461 replies to this topic

[tim2462]

LOL There are way more stops than 3.  I haven't looked at the route lately, but I see several stops on my daily commute.  Yes, it is possible to walk just about anywhere you want to out there.  There are sidewalks along every street, even the main ones.  You may not want to walk, but you can.  Who in their right mind would walk from the wal-mart on hwy 10 to best buy, even if they had a walkway above the area?  Urban doesn't mean you can walk.  Urban is clusters of developments and that certainly meets the requirements.  Anway, I like driving my car where I need to go.  Walking is good for you, but I prefer not to walk up and down the street in urban areas with groceries and anything else I may buy while out.  The bus system is great for people that need it. Anyway, there are very few places in the US period that you can walk in urban areas.  Even in places where you can, it would not be safe and wise to do so.

[skirby]

tim2462, on Apr 5 2006, 03:42 PM, said:

LOL There are way more stops than 3.  I haven't looked at the route lately, but I see several stops on my daily commute.  Yes, it is possible to walk just about anywhere you want to out there.  There are sidewalks along every street, even the main ones.  You may not want to walk, but you can.  Who in their right mind would walk from the wal-mart on hwy 10 to best buy, even if they had a walkway above the area?  Urban doesn't mean you can walk.  Urban is clusters of developments and that certainly meets the requirements.  Anway, I like driving my car where I need to go.  Walking is good for you, but I prefer not to walk up and down the street in urban areas with groceries and anything else I may buy while out.  The bus system is great for people that need it. Anyway, there are very few places in the US period that you can walk in urban areas.  Even in places where you can, it would not be safe and wise to do so.

Again tim you talk the talk but will not ride the bus.  CAT schedules  list 3 stops. Are you saying there is no place that is safe or wise to walk. Have you ever live in an area where you can go to a neighborhood market and pick up fresh bread and the items you need for the day? The way you make it sound why would anyone want to live in an urban area? People make an area urban not buildings. Look at Main St. in LR. It has buildings but very few people. At one time it had alot of people using those buildings and maybe sometime in the future they will return. You can drive around in you car but give me Hillcrest or the River Market. As far as walking in West Little Rock it is too spread out. People will only walk within 1500 ft. of where they are on a daily basis. That is why development along a transit system happens within a five block area.

[tim2462]

skirby, on Apr 5 2006, 03:05 PM, said:

Again tim you talk the talk but will not ride the bus.  CAT schedules  list 3 stops. Are you saying there is no place that is safe or wise to walk. Have you ever live in an area where you can go to a neighborhood market and pick up fresh bread and the items you need for the day? The way you make it sound why would anyone want to live in an urban area? People make an area urban not buildings. Look at Main St. in LR. It has buildings but very few people. At one time it had alot of people using those buildings and maybe sometime in the future they will return. You can drive around in you car but give me Hillcrest or the River Market. As far as walking in West Little Rock it is too spread out. People will only walk within 1500 ft. of where they are on a daily basis. That is why development along a transit system happens within a five block area.

A very small percentage of any city is walkable as you have described.  Cities have to be spread out, you can't pile everything up together for the sake of walking.  I like having room to move and drive around.
There are many places I could live in WLR that I could walk, but walking for me is for leisure, not for errands.

[Architect]

tim2462, on Apr 5 2006, 05:23 PM, said:

A very small percentage of any city is walkable as you have described.  Cities have to be spread out, you can't pile everything up together for the sake of walking.  I like having room to move and drive around.
There are many places I could live in WLR that I could walk, but walking for me is for leisure, not for errands.

Really?  You must tour the rest of the world - any part will do, though Europe is a great example.  Only in the USA have we embarked upon a 50 year "suburban" experiment.  Granted, we're the only country that could afford to take it on, but I think in the long run - if it continues unchecked - it will bankrupt our cities.

Edited by Architect, 05 April 2006 - 08:30 PM.

[skirby]

tim2462, on Apr 5 2006, 06:23 PM, said:

A very small percentage of any city is walkable as you have described.  Cities have to be spread out, you can't pile everything up together for the sake of walking.  I like having room to move and drive around.
There are many places I could live in WLR that I could walk, but walking for me is for leisure, not for errands.

