Events

The Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 takes place next weekend at the Michigan International Speedway, and Walmart stores near the track are rolling out the checkered carpet to capitalize on race fever. A variety of special events will be held at stores near the track beginning on Wednesday, June 15.

Columbia, S.C. -- Edens & Avant announced Friday that its CEO Terry S. Brown has been named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2011 Carolinas Award winner.

The awards program recognizes entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Brown was selected as the winner in the real estate category from nearly 100 nominations across the Carolinas.

All of the proposals voted on at Walmart’s shareholders’ meeting last Friday were defeated, but the official tally of results filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission last night revealed one proposal that drew a surprisingly large number of votes.

Like many of you, I just got back from RECon, and I’m still processing what I saw and heard. One thing that was interesting to me was the fact that it seemed like burger concepts were on everybody’s site plans, from In-N-Out Burger to Smashburger and Five Guys. If you like a good burger -- and, who doesn’t -- this is great news. If you are a developer or landlord though, I think you should proceed with some caution.

Niles, Ohio -- Youngstown, Ohio-based Cafaro Co., which owns Eastwood Mall in Niles, Ohio, announced Thursday that anchor Macy’s will begin a multi-million dollar renovation, which will be its first full-store refresh since its opening in 1969.

The renovation to the two-level, 157,000-sq.-ft. Macy’s will include new flooring, ceiling and wall treatments, additional accent lighting and new fixtures. The aisles will be reconfigured to improve flow and sight lines.

The latest installment in the dramatic collaboration between Procter & Gamble and Walmart is set to air this Saturday on NBC at 8 p.m. EST. The made-for-TV family movie called “Field of Vision” involves the topical subject of bullying, and in keeping with prior films offer viewers a heavy dose of morality.

With a topic of “Building stronger relationships with Walmart,” the room should be packed with suppliers next week when Walmart SVP Laura Phillips takes the stage at the Doing Business in Bentonville speaker series. The event will be held from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 15 at the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers, Ark. Click here for more information.

As part three of our ongoing coverage of RECon, the annual retail real estate convention conducted by the International Council of Shopping Centers and held May 22-25 in Las Vegas, Chain Store Age talked with Joe Boehm, senior VP, retail leasing, of Cleveland-based Forest City Enterprises, regarding his impressions of RECon 2011 and what Forest City projects garnered the most attention at the show.

What impression of the state of the industry were you left with by the end of RECon 2011?