Real Estate Roundup: February update
February had its fair share of retail real estate development news, tenant updates, property acquisitions and more.
Here are some of the biggest real estate news stories from the month (starting with the most recent).
•JLL: Grocery-anchored centers notch the highest occupancy rates According to JLL’s 2026 Grocery Tracker report, value-focused and premium fresh-format grocers are rapidly gaining momentum and foot traffic at shopping centers. Investors are actively seeking out grocery-anchored properties, driving a remarkable 42% surge in transaction volume to nearly $11 billion last year.
•ABC: Construction materials prices surge, driven again by tariffs Overall construction input (includes energy, materials and equipment) increased 0.7% in January compared to the previous month and are 2.3% higher than a year ago, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data released on Feb. 27. Commercial construction input prices increased 0.4% for the month, and are 4.3% higher than a year ago.
•$3.5B Salt Lake City mixed-use development to feature retail, possible MLB stadium Larry H. Miller Real Estate and urban design firm Field Operations will create the Power District within a half-mile stretch of the Jordan River on the west side of Salt Lake City. The development represents a $3.5 billion-plus private investment to “revitalize and reactivate” a section of the river into an accessible community resource that features retail, housing and more.
•Burlington to open inside historic Siegel-Cooper Building The off-price retailer will open a new flagship store in the upscale Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan this spring. Housed in the historic Siegel-Cooper Building, the new store will span two floors, and feature Burlington’s “reimagined and more elevated shopping experience,” along with a custom store design inspired by classic NYC iconography.
•Huey Magoo's to enter Texas, expand Alabama footprint The chicken tender chain has signed a new development agreement totaling 12 restaurants, marking the brand's entry into Texas and expansion in Alabama. The deal includes eight restaurants across the north Dallas market and four in Birmingham, Ala., continuing the chain's nationwide expansion.
•Atlanta’s CNN Center to be reopened as The CTR Reborn as The CTR, the site of the former CNN Center will be anchored by a 24,000-sq.-ft., fully reimagined central atrium that will hold 12 dining spots and the CTR Bar. The property’s owner, CP Group, invested $50 million in exterior renovations and art installations in remaking the CNN building, and it expects to spend another $15 million on updating its atrium.
•Tennessee's RiverGate Mall sold, to undergo redevelopment Ohio-based real estate development firm Merus has purchased RiverGate Mall, located in Goodlettsville, Tenn., with plans to transform the enclosed mall into a 57-acre mixed‑use district. According to local outlet The Tennessean, Merus purchased the property, which opened in 1971, for $33 million from Hendon Properties.
•Black Sheep Coffee plans slate of new Dallas-Forth Worth stores U.K.-based Black Sheep Coffee has secured a 20-store development agreement across the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex in collaboration with franchise partner Yoloway’s. The agreement will bring 20 locations to the region over the next five years, with planned sites across Richland Hills, Bedford, Plano, Garland, Rowlett, Mobile City, Sunnyvale, Richardson and Sachse.
•JLL: Net absorption of retail space doubled in 2025’s final quarter In the “Retail Market Dynamics” report for the fourth quarter of 2025, JLL states that net absorption in the retail real estate category declined in the first half of the year. But a net absorption of 11.9 million square feet posted by space-starved retailers in the fourth quarter was more than twice as high as it was in Q3, cancelling out the negative rate posted in the first three quarters.
•Cafaro moves long-time executive into its CMO role Cafaro Company, owner-operator of the 3.4 million-sq.-ft. Eastwood Mall complex in Niles, Ohio, has named a new chief marketing officer. Claiming the title is Esther Buschau, a 25-year veteran of one of the nation’s premier owners of middle-market malls. Buschau will now lead the organization’s strategic marketing initiatives.
•Copley Place to fill Neiman Marcus space with restaurants, luxury boutiques Simon Property Group has announced plans for a redevelopment of the current Neiman Marcus space at Boston’s Copley Place, the mixed-use property located in the city’s affluent Back Bay neighborhood. Simon says the new multi-level redevelopment will introduce a “world-class roster” of internationally-recognized luxury retail brands and notable dining to the center.
•Francesca’s files for bankruptcy; closing all stores In a not unexpected move, the Houston-based young women’s clothing and accessories chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with plans to close its stores and liquidate. Francesca’s operates approximately 400 stores across 45 states.
•One of the nation’s largest malls is purchased at auction The 2.2 million-sq.-ft. Palisades Center in Clarkstown, N.Y., was purchased for $175 million by Black Diamond Management at a foreclosure. Black Diamond was the only bidder at the auction held in Manhattan Supreme Court. Its previous owner and developer — Syracuse-based Pyramid Management Group, which opened the mall in 1998 — had failed to make a $400 million dollar mortgage payment on loan for the property dating back to 2016.