Who pays for your room to move and drive around? The more sprawl the more it cost for police, fire and other city services. Who is going to pay for the ever expanding streets, water and sewer systems needed for you to move around? You just don't get it, cities are not built for the sake of walking but should be built to be walkable. WLR doesn't even come near.

[gmariam]

This was posted on ARKANSASBUSINESS.COM today......

Little Rock’s University Mall is remembered as the first mall in central Arkansas, a high-profile project among retail centers nearly 40 years ago. These days, the 567,554-SF mall at 300 S. University Ave. is known as a poster child for redevelopment and a property management challenge.  The drawing power of J.C. Penney is viewed as the prime reason the mall hasn’t closed, but its days as an anchor tenant are numbered.

Some believe the countdown for the departure of the Plano, Texas-based chain officially began with recent site work for Shackleford Crossing in west Little Rock.  J.C. Penney is linked with the 97-acre development by Little Rock’s Clary Development Corp. J.C. Penney’s interest in the location at the southwest corner of Interstate 430 and Shackleford Road dates back to 1988.

The site originally was to be the home of the Summit Mall, a project first proposed by Alabama developer James W. Wilson Jr. and later a joint venture by Simon Property Group Inc. of Indianapolis and Dillard’s Inc. of Little Rock.  Though the mall concept is gone from the site, retail space is an important component of the 850,000-SF Shackleford Crossing project. Reports have Penney’s setting up a 100,000-SF store.

Officials at Clary Development or Simon Property, which controls and manages University Mall, couldn’t be reached for comment. However, a formal announcement of anchor tenants for Shackleford Crossing — and perhaps more — is expected before Labor Day.

A Wal-Mart Supercenter remains a popular would-be anchor for the project. Two other names associated with Shackleford Crossing are Toys “R” Us and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers of Greenwood Village, Colo. It’s unclear whether Penney’s will be among the first round of names.

Clary Development has $7 million worth of construction in motion for phase one of Shackleford Crossing after acquiring the property last year for $11.4 million.  Construction permits are associated with four retail buildings totaling 83,486 SF. The individual buildings encompass 17,647 SF, 25,408 SF, 22,291 SF and 18,140 SF.

Improving Shackleford Road from two lanes to five lanes of traffic south of Interstate 430 with four signalized entries to Shackleford Crossing will add millions more to the development tab.  Road work is scheduled to begin in April 2007 and will include another lane on the Shackleford Road-Interstate 430 overpass and improved interstate ramps with signals.  Final street plans associated with the development will undergo review by city officials in September.

Another component of the Shackle-ford Crossing project will be the Comcast Cable facility at 2724 S. Shackleford Road. The 3.8-acre property will be folded into the development and, in return, Comcast will gain a new location in Shackleford Crossing.

Retail watchers report it is a matter of when, not if, Penney’s will announce its decision to vacate University Mall in favor of new digs.  Assuming Penney’s closes its doors at University Mall, Simon Property Group likely will be confronting an occupancy rate well below 50 percent unless it reverses the downward spiral of leasing activity.

Mall occupancy has languished the past five years since Montgomery Ward shut down its operations and left an empty 142,000-SF store behind. The loss in shopping traffic was dramatic, and an exodus of smaller tenants followed.  M.M. Cohn scaled back its mall operations to the first floor. Retail watchers peg the first sign of decline at the mall to 1997 when Osco Drugs announced the closing of its store, next door to Franke’s Cafeteria.  The former Osco Drugs space was the focus of recent unsuccessful attempts to open a nightclub, Envy Restaurant & Lounge.

City officials have expressed formal opposition to the Envy proposal, and the project appears to be in limbo after the Alcoholic Beverage Control Administration recently rejected a permit application to serve drinks.

Simon Property Group has resorted to bringing in unconventional tenants to fill darkened retail space.  The Arkansas Workforce Center at Little Rock occupies two former storefronts. Other nonretailers include the Humane Society of Pulaski County Adoption Center, Little Rock Workforce Investment Board and University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Cancer Control Outreach Center.

Simon Property seemed more interested in trying to get the Summit Mall project launched than caring for the rent rolls at University Mall. Adding to the mix was the company’s battling with University Mall’s landlord.

