The best word to describe the current retail real estate market in Connecticut is “stabilized.” The majority of the big box and junior anchor vacancies resulting from downsizing and bankruptcies have been absorbed. Although rental rates are still not at pre-recession levels, new construction — which has been absent over the last few years — is now being seen with multiple projects throughout the state. In Brookfield, Samuels & Associates recently completed a redevelopment of an existing 40-year-old shopping center on Federal Road by demolishing the majority of the existing shopping center adjacent to a freestanding Kohl’s and constructing a BJ’s Wholesale Club along with several restaurant pads. The project will also debut the first Chick-fil-A in Connecticut. Walmart Neighborhood Market has opened its first two Connecticut locations. The first opened at Edens redevelopment of the Bishops Corner West shopping center in West Hartford followed by the opening of a freestanding store in a former Shaw’s Supermarket on Route 6 in Bristol. Walmart has also opened a new Walmart Supercenter on Route 5 in East Windsor that is a relocation of an older Walmart on the opposite side of Route 5. Also, Walmart will soon open a new freestanding supercenter …
Retail
With an economy that's normalizing with improving fundamentals, the Atlanta retail market is on the right track for sustained growth. Throughout 2013, Atlanta experienced a drop in vacancy rates along with the unemployment rate. In addition, retail sales rose nearly 3.5 percent over last year, provoking a rise in consumer confidence. The unemployment rate in Georgia fell from 9 percent in 2012 to 8.3 percent in 2013. This is still a full point below the national average. For 2014, the unemployment rate in Georgia is expected to reach well under 8 percent. During the last 12 months, Atlanta has experienced job growth of 2.5 percent. Retail payrolls are also expected to continue improving in 2014, pushing a near 3 percent gain as a result of both increasing existing stores sales as well as modest new store opening growth. Vacancy Rates, Rent Growth Since the beginning of the year, overall metro retail vacancy rates have dropped below 11 percent, which is a 50 basis point decrease over last year. Neighborhood and community retail centers still maintain the highest vacancy of just under 15 percent. Power centers have experienced a strong year-over-year recovery, averaging a 7.5 percent vacancy across the region. Tenant …
The famous Kansas City song — first recorded by Wilbert Harrison in 1959 — says, “I’m going to Kansas City, Kansas City here I come.” Well, in 2013, the retailers did come to Kansas City, which was beautiful music to the ears of developers and landlords throughout the area. Some of the most notable new additions to the Kansas City retail scene include IKEA, The Container Store, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Scheels Sporting Goods, REI, Fresh Market, Rock & Brews, Cinetopia, Eileen Fisher, Freebirds World Burrito, Chuy’s and Hallmark’s new store concept called “HMK.” Still other retail additions include Pinstripes, an upscale entertainment and dining venue featuring bocce and bowling, as well as Sprouts and Corner Bakery. Geographic proximity to other established markets for these retailers led to a natural migration pattern to Kansas City. However, the following factors created new inventory opportunities and supplied the key ingredients for an active retail climate in 2013 that should continue in 2014: • the metro’s declining unemployment rate to 6.3 percent from a recent high of 8.4 percent in 2010; • the buoyant housing market, with an estimated 5,960 new residential and apartment units added during 2013 versus 2,342 units in 2010; …
A report t on the Houston retail real estate market reads somewhat like a 1960s newspaper headline: Low vacancy rates! Rising rent for retailers! Bidding wars and a soaring housing market! Together, these factors make the greater Houston area one of the most dynamic retail markets in North America. A Landlord’s Market Conditions clearly favor the landlords. Quality space that was renting in the low $20s per square foot during the downturn now commands rents in the $30s and in some cases the low $40s. Fierce competition for quality space is particularly intense within the range of 1,500 to 3,500 square feet. This has been forcing brokers and Realtors to get creative in discovering and closing on any available quality space for their tenants. Some are pressing landlords about space that’s set to roll over or asking which tenants may be willing to relocate. Rents are increasing largely because of high retail occupancy, which edged up from 93.3 percent to 93.5 in the Houston MSA during second quarter 2013, according to CoStar. At mid-year, net retail space absorption stood at a healthy 980,185 square feet. Yet, despite these positive signs, the Houston area’s older Class B and Class C retail …
South Jersey has room to grow, with several proposed ground-up centers taking center stage in the seven-county region as developers capitalize on residential growth tied to the market’s relative affordability. Meanwhile, “redevelopment” is the operative word for the 14 counties in the state’s more densely populated north and central regions, where industrial sites are being converted into mixed-use centers. Fueled by big-box absorption, the vacancy rate for open-air and freestanding retail in the northern counties inched down to 8.1 percent in mid-2013 from 8.2 percent a year ago. Central Jersey’s vacancies rose to 9.8 percent from 9.1 percent a year earlier, driven by small-shop closures. In the south, the average is 9 percent. Rents in the north crept up 0.1 percent in the first three quarters of 2013, with a median of $20 to $26 per square foot in top markets; central counties crept up 0.3 percent to a median of $15.50 to $16. South Jersey rents increased just 0.1 percent in the first two quarters of 2013, with a median of $13. For regional malls, one continuing trend is the move by owners to take interior spaces and turn them outward for more of a lifestyle feel. This began …
