Ryan Seacrest should try this countdown--it's retail's top hits of 2013. Retail Street Advisors partner Zac Porter (here with wife Emily Ray-Porter in Paris in October) tells us he's seeing a tremendous amount of interest from retailers and restaurants looking to Texas from California, New York, and pretty much every other state. He's projecting 102% growth in 2014 for RSA. Some of the clients RSA picked up in '13: the 42-acre mixed-use Preston Hollow Village (Provident's project at Walnut & 75); the 186-acre mixed-use CityLine (KDC's project at GBT between 75 & Plano Road); and the 85-acre mixed-use Westlake Entrada (Centurion American and Jeff Blackard) at FM 1938 and Solana Boulevard.
The Weitzman Group CEO/chairman Herb Weitzman (whom we snapped at ICSC in Las Vegas) tells us TWG's two biggest projects this year--Golden Triangle Mall and WinCo at Old Orchard East--reflect a major trend: renovations and redevelopments. Retailers are seeking older properties as the market tightens during a time of low construction, he says. (But we can't call old buildings seniors housing, cause that would be confusing.) It also reflects a trend of retailers seeking existing locations for new stores for the established traffic patterns during a time of limited residential construction.
After years of work, the renovation at GTM is nearing an end--with new entrances, interior, food court, center court, storefronts, A-list tenants, etc. The renovation, designed to reverse the mall's decline, should finish in early '14. Transforming the Old Orchard Village East, grocer Winco is taking long-vacant anchor space for a new 85k SF store. Herb also says West Plano Village is a homerun spot at the NE corner of Parker Road and the Dallas North Tollway in Plano. EatZi's opened there in September, and AMLI is building apartments. Additional retail and office starts in Q1.
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