Texas’s latest developments feature a common thread: a sense of place. Why are people drawn to spend money and time at certain places in a city? What makes someone want to do their shopping, stop for coffee or plan a date night at one spot versus another? Sometimes, it’s a special location or an emotional connection to a particular vendor. But in many instances, the draw is entirely by design. It’s an intentional, strategic urban planning tactic that’s been around for decades, and it’s called placemaking. What Is Placemaking?The concept …
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Brokers, owners and developers active in the Mid-Atlantic’s retail sector describe a market buoyed by a strong consumer base, though the landscape varies somewhat across urban and suburban areas. Even as the Mid-Atlantic contends with higher interest rates and a drop in daytime traffic within urban centers as a result of new work-from-home practices, retail in the region continues to shine. According to sources interviewed for this article, the market — despite these economic headwinds and uncertainties — is thriving and as strong as ever. As Richard Lake of Roadside …
Despite solid fundamentals at retail centers, investors are waiting for certainty in values, capital markets to transact. The U.S. retail market is currently on a long stretch of rock-solid performance at the property level. The national vacancy rate is at a healthy 4.1 percent, according to first-quarter 2024 research from CoStar Group. This comes one quarter after a stellar 4 percent vacancy rate at year-end 2023. What’s more is net store openings are on pace to be positive for the third consecutive year, according to research from Cushman & Wakefield. …
The complex projects encompass many moving parts and players. Keeping them all on the same page is crucial to success. If the whole mall redevelopment thing doesn’t work out, you can always become a marriage counselor. Perhaps some additional training and education would be needed for such a career transition to actually take place. But mall and shopping center owners who undertake high-risk redevelopments undoubtedly have firsthand appreciation of the importance of providing clear and courteous communication to the many different groups they deal with, from municipal leaders to longstanding …
From pickleball to gaming to live music, landlords create hot new combinations that appeal to a variety of consumers and boost sales. Sports and entertainment destinations offer several benefits to retail properties — they boost foot traffic, encourage consumers to linger, complement traditional retail and provide opportunities for refilling vacancies. Pickleball, gaming and music venues are some of the most prolific concepts in today’s experiential marketplace. “These users draw consumers into a development,” says Tim Katt, managing director of Transwestern Real Estate’s sports and entertainment advisory group. “Their ability to …
Though construction headwinds persist, the potential of mixed-use projects motivates many developers to keep going. Some of today’s most successful projects can be described as a melting pot of sorts. That’s because they internalize the three Fs: flexible, financeable and functional — or, should we say, multi-functional. “Mixed-use concepts, in particular, seem to be the 401(k) of real estate development,” says Matt Silvers, vice president of Project Management Advisors in Austin, Texas. “They provide a bit of everything for everyone, including investors, and the mix of uses nicely hedges market …
Mixed-use properties have matured as communities, shoppers and end-users have realized the benefits they offer. While many argue that mixed-use properties have been around since the dawn of shopping (think residential atop retail), purpose-built mixed-use properties have really been en vogue for the past 20 years. Combining retail with multifamily, hotel, office and other property types has been successful for developers, who often have to partner with each other based on sector expertise to get mixed-use projects done. Initially skeptical, municipalities have warmed to the concept as they see the …
From the outside, the story of the Kansas City Power & Light District seems like a familiar one: an urban revitalization fueled by a succession of development milestones. Looking closer — and talking with people who have been a part of the journey — reveals something much more interesting — even remarkable. Today, as the project celebrates its 15-year anniversary, the $1 billion mixed-use district that received the Urban Land Institute Award of Excellence in 2009 isn’t just going strong, it’s reaching new heights. In the process, the Power & …
The economy has constricted consumers’ wallets, but the desire for entertainment has kept them spending…on the right concepts. Rising prices have made just about everyone conscientious about their spending. That, naturally, includes shoppers. Dixon Greenwood, principal at Mountain Mile in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, notes 2023 overall tax receipts at the dining, shopping, lodging and entertainment destination are down more than 10 percent from the company’s 2022 numbers. “Now, that’s off some extreme growth during and after COVID, so numbers are still very good, but what it says pretty clearly is …
Amid population and job growth, retailers see the Lone Star State an ideal territory for expansion. But tight conditions and high construction costs are creating challenges. The economic growth engine that is Texas continues to drive retail demand. With many major markets near full occupancy in urban and mature suburban neighborhoods, developers who launched grocery-anchored and other projects in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) Metroplex as well as in and around Austin and Houston are well-positioned to take advantage of the fast-growing regions. That’s especially true as the increasing cost of …