The investment group, which owns the 27-acre mall site, has been in and out of court with Simon Property Group.  The William L. Patton Jr. Family Ltd. of Little Rock and the Charles Cella family’s Southern Real Estate & Financial Co. of St. Louis believe Simon Property intentionally has allowed the mall’s decline.  As part of the lease agreement, the landowners are to share in rental income. However, that money steadily has dried up.

Simon Property was able to negotiate much lower property taxes because of the steep drop of rental income at the mall. The mall’s appraised value dropped from $14.25 million in 2002 to $8.2 million in 2004.  Patton disputed the 2004 appraisal, and financial statements filed in the Pulaski County Circuit Court in support of his appeal show the mall’s rental revenue dropped from $3.3 million in 2001 to $2.6 million in 2003. Its net income slipped from $677,000 to $281,000 during that same period.

The Patton lawsuit portrays a scenario in which Simon Property allegedly mismanaged and neglected University Mall as part of hardball negotiations to rework the land lease agreement.  Simon’s lease from Patton and Southern is set to expire at the end of 2026. Under terms of the agreement, Southern is to share in lease income, money that largely has evaporated with the declining health of the mall’s rent roll.  Patton and Southern continue to press their case that Simon Property has failed to properly maintain the mall as required in the lease agreement.

Simon has attempted to placate the landowners and U.S. District Judge George Howard Jr. by making repairs valued at more than $2.7 million. However, the two sides remain locked in dispute.  The continued friction doesn’t bode well for the future of University Mall as a retail center.

Simon Property made sure the project was positioned to compete effectively when the nearby Park Plaza underwent a massive facelift that transformed it into a modern mall.  University Mall also received its own big-time makeover in 1988 as both properties geared up in advance of the first Summit Mall proposal.

University Mall’s fading glory seemed to coincide with Simon’s interest in picking up the Summit Mall project after the first would-be developer washed out in bankruptcy court.  Simon Property’s inability to make its vision of Summit Mall happen and the subsequent land sale to Clary Develop-ment have shifted the company’s focus back to University Mall.

How sharp that focus is remains in question.  The rise of new Little Rock projects such as Shackleford Crossing has put competitive stress on University Mall.  

The financial feud between Simon Property and its landlord appears to be the real battleground that will determine what the future has in store for one of the state’s first malls.

Edited by gmariam, 07 August 2006 - 08:05 PM.

[dookmaster]

They are really clearing land out on 430 for this center.  I read in the paper a few days ago that the city was going to start widening Shackleford sometime early spring.

[Aporkalypse]

Nice article in the Business section of the Demozette today about Shackleford Crossing.

Main shopping center is to be 580,000 SF.  Outparcels another 50,000 SF.  Office space roughly 250,000 SF so ultimately the total should be around 900,000 SF.  30-40 retailers will be included with 8-10 restaurants.

The original schematic included a JC Penney's and Wal-Mart Supercenter.  Names tied to the site now include:  Cracker Barrel, First Security Bank, Logan’s Roadhouse,  Abuelo’s, Starbucks (of course), Babies “R” Us, Golf Galaxy Inc., Dunlaps and K&G Superstore.

LR-based Clary Development is involved in a number of shopping center developments in Central and NW Arkansas totalling $500 million.  This project is expectd to cost at least $100 million and Clary will pay for improvements to Shackleford and the I-430/Shackleford intersection.


The interesting thing about this is that Dunlap's is a department store chain which owns MM Cohn's.  If a Dunlaps is joining JC Penney's at Shackleford Crossing, what do you think will happen to the MM Cohn's at University?  Hmm....

[jcaruth]

I just got a hold of a site plan for Shackleford crossing.  It could be dated, but it included space for a Lowes, and and 88,000sf theater.

Edited by jcaruth, 25 August 2006 - 09:59 AM.

[Aporkalypse]

jcaruth, on Aug 25 2006, 10:57 AM, said:

I just got a hold of a site plan for Shackleford crossing.  It could be dated, but it included space for a Lowes, and and 88,000sf theater.

Interesting.  That area needs a Lowe's but you would wonder if another theatre so close to the Rave and UA theatres, which are both pretty state of the art, would make much sense.

I think a Lowe's or Home Depot would do well out on Hwy 10 as well.

[jcaruth]

Aporkalypse, on Aug 25 2006, 11:07 AM, said:

Interesting.  That area needs a Lowe's but you would wonder if another theatre so close to the Rave and UA theatres, which are both pretty state of the art, would make much sense.

