Tenant Update

Leasing agent Dan Waldman clearly hasn’t read all the news reports about the demise of the American mall.   In 2015, when Waldman took over leasing for the Walpole Mall in Walpole, Massachusetts, 80,000 of the property’s 400,000 sq. ft. lay vacant. This week, his Waldman & Associates announced that the mall was 100% leased for the first time in 30 years.  

L.L. Bean is going to set up camp in Boston.   The Freeport, Maine-based retailer will open its first permanent, full-line store in an urban location in spring 2018, in the Seaport District of Boston. The store will feature active and casual apparel, outerwear, and footwear, as well as outdoor lifestyle gear curated for residents and visitors of Boston. At 8,600 sq. ft., the Boston outpost will be significantly smaller than Bean’s traditional retail footprint.  

Southeastern Grocers’ announcement it would close six Bi-Lo stores in South Carolina leaves two Wheeler centers anchors, and the REIT has put out a call out for replacements.   CEO Jon S. Wheeler said his company would entertain a grocer or non-grocer to fill the vacancies at Cypress Shopping Center in Boiling Springs and Shoppes at Myrtle Park in Bluffton. Bi-Lo will shut down operations at the 47,260-sq.-ft. Cypress store and the 37,900-sq.-ft. Myrtle Park store in June.  

CBL continued to reduce its credit position with the disposition of mall assets this week and announced the dawning of a new day for the company.   The mall owner and developer closed on the sale of two Tennessee properties for a total of $53.5 million — Foothills Mall in Maryville and College Square in Morristown. Proceeds of the sales, CBL reported, were used to reduce outstanding balances on its lines of credit.  

Every business magazine sports an “X Under 40” list celebrating precocious professionals. But, really, isn’t it almost always youthful drive and optimism that feeds the engine of progress?

The stories of Chain Store Age’s 2017 list of over-achievers under 40 abound with examples of young people from different disciplines who all discovered retail real estate as the perfect channel for their passions.

Prestige Development Group is about to break ground on a 171,027-sq.-ft. shopping center in Abilene, Texas.   Nearly 85% of The Shops at Abilene Village are pre-leased by a tenant lineup that includes Burlington, Petco, and Academy Sports + Outdoors. It will be the first store in the Abilene market for Burlington, and Academy is relocating from a 50,000-sq.-ft. location to claim 72,000 sq. ft.in of space at The Shops.  

A formerly troubled center in an affluent community south of Los Angeles has capped off an 18-month, $17 million renovation.   Just two years ago, The Vestar-owned Peninsula Center in Rolling Hills Estates was plagued by several vacancies and an image not in keeping with standards in the community, which has a median household income of $144,000.   Today Orchard Supply Hardware and Ulta Beauty occupy the made-over center, along with new dining options Chipotle and The Habit Burger Grill.  

There was a time, not long ago, when mall owners crowed about their Sears, Macy’s and J.C. Penneys. Now, one has issued a chronicle of its systematic decommissioning of department store anchors.    That owner is PREIT, and CEO Joe Coradino claims his company was ahead of the curve in the decline of some of the biggest names in retail.  

The Outlet Shoppes at Oklahoma City was acquired this week by an unnamed buyer, reported CBL & Associates, which co-owned the center with Horizon Group Properties.   "The Outlet Shoppes at Oklahoma City was the first project we developed with Horizon and has been a huge success,” said Stephen Lebovitz, CBL’s president & CEO. “We are pleased to demonstrate the value of our outlet portfolio and provide additional liquidity to reduce leverage and help fund our redevelopment program."  

Same property net operating income during the first quarter was up 3.2% at Brixmor Property Group thanks to aggressive redevelopment efforts, said the company’s CEO.    "While the overall retail environment brought an increase in announced retail bankruptcies and store closings, our portfolio continued to benefit from healthy tenant demand, resulting in 1.9 million sq. ft. of new and renewal leases executed in the first quarter at blended comparable rent spreads of 16.4%," said James Taylor in a statement.