Development/Redevelopment

Virginia Beach, Va. -- Divaris Real Estate announced the signing of a lease with Paper Source for 2,700 sq. ft. of retail space in the Town Center of Virginia Beach. The next closest location for the retailer is in the Northern Virginia city of Alexandria.

Paper Source makes its Southeastern Virginia and Northeast North Carolina market debut on Main Street between Zushi Japanese Bistro and the soon-to-be-open Free People store. Paper Source is anticipated to open in first quarter 2015.

Niagara Falls, N.Y. -- Macerich announced that its outlet property Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls USA will open the doors of its planned expansion on Oct. 23. The new expansion delivers nearly 175,000 sq. ft. and opens with 35 new tenants, and more to come in 2015.

Raleigh, N.C. -- Northwood Ravin has announced six new service retailers and restaurants for Bradford, the multi-use development in the northeast corner of Davis and High House Roads adjacent to the desirable Preston neighborhood of Cary, North Carolina.

Dublin, Calif. -- dd’s Discounts, a division of Ross Stores, Inc., will open a new store in the California Central Valley on Sept. 27. The store is located in the Shaw Village Shopping Center in Clovis.  

Including this new location, dd’s Discounts will operate approximately 150 locations in 13 states and is on schedule to complete its expansion plan to open approximately 20 locations in 2014.

In a time of evolution and change, when buzz terms like right-sizing and asset management dominate retail real estate conversations, an unwavering focus on the tenant is more important than ever before. Chain Store Age talked with Jeff Kuchman, Principal/Director Tenant Brokerage, Mid-America Real Estate Corp., based in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, about the company’s tenant representation business and how it has continued to take center stage.

Indianapolis -- Real estate giant Simon on Thursday announced 'Simon Launch,' a retail startup competition aimed at discovering, investing in, and accelerating the top startups in the retail industry. Simon will co-invest in the competition's winners through its recently formed venture capital arm — Simon Venture Group — in collaboration with Plug and Play,  a global investor and technology accelerator that specializes in growing tech startups. Simon will also become an Anchor Member of Plug and Play's Retail Accelerator program.

Lancaster, Pa. -- Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, the 1, 600-unit global franchise, has entered into a partnership with Meijer. In August, Auntie Anne’s opened its first Meijer franchise location, in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
 
Auntie Anne’s will continue to build its partnership with the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer with two stores currently in the pipeline. The first is slated to also open in Fort Wayne later this year, with an additional location planned for Michigan in 2015.
 

With word this week that Walmart will rebrand its small format Express stores under the Neighborhood Market banner, there will be plenty of interest in an upcoming presentation by the retailer’s vp of small formats.

Marc Lieberman, vp of small formats for Walmart U.S., is slated to speak at a Doing Business in Bentonville event on Thursday, October 9. at the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers, Ark., from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.