Development/Redevelopment

New York -- Retail expansion in the United States has not come to an end, but its focus has shifted. That’s one of the findings contained in the 2014 ChainLinks Retail Advisors U.S. National Retail Investment Forecast Report.

Seattle -- Nordstrom announced plans to open a full-line store at The Domain in Austin, Texas. The two-level, approximately 123,000-sq.-ft. store is scheduled to open in fall 2016 and will be the company's second full-line store serving the greater Austin area. The Domain is owned and operated by Endeavor Real Estate Group.

Washington -- Illinois tops the United States Green Building Council’s ranking of the Top 10 States for LEED-certified construction for last year. The list highlights the regions around the country that are at the forefront of sustainable building design and transformation.

The per-capita list includes commercial and institutional green building projects that were certified throughout 2013.

New York -- Phoenix-based Sprouts Farmers Markets Inc. is expanding. The natural-foods supermarket chain expects to open 22 to 24 stores in fiscal 2014, including five locations in the Atlanta area.

Sprouts currently operates more than 165 locations in eight states.

Meanwhile, Gap Inc. continues to expand its newest banner, Athleta, with about 30 additional U.S. stores on tap for fiscal year 2014.

In more store expansion news:

Cincinnati – Within the next 24 months, Kroger will build six new stores and expand three locations, along with opening multiple fuel centers and remodeling existing properties in the North Texas area. Kroger has already begun a store refresh program in the region that includes lower prices on thousands of popular food and household items, along with a renewed emphasis on shopping experience, fuel discounts, local products and community relations.

Canton, Mass. - Dunkin' Donuts has signed a multi-unit store development agreement with existing franchise group, Sizzling Donuts LLC for 46 new restaurants throughout the greater Sacramento, Calif., metro area and surrounding cities of Stockton, Modesto, Tracy, Manteca, Placerville and Davis, Calif.   

Schenectady, N.Y. -- Price Choppers Supermarkets/Golub Corp. has named Ryan C. Hill as VP of construction and engineering. He will be responsible for planning the overall engineering, architectural and construction activities for the 132-store chain.

Hill comes to Price Chopper from Walgreens, where he served as senior director of construction.

Speaking with Ron Goldstone, senior VP at Southfield, Mich.-based Farbman Group really got my juices flowing about the Midwest retail real estate marketplace — Michigan in particular. The state’s retail real estate market is an interesting candidate for closer study, simply because the Detroit dynamic, even in its extremes, gives us a valuable perspective on the national landscape:

CROSSROADS

Location: Irvine, Calif., at the intersection of Culver Drive and Barranca Parkway. Average daily traffic is 43,000 vehicles.

Size: 334,000-sq.-ft. community center

Developer: Irvine Co. Retail Properties

Remember 2011 and 2012? Back then, the forecasters were saying that the economy would probably be sluggish through 2013. After that, starting in 2014, growth would return.