Northern Explosion

From lifestyle to grocery-anchored to mixed-use, and located in Northeastern markets both large and small, the following 12 profiles detail projects that are making—or will make—a difference in the markets they serve.

Some of the projects are highlighted with a small computer-mouse icon; be sure to check them out online at www.chainstoreage.com/realestate, where you’ll find additional information, including leasing contacts.

Ridge Hill will be the first major lifestyle center in the New York metropolitan region. Located in Westchester County between Interstate 87 (New York State Thruway) and the Sprain Brook Parkway, the project will be easily accessible to residents of Westchester County and Manhattan. The project is outdoors, and features a town-like setting with a landscaped town square. Small retail stores, such as apparel and housewares, will mix with restaurants, a cinema and large-format retail.

Shoppes at Highview is a redevelopment of the existing Stamford, Conn., Lord & Taylor department store. This single-tenant project will be transformed into a 300,000-sq.-ft. destination retail center located at the confluence of High Ridge Road and Long Ridge Road in Stamford, providing unparalleled access to the Stamford downtown and Merritt Parkway. With this ease of access, Shoppes at Highview will draw from a 10-mile radius—an area containing some of the highest incomes in the United States.

When complete, the project will contain a 190,000-sq.-ft. Lord & Taylor showpiece, a 60,000-sq.-ft. Whole Foods Market and 50,000 sq. ft. of other fine retail shops. The site will be designed to take advantage of the topography and incorporate architectural features of the area inclusive of fieldstone walls and lush landscaping.

It might seem that Nashua, N.H., has just about every retail format possible—its status as a tax-free shopping haven draws shoppers from around New England to a variety of centers. However, it has lacked the latest development type, the open-air, apparel-oriented center now giving new life to retail across the country. That will change in spring 2009, with the grand opening of Nashua Landing, the first lifestyle center in the state.

Nashua Landing will offer 600,000 sq. ft. of better apparel, restaurants, entertainment (including a stadium-seat cinema), and the first Whole Foods Market in the state. The result will be an open-air Main-Street center that will regularly draw visitors from around the region as well as the affluent local population.

The center will have three entrances off Daniel Webster Highway, giving it superior access and convenience. The center’s trade area includes towns with some of the highest average household incomes in New England, including Hollis, with an income of $127,647. The 2006 trade area population of 486,385 is expected to rise to 497,793 by 2011.

Its Main Street layout, too, will be new to the state, creating a new mini-downtown. Nashua Landing’s wide sidewalks and traditional architecture will emulate the great towns of New England—but with convenient parking, elegant landscaping and an attention to detail second to none.

The proposed Blue Mountain Commons is located on the north portion of the east shore of the Harrisburg, Pa., market. Fronting PA Route 39, Linglestown Road, the development site is the only commercially zoned property in an area of affluent residential neighborhoods. Demographically, the Linglestown Road corridor is an excellent location—in fact, one of the best in the greater Harrisburg metro area.

Levittown Town Center is a landmark open-air shopping center conveniently located in the heart of Levittown, Pa. The town and the shopping center were built by Levitt & Sons in 1952 and regarded as the model of modern American suburbia. The Town Center was the hub of the Levittown community, where residents shopped, dined and congregated for community events. DLC is completely redeveloping the 468,675-sq.-ft. center, adding national and regional retailers that will ultimately restore the original old-time charm infused with today’s shopping amenities.

Located just 11 miles north of the City of Boston, Shops at Saugus will greatly enhance the local shopping experience in the Town of Saugus and neighboring communities. The new Trader Joe’s will feature 11,000 sq. ft. of grocery space, as well as offer an extensive array of domestic and imported foods and beverages—and will be joined in the center by a 24,216-sq.-ft. PetSmart and the area’s newest La-Z-Boy Furniture store. Shops at Saugus will also feature two merchants on outparcels—Starbucks and Qdoba Mexican Grill—and local restaurant chain Border’s Café will build a 7,350-sq.-ft. restaurant. There is also approximately 8,500 sq. ft. of second-floor office space above the retail shopping center.