The Twin Cities retail market is still on the road to recovery, with 231,913 square feet of absorption since the beginning of the year. With steady positive absorption, the former tenant-favorable market is beginning to even out, especially with regard to the urban core or first-ring suburbs. Lease negotiations have started to tip in favor of landlords. Developers, tenants, landlords and brokers are all expressing increased confidence in the strength of the market. Among the tenants contributing to the healthy absorption of space have been Whole Foods, Walmart, and LA Fitness, all of which are opening stores throughout the suburbs. The overall vacancy rate in the third quarter stood at 5.7 percent, down from 6.2 percent the prior quarter, according to data compiled by the Welsh Cos. Vacancy at regional malls is 2.1 percent. The retail vacancy in the trade areas surrounding these regional centers follows suit with premier areas of demand among growing retailers. Chick-fil-A has also entered the Twin Cities market, opening stores in Apple Valley, Bloomington, Coon Rapids and Maple Grove. This continues the trend of new food tenants seeking more space in the Twin Cities, including Smashburger, Which Wich Superior Sandwiches and Freddy’s Frozen Custard & …
If the recession is truly over in Cincinnati and the nation, we are thankful. Still, the pace of deal and development activity is exceedingly slow. Projects started before the Great Recession are proceeding at a cautious speed. Retail leasing, which has always had a long deal cycle, now seems to take forever. But there are some bright spots in Cincinnati. The downtown market is thriving. Steiner + Associates and Bucksbaum Retail Properties recently announced that they will soon break ground on Liberty Center, a 1.1 million-square-foot, $325 million mixed-use development on 64 acres in West Chester, located about 18 miles north of downtown. And in an interesting twist on new development, college campus mixed-use projects are one of the few ways developers can develop in this risky environment. The Banks Hits A Home Run Our retail update begins on Cincinnati’s riverfront. Located on the Ohio River between Great American Ballpark and Paul Brown Stadium, the 18-acre mixed-use development known as The Banks continues to add new housing, offices, dining and entertainment. A few more restaurants opened this past year including The Yard House, The Wine Guy Bistro, Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and Tin Roof, which serves up lunch, dinner and music. …
The retail market in Southern Nevada in mid-2013 continues to mirror the broader economy, with some bright spots and some declines in performance. There appears to be a belief (or maybe a hope) by many market observers that if there hasn’t been enough improvement in Las Vegas to date, then it has to be occurring in the near future. It seems the effects of the Great Recession are still lingering and the economy hasn’t yet built up a sustainable head of steam as measured by true objective metrics. A good measure of the local economic health is unemployment statistics. The unemployment rate in Las Vegas has dropped from 9.8 percent to 9.7 percent from February to July of this year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. On another bright note, an additional 1.83 million square feet of retail space was under construction at the end of the second quarter of 2013. More than 70.1 percent of this total space was preleased. General Growth Properties’ The Shops at Summerlin comprises 1.5 million square feet of current construction. It is expected to open in late 2014 and is already more than 85 percent leased to tenants like Dillard’s and Nordstrom Rack. …
The retail industry has piggybacked onto the high tech world by recognizing the impact that the high tech industry is having on the demographics and income levels of the entire Upstate New York region. Recent announcements of the return of Lord & Taylor to Crossgates Mall in Albany, and the positioning of UNIQLO at the Palisades Mall in Nyack, N.Y., are proving that the impact of the high-tech industry is now being felt throughout the entire upstate region. The addition of both of these retailers to the mix in the Tech Valley corridor of Upstate New York (from Nyack to Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) bodes well for the region, and shows the world that the growth rate of young, tech-savvy professionals will become one of the strong foundations for retailers well into the future. The recent addition of these two dynamic retailers into the Hudson Valley/Tech Valley regions is evidence of their understanding of the impact of the high technology industries located here. The higher paying, clean-tech employment base, focused on a younger work force, points directly to these two retailers’ “sweet spot.” UNIQLO’s format is very fashion forward with a very high level of quality at their specific price point. …
During the past several years, Laredo’s retail sector has experienced tremendous growth. With the continued development of the Bob Bullock Loop (Loop 20) that connects I-35 to South Laredo, retail stores and restaurants are finding this major roadway to be an attractive alternative to the existing I-35 corridor. Up to this point, the major retail corridor in Laredo has been I-35, which serves the Mexican shoppers as they visit Laredo from Nuevo Laredo and Monterrey. However, since the development of Loop 20, a shift in retail clusters along the loop has brought in local shoppers and growing number of Mexican shoppers. • Weingarten Real Estate Investment Trust now owns and operates three shopping centers in Laredo, all anchored by HEB. Its third and most recent acquisition, Independence Plaza, was purchased from San Isidro Ranch. The property, designed by Madeline Slay Architecture, has the only HEB plus! in Laredo as well as Ross Dress for Less and other junior anchor retailers. • The City of Laredo recently sold 79 acres across from Laredo International Airport off Loop 20 to Laredo Town Center LP. The property will be developed into a shopping center. • To help revitalize downtown, a public-private partnership between …