Real Estate

Olympia, Wash. -- Total Wine & More will open its 96th wine and spirits superstore in Olympia, Wash., on July 18. With over 21,000 sq. ft., the store will offer more than 8,000 wines, 3,000 spirits and 2,500 beers.

The store also houses iPad stations stocked with tasting notes and food pairings, flat screen televisions running programs about winemakers, distillers and brewers and a walk-in humidor. In addition, a classroom provides space for tastings, classes and community meetings.

West Bridgewater, Mass. -- Shaw’s plans to close six stores operating under its namesake banner by Aug. 3. The locations targeted for shuttering include four stores in the Massachusetts towns of Fall River, Fairhaven, Stoughton, and Taunton and two stores in the Rhode Island towns of Westerly and Woonsocket.

Los Angeles -- For the second consecutive quarter, the retail availability rate has fallen 30 basis points, according to the latest analysis from CBRE Group. The rate now stands at 12.2% and testifies to improved retailer confidence as consumer spending continues to rebound.

The availability rate tracks space that is actively being marketed and available for tenant build-out within 12 months.

New York -- Walmart confirmed in an op-ed in the Washington Post that it will pull the plug on three planned stores in the Washington, D.C., area if the D.C. Council passes a bill setting a higher minimum wage for large retailers. The bill, the Large Retailer Accountability Act (LRAA) of 2013, is scheduled for a vote on Wednesday.

New Orleans -- Smoothie King Franchises is targeting the Jacksonville, Fla., metro area to kick off a major expansion calling for 1,000 new franchised and corporate locations over the next five years.

With seven stores in Jacksonville, the company plans to add 10 new locations there over the next three years.

To fuel the national expansion drive, Smoothie King is offering candidates 40% off of its initial franchise fee for the first 40 agreements of 2013 — a savings of $10,000.

NEW YORK — Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th is opening its third store in metropolitan Atlanta, but the 28,000-sq.-ft. space at the Outlet Shoppes of Atlanta at Woodstock will be the first modeled after the company’s “luxury-in-a-loft” design.

Cincinnati -- The Kroger Co. has reached an agreement to purchase all outstanding shares of Harris Teeter Supermarkets for $49.38 per share in cash, or about $2.5 billion. Kroger will finance the transaction with debt and also assume about $100 million of debt from Harris Teeter.

Harris Teeter operates 212 stores in North Carolina, Virginia, South Carolina, Maryland, Tennessee, Delaware, Florida, Georgia and the District of Columbia primarily in the Carolinas. The company had revenues of approximately $4.5 billion for fiscal year 2012.

Seattle -- Nordstrom plans to open a third Houston-area Nordstrom Rack location. The approximately 38,000-sq.-ft. store is scheduled to open in fall 2014, at Willowbrook Mall is owned and managed by General Growth Properties  

"We've been looking for opportunities to better serve Houston customers as we continue to grow," said Geevy Thomas, president of Nordstrom Rack.