Large Chains

Houston -- Jacksonville, Fla.-based Regency Centers said it has leased retail space in Houston at Woodway Collection to Appleton Learning Center.

Specializing in tutoring services, group classes, student testing and other related services, Appleton Learning Center has leased 2,440 sq. ft. and is slated to open in February 2011.

The 111,165-sq.-ft. shopping center is anchored by Randalls alongside national retailers such as Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Pearle Vision and Chase Bank.

Philadelphia -- Michael Salove Co., an X Team partner based in Center City Philadelphia, announced that it has completed two lease transactions in the Greater Philadelphia market with Qdoba Mexican Grill.

Qdoba will open a 2,600-sq.-ft. unit in Providence Town Center in Collegeville, Pa. and will open a 2,300-sq.-ft. unit in Wynnewood Square in Wynnewood, Pa.

Gainesville, Ga. -- The Atlanta office of Dallas-based SRS Real Estate Partners said that Shoe Carnival recently opened a 9,165-sq.-ft. store in Gainesville, Ga., in the Village Shoppes at Gainesville.

Neighboring retailers include Marshalls, Ross Dress for Less, Old Navy and Publix.

The landlord of the center is Inland US Management, LLC.

New York City -- Whole Foods Market’s store in Lake Grove has become the first supermarket  in the United States to be awarded with both a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council as well as a Three Green Globe certification from the Green Building Initiative.

The store, which opened in March 2010, is the third of Whole Foods Market’s 22 locations in the Northeast region to receive a LEED certification, and the first to be recognized by the Green Building Initiative.

El Segundo, Calif. -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market has announced a partnership with REC Solar, a leading solar electric system provider in the United States, to install roof-mount solar systems on nine stores in Arizona. The installation of the systems will begin in March 2011.

The combined 410 kW of installed solar systems will produce an estimated 620,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually, the equivalent of reducing 22 million lbs. of CO2 emissions -- or removing 28 million car-driven miles -- over the next 25 years.

Minneapolis -- Supervalu says Sherry Smith has been named the grocery operator's new CFO.

Smith, 49, has been working as the company's interim CFO and will assume her new role immediately. She joined Supervalu in 1987 and has held a variety of positions at the company, including serving as its senior VP finance for eight years.
 

Austin, Texas -- Whole Foods Market said Wednesday that its board approved a quarterly cash dividend of 10 cents per share reinstating the quarterly payment after more than two years with none. The dividend will be payable Jan. 20 to shareholders of record as of Jan. 10.

John Elstrott, chairman of Whole Foods' board, said in a statement that the decision to bring back the dividend stems from the company's strong financial position and outlook.

Issaquah, Wash. -- Costco Wholesale Corp.'s profit climbed 18% in its first fiscal quarter, buoyed by sales from its consolidated Mexican operations and improved sales and traffic at its U.S. stores. Net income rose to $312 million for the period ended Nov. 21, up from $266 million a year earlier.

The results topped analysts' average forecasts.

Revenue rose 11% to $19.24 billion from $17.3 billion, also beating Wall Street's expectation.

New York City -- Sunflower Farmers Market, which operates value-priced organic and natural food grocery stores, is opening its first store in California.

Sunflower currently operates 32 stores in six Southwestern states. The chain, which focuses on offering fresh local foods at affordable prices, was founded in 2002 by Mike Gilliland, who helped start the Wild Oats chain that was later bought by Whole Foods Market.