Roughly 2.5 million square feet of new retail space is expected to open in the metro area before 2006 comes to an end.
A big chunk will hit the market this month as major shopping centers in Aurora, Boulder and Denver host grand openings and a fourth project in Westminster opens its first two anchors.
But retail experts are quick to dismiss concerns about overbuilding, noting that the projects are being constructed in areas of rapid population growth or are replacing existing retail projects.
“While it sounds like a large amount of space, each one of these projects is well-thought-out and positioned to succeed,” said Mary Beth Jenkins, a Denver retail broker and consultant. “(Their) designs incorporate outdoor, Main Street environments, which is really the next generation of mall development.”
J.C. Penney and SuperTarget are the first two anchors in the 1.2 million-square-foot Orchard Town Center at 144th Avenue and Interstate 25 in Westminster.
About 45 businesses will debut at the Central Neighborhood at Twenty Ninth Street in Boulder. They represent about 85 percent of the merchants in the 300,000-square-foot mixed-use development.
Fifty retailers are expected to open at the four-block Main Street at Southlands, the centerpiece of the 1.7 million-square-foot Southlands development at E-470 and Smoky Hill Road in Aurora. Another 20 will open in the weeks leading up to the holidays.
Fifty tenants also will open in Northfield at Stapleton’s Main Street, with another 25 to follow at a later date.
The developments will provide a welcome tax boost to metro-area municipalities and, in Boulder’s case, are expected to keep shoppers from spending their money in neighboring communities.
A report issued this year by Trammell Crow Co. showed that of the 2.5 million square feet of retail development expected to open this year, just 290,000 square feet came online in the first half of the year.
That pace of construction roughly tracks with the previous year, when 3 million square feet of new retail space was reported.
Separate data from the International Council of Shopping Centers showed that Colorado as a whole had 26.95 square feet of retail space per person. That was more than 31 percent higher than the national per-capita average of 20.53 square feet of retail space.
Trammell Crow principal Pat McHenry acknowledged that this year’s October openings amount to a significant amount of space but said each center has strong points that help set it apart. For example, Northfield serves a rapidly growing market driven by the redevelopment of the former Stapleton International Airport.
More than 2,300 homes have been built on the site of the former airport, adding 6,100 new residents to the area near Northfield. The shopping center is expected to generate $10 million a year in taxes when it is completed, including sales, property and business-license taxes.
Until now, the northeast metro area has been underretailed, McHenry said.
“There has been a void in the northeast Denver market,” agreed Kem Blue, regional vice president of Forest City, which is developing Northfield and the Orchard Town Center. “We’re seeing demand for more retail, dining and entertainment options in the area. We’re in the right spot at the right time.”
The Twenty Ninth Street development in Boulder is expected to tap existing demand, largely because it is replacing the city’s only indoor shopping mall. Now a mixed-use project, the mall will eventually host the headquarters of natural grocer Wild Oats Markets and other offices.
Westcor, the project’s developer, has had to perform a delicate balancing act to ensure that the project can stand apart from nearby Pearl Street Mall and FlatIron Crossing in Broomfield. Westcor is a subsidiary of the Macerich Co., which owns FlatIron Crossing.
The company has made an effort to seek out retailers, including pet-gear retailer Muttropolis and catalog retailer Territory Ahead, both new to the market.
The city of Boulder is expecting to collect sales taxes totaling $2 million at Twenty Ninth Street this year. That amount is expected to jump to $3.5 million in 2007 and $4.4 million in 2008.
Gerard Cote, director of communications for Downtown Boulder Inc., said new retail at Twenty Ninth Street isn’t expected to diminish business for other retailers within the city.
A Home Depot that has already opened at Twenty Ninth is a case in point, Cote said.
“We’re kind of using what’s gone on with Home Depot as a bellwether,” he said. “Instead of cannibalizing sales from local stores like McGuckin (Hardware), it’s cannibalizing sales from the Home Depots in Superior and Louisville.”
Twenty Ninth Street and the Pearl Street Mall have cooperated on an advertisement that is airing on Frontier Airlines’ Wild Blue Yonder network, and other co-marketing efforts are planned, said Lain Adams, senior property manager for Twenty Ninth Street.
Like Northfield, Southlands is being developed in an area that has seen rapid housing growth in recent years, Jenkins said.
Aurora added more than 12,000 new housing units between 2000 and 2005, according to data from the Denver Regional Council of Governments. Much of that growth was concentrated along E-470 near Southlands.
Aurora collects about $4 million in sales tax from retailers in Southlands’ earlier phases. At full buildout, the project is expected to generate $5 million to $6 million a year.
“In each instance, the retail is following the rooftops, which follows the rules of retail,” she said.
Staff writer Kristi Arellano can be reached at 303-954-1902 or karellano@denverpost.com.
Upcoming retail center openings
The Orchard Town Center
Site: Interstate 25 and 144th Avenue in Westminster
Dates: Friday and Sunday
What’s opening: First two anchors, J.C. Penney and SuperTarget
The big picture: Future phases of the 215-acre development will include outdoor retail, Macy’s, an AMC Theatre, restaurants and 500 units of housing and office space.
Twenty Ninth Street
Site: Canyon Boulevard and 29th Street in Boulder
Dates: Oct. 12-15
What’s opening: 45 stores in the project’s “Central Neighborhood”
The big picture: Mixed-use redevelopment on 62 acres formerly occupied by the Crossroads Mall. It will include a mix of shops, offices and a movie theater.
What’s there: Laudisio Restaurant, Puma, Muttropolis, Territory Ahead
Southlands
Site: E-470 and Smoky Hill Road in Aurora
Dates: Oct. 20-22
What’s opening: 50 tenants in the four-block Main Street segment of the project
The big picture: 1.7 million- square-foot project, including a mix of already-open big-box retailers, restaurants and a central Main Street. The project also includes an adjacent housing development.
What’s there: Jim & Nick’s BBQ, the Make-Up Store, McCabe’s Irish pub, PB Loco gourmet peanut-butter cafe
Northfield at Stapleton
Site: Near Interstate 70, Interstate 270 and Quebec Street in Denver
Date: Oct. 26
What’s opening: 50 tenants in the Main Street segment of the project
The big picture: Bass Pro Shops, SuperTarget, Circuit City and a Harkins Theatre are already open. Other retailers, including Old Navy, will open later.
What’s there: Macy’s, Bar Louie, La Sandia restaurant, Ling & Louie’s Asian Bar & Grill
KRISTI ARELLANO
