (BAP) of West Conshohocken has had a sign in place, announcing new mixed-use development coming soon.

Now it has come forward with a plan for a total 50,000 square feet of new retail and office space, involving some demolition, some renovation and repurposing, and new construction on lots at 907, 921 and 931 W. Lancaster Ave. and around the corner at 21 N. Merion Ave.

A two-story frame building at 907 W. Lancaster, which most recently housed a temporary Duke & Winston clothing store, is to be demolished, along with two older garages toward the rear of the parking lot. Continued...

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Bryn Mawr redevelopment on Lower Merion planners' agenda

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 29, 2014

Turner Construction Company is pleased to announce that construction is underway on the Hilton Cleveland Downtown. The 28-story hotel will be connected by underground passageways to the Cleveland Convention Center and the Global Center for Health Innovation. Turner, Ozanne Construction and Van Aukin Akins Architects have formed a joint venture to deliver the project using a design-build method.

The project is expected to employ 2,800 workers during construction and the project team has set aggressive residency goals, as well as minority- and women-owned business (MWBE) utilization goals to ensure a diverse, local workforce.

We are excited to begin work with our partners on this iconic tower as it becomes part of the Cleveland skyline, said Martin Burgwinkle, project executive. He continued, Like the Cleveland Convention Center and the Global Center for Health Innovation, the hotel will be another community success story for Cuyahoga County and downtown Cleveland, by again exceeding local inclusion goals and spurring further economic activity in the County and City.

The $272 million, 28-story hotel will have 600 guest rooms and will feature a rooftop bar. The hotel tower is positioned atop a four-story podium that houses ballrooms, meeting space, and retail space. It is scheduled to open in 2016.

About Turner Construction Company Turner is a North America-based, international construction services company. Founded in 1902, Turner first made its mark on the industry pioneering the use of steel-reinforced concrete for general building, which enabled the company to deliver safer, stronger, and more efficient buildings to clients. The company continues to embrace emerging technologies and offers an increasingly diverse set of services. With an annual construction volume of $9 billion, Turner is the largest builder in the United States, ranking first in the major market segments of the building construction field, including healthcare, education, sports, commercial, and green building. The firm is a subsidiary of HOCHTIEF, one of the worlds leading international construction service providers. For more information, please visit http://www.turnerconstruction.com.

About HOCHTIEF HOCHTIEF is one of the most international construction groups worldwide. The company delivers complex infrastructure projects, in some cases on the basis of concession models. The Group operates in the transportation infrastructure, energy infrastructure and social/urban infrastructure segments as well as in the contract mining business. With nearly 81,000 employees and a sales volume of more than EUR 25 billion in FY 2013, HOCHTIEF is represented in all the worlds major markets. With its subsidiary Leighton, the Group is market leader in Australia. In the USA, the biggest construction market in the world, HOCHTIEF is the No. 1 general builder via its subsidiary Turner and, with Group company Flatiron, ranks among the most important players in the field of transportation infrastructure construction. Because of its engagement for sustainability, HOCHTIEF has been listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes since 2006. Further information is available at http://www.hochtief.com/press.

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Turner Construction Company Selected to Build $272 Million Hilton Cleveland Downtown

This is anHTML versionof an article that ran in the May 2014 issue ofReal Estate Forum. To see the story in its original format,click here.

There isnt a retail real estate sector that is discussed much more nowadays than the supermarket arena. Two of the biggest middle-market operators, Albertsons and Safeway, are combining, and retail observers are waiting to see what store-closure fallout could occur as a result. Meanwhile, specialty grocers focused on quality and organic products, such as Sprouts Farmers Market, the Fresh Market and Trader Joes, are looking for space and drawing consumers. On the other end of the spectrum, lower-priced options, such as Walmarts Neighborhood Markets, Aldi and others, are popular with the cost-conscious shopper and fighting for space. All of this is happening in an environment with very little new retail real estate construction.

In conjunction with this months ICSC RECon show and Real Estate Media Thought Leaders Marcus & Millichaps annual Retail Trends event at the conference, we bring you a roundtable discussion on where the grocery sector is headed, as well as what is taking place overall in retail real estate.

PARTICIPANTS

Michael CohenHead of Mid-Atlantic and Southeast OriginationCitigroup CMBS and CREF

Fernando De LeonManaging PartnerLeon Capital Group

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Grocery Grab