Development/Redevelopment

New York — RKF has announced that it will lease the entire seventh floor of 521 Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan.

With the expansion RKF will occupy 20,987 sq. ft., roughly 30% more space than the current lease. The expansion will enable the firm to increase its ranks by 25%.

Venice, Fla. — Carrabba’s Italian Grill has signed a long-term ground lease for a 1.31-acre outparcel in the parking lot of the Lowe’s Home Improvement store in Venice, Florida. Carrabba’s plans to begin the construction of a new restaurant immediately, with the grand opening slated for late this year.

Phoenix -- Leslie’s Poolmart announced plans to grand open three retail locations on May 9. The stores are located in: Los Banos, California; Utica, Michigan; and Jackson, Tennessee.

In total, Leslie's plans to open 45 new stores this year, between April and May. With these new stores, Leslie’s will bring its total store count to more than 850 stores nationwide.  

Boca Raton, Fla. -- Office Depot will close at least 400 U.S. stores during the next two years as part of its plan to consolidate operations after its acquisition of OfficeMax last November. The closings were not unexpected since there are many locations where the two brands have stores in close proximity to one another. The retailer also raised its full-year adjusted operating income forecast after reporting better-than-expected first quarter results amid cost cutting efforts.

One topic that’s been on my mind lately is the growing Hispanic market in the U.S., and what its clout and purchasing power will mean for retailers — and, subsequently, for retail real estate — in the years ahead. “Emerging” is probably too mild of a word to describe the Hispanic market — exploding might be more accurate.

Office Depot said it plans to close 400 of its 2,000 stores as it looks to realize efficiencies related to its merger with OfficeMax.

An estimated 150 of the stores will close this year, according to company, which reported first quarter results and continued weakness in same store sales. The company anticipates that the closures will generate annual run-rate synergies of at least $75 million by the end of 2016 and will begin to be accretive to earnings in 2015.

Ann Arbor, Mich. -- On Wednesday, nearly 54 years after its founding in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Domino's Pizza will open the doors to its 11,000th store, in Brantford, Ontario.

"Domino's international growth continues to expand, and I think it is special that we reached this milestone in Canada, the country where the international growth started,” said Mike Schlater, Domino's Pizza of Canada master franchisee. “I am proud to continue serving this community by bringing the 11,000th store to Brantford."
 

Pittsburgh — The Field & Stream specialty retail concept has announced plans to open a new store in Erie, Pennsylvania, on June 13 at Millcreek Marketplace.

Field & Stream stores carry a wide variety of national outdoor brands including Remington, Sitka, Sage, Simms, Shimano and Yeti and provide a variety of in-store services. The store is not associated with Field & Stream Licenses Co. or Field & Stream Magazine. Dick’s Sporting Goods owns and operates Field & Stream specialty retail stores and FieldandStreamShop.com.

New York -- J. Crew Group Inc. is developing a new store format in the budget fashion sector. The company has created a brand called “J. Crew Mercantile,” and filed an application to trademark the phrase for selling clothing and accessories, both online and in stores, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.

The trademark application is still pending, the report said. The new brand would sell merchandise and prices that are similar to its J. Crew Factory outlet concept.

When building an urban store, be prepared for anything, and make friends with your local Economic Development Corp. early, said retailers and a developer at the “Setting Up Shop Downtown” session.

It’s critical to get the local community on board and solicit their comments early, advised Terry Pratt, senior tenant coordinator of Philadelphia-based PREIT, particularly regarding lighting and signage.