Convenience Stores

Cincinnati -- The Kroger Co. said that its Fry's Marketplace store in Phoenix marks the 500th Kroger location to earn the Energy Star designation from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy.

Seattle – Starbucks Corp. has filed building permits to open a La Boulange bakery location in Los Angeles. The permits do not specify a time when Starbucks plans to open the new store.

Starbucks purchased the La Boulange chain in 2012 and currently sells La Boulange-branded baked goods in U.S. Starbucks outlets. However, while there are 22 La Boulange stores in San Francisco, this would be the first location outside that market. Starbucks has previously said it wants to expand La Boulange nationally.

New York —River Bay Plaza in Riverview, Fla., has sold for $5.8 million. Cohen Real Estate represented the buyer and seller, both private investment firms.

Located in Hillsborough County, the 79,288-sq.-ft. neighborhood shopping center is anchored by Winn Dixie, which recently exercised a lease option. Other recent developments include a new 10-year lease for Aaron’s and an option exercised by Dollar Tree.

About 163,000 people live within a five-mile radius of the center. Average annual household income is $70,000.

New York – Nine basic attack patterns that vary from industry to industry are the source of 92% of the 100,000 security incidents analyzed by Verizon since 2004.

Atlanta - Arby's Restaurant Group Inc. (ARG), franchisor of Arby’s, has signed development agreements with new and existing franchisees. ARG recently sold 14 company-operated restaurants in Tampa, Fla., to Mosaic Investments Inc., a fully integrated investment firm based in Atlanta. In addition to remodeling existing locations slated to commence at the end of 2014, Mosaic has committed to build 13 new Arby's restaurants in the Tampa area during the next nine years.

The recent announcement from Coldwater Creek that the women’s apparel brand will seek Chapter 11 protection and plans to start liquidating its inventory didn’t exactly come as a surprise. It has been years since the company posted a quarterly profit, and industry analysts and observers have been pointing to Coldwater’s worrying inability to compete stylistically in an increasingly competitive and youth-oriented women’s fashion market.

Woodland, Calif. – The Gateway Shopping Center in Woodland, Calif. has reportedly received permission to expand the types of businesses allowed in its use permit. According to the Woodland Daily Democrat, the Woodland Planning Commission is granting approval for food services, banks, professional service offices, nail salons and dry cleaners to be located at the center.

RadioShack and Payless Shoes are also reportedly awaiting approval to open stores at the center.

American Express added Walmart’s U.S. network of 4,100 stores as locations where customers can participate in the card issuers prepaid Serve offering.