I think a Lowe's or Home Depot would do well out on Hwy 10 as well.

It was a two year old site plan, so dont get your hopes up on the Lowe's. It would be a good location for one though...I also wondered about the theater. It doesnt make much since considering the popularity of Rave.

[Aporkalypse]

jcaruth, on Aug 25 2006, 11:19 AM, said:

It was a two year old site plan, so dont get your hopes up on the Lowe's. It would be a good location for one though...I also wondered about the theater. It doesnt make much since considering the popularity of Rave.

There is a big deficiency of home improvement stores in the city of Little Rock.  There are actually fewer now than there were a few years ago when the HQ store (now Garden Ridge) on Chenal closed when the chain went bankrupt.

Home Depot has their always packed West LR location and another in Southwest LR/Mabelvale but there are no Lowe's in LR though they are a few in surrounding communities.  I think it's only natural that Lowe's would want at least one site in LR, perhaps two.  The greatest opportunity would be the midtown market but next to this Hwy 10 or Shackleford would be great locations.

[mcheiss]

Aporkalypse, on Aug 25 2006, 10:41 AM, said:

Nice article in the Business section of the Demozette today about Shackleford Crossing.

Main shopping center is to be 580,000 SF.  Outparcels another 50,000 SF.  Office space roughly 250,000 SF so ultimately the total should be around 900,000 SF.  30-40 retailers will be included with 8-10 restaurants.

The original schematic included a JC Penney's and Wal-Mart Supercenter.  Names tied to the site now include:  Cracker Barrel, First Security Bank, Logan’s Roadhouse,  Abuelo’s, Starbucks (of course), Babies “R” Us, Golf Galaxy Inc., Dunlaps and K&G Superstore.

Is the office space going to be intergrated into the retail, with ground floor retail and second or third floor office space?

[Aporkalypse]

mcheiss, on Aug 25 2006, 01:05 PM, said:

Is the office space going to be intergrated into the retail, with ground floor retail and second or third floor office space?

I haven't seen a diagram yet but I bet it will be typically suburban with separate office buildings.  The stores seem mostly big box and that makes offices over ground floor retail a bit trickier.

I tend to love that arrangment, though.  Southlake Town Square uses that SO well.  I'm hoping we'll eventually see that at the University Mall site.

[mcheiss]

Aporkalypse, on Aug 25 2006, 01:07 PM, said:

I tend to love that arrangment, though.  Southlake Town Square uses that SO well.  I'm hoping we'll eventually see that at the University Mall site.

The Promenade in Rogers is suppose to do that as well.

I guess it would be a challenge with "Big-Box" Stores. It's much easier to do with a Lifestyle project than a Power Center Project.

[Aporkalypse]

mcheiss, on Aug 25 2006, 01:10 PM, said:

The Promenade in Rogers is suppose to do that as well.

I guess it would be a challenge with "Big-Box" Stores. It's much easier to do with a Lifestyle project than a Power Center Project.

It never occurred to me until you mentioned that, but it would've been a nice way to develop the Midtowne Center.  There is a big need for office space in Midtown and that might've helped increase their profit margin.

[theman]

Aporkalypse, on Aug 25 2006, 01:27 PM, said:

It never occurred to me until you mentioned that, but it would've been a nice way to develop the Midtowne Center.  There is a big need for office space in Midtown and that might've helped increase their profit margin.

That's probably the reason why the Brandon House property was purchased with plans to convert it to office space.

[dookmaster]

Anyone heard anything new about the clearing for Shackleford Crossing off I430?  I drove by tonight and there's a huge clearing there with a mountain of dirt being moved.  Curious to hear who is officially coming.

[Aporkalypse]

dookmaster, on Sep 8 2006, 12:30 AM, said:

Anyone heard anything new about the clearing for Shackleford Crossing off I430?  I drove by tonight and there's a huge clearing there with a mountain of dirt being moved.  Curious to hear who is officially coming.

I haven't heard anything new besides the tenants mentioned above.

[LIT uPP]

Not that this is any big surprise, but the plumbing review site lists JC Penny for Shackleford Crossing.  There has been no official announcement about the retailers coming to the center, but this seems to make the Penny location nearly a certainty.