119 replies to this topic

[rtkenmore]

Blazer85, on Jan 16 2006, 10:29 AM, said:

Coldstone Creamery is rumored to be one of the future tenants of Caufield Square.  Work should begin some time this Spring.

With Blazer85 mentioning Coldstone for Caufield Square, has anyone else noticed the surprising rate at which these type stores are closing?  Coldstone in Vestavia City Center has closed along with with Marble Slab at Brookwood Village (and I don't recall seeing the one at Hoover being open last time I was there).

Is the one in Trussville still open (I haven't been over there in months)?  Do these type stores just not do that well or were the ones that have closed being mismanaged??

[DruidCity]

"Nothing can even compare to what's going on in the southern areas from Helena down to Montevallo and over to Chelsea."

True. I visit my cousin in Childersberg every few months, and it looks like Chelsea is in for a suburban-style residential boom.

"2330 properties in the Bessemer/Hueytown/McCalla/Adger/Oxmoor Valley area..."

Wow, I didn't realize there was quite that much. I had noticed some homes near McAdory High.
BTW, my great-grandmother's sister lived in one of the main "historic homes" in the McCalla area: http://www.sharehist...ferson/owen.htm

On the eastern Tuscaloosa County end, there are plans to finally add an elementary school at the town of Lakeview. I went to Tannehill park a couple weeks ago, and noticed some pretty big new houses in that area.
Tannehill did finally open the new restaurant and improved iron & steel museum.

"Coldstone for Caufield Square..."

FWIW, I noticed that some Tuscaloosans are developing Caufield.
Although the article doesn't mention names, the timing is interesting, given that
Tuscaloosa-based Chatham Oil Co. sold off its 13 gas stations to Kangaroo in October, and Chatham
is the owner of both local Coldstone locations.

[HSVTiger]

rtkenmore, on Jan 16 2006, 06:09 PM, said:

With Blazer85 mentioning Coldstone for Caufield Square, has anyone else noticed the surprising rate at which these type stores are closing?  Coldstone in Vestavia City Center has closed along with with Marble Slab at Brookwood Village (and I don't recall seeing the one at Hoover being open last time I was there).

Is the one in Trussville still open (I haven't been over there in months)?  Do these type stores just not do that well or were the ones that have closed being mismanaged??

two have opened in Huntsville over the last few months, so we shall see. It would seem difficult to maintain a steady customer base unless it's the summertime.

[rtkenmore]

As Jmanhsv mentioned in the Huntsville Development chain, CBL announced their plans for Madison Square.  AL.com is carrying an article that I believe was published in the Huntsville Times.

It mentions all the expected upgrades: new flooring, new lighting, new seating, upgraded restrooms, reconfiguring escalator locations & the main court elevator, etc.  The one thing I was expecting to hear I didn't though.  I was expecting some type of Lifestyle upgrade to go along with the renovation.  Something along the lines of what Brookwood Village did with the front of that mall.  Take the main entrance of Madison Square and create a streetscape lifestyle portion with some new names & new restaurants.

I don't know that just a renovation with a new logo is really enough to compete with Bridge Street IMHO.  I still expect to see several stores jump ship in the coming months and announce plans for Bridge Street.

Really & truly, Bridge Street is the first real test of a "Lifestyle Center" in the Huntsville market (I'm not considering either of the Target centers Lifestyle obviously - they're Power Centers).  I believe people will realize how much better the Lifestyle concept is and Madison Square will be hurting without something to set it apart.

I talked with a friend of mine in Huntsville the other day (not the Wal-Mart one) who was hearing that the tenant mix at Bridge Street (besides the already announced) was going to fall along the lines of Parkway Place with the possibility of another Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, etc.  I would not be surprised to see Abercrombie show up at Bridge Street either with at least 2 of their 4 concepts even though they have 3 of the 4 represented at Parkway Place.

Anyway...  This is a lot of "IMHO" talk for the most part.  I just think CBL should be thinking ahead of the curve and go ahead for a streetscape/lifestyle area in the front of the mall.  It would make the front much more appealing from University Drive as well rather than the acres and acres of asphalt that exist now.

[rtkenmore]

DruidCity, on Jan 16 2006, 06:14 PM, said:

"2330 properties in the Bessemer/Hueytown/McCalla/Adger/Oxmoor Valley area..."

Wow, I didn't realize there was quite that much. I had noticed some homes near McAdory High.
BTW, my great-grandmother's sister lived in one of the main "historic homes" in the McCalla area: http://www.sharehist...ferson/owen.htm

On the eastern Tuscaloosa County end, there are plans to finally add an elementary school at the town of Lakeview. I went to Tannehill park a couple weeks ago, and noticed some pretty big new houses in that area.
Tannehill did finally open the new restaurant and improved iron & steel museum.

Yeah, I don't think a lot of people realize the tremendous amount of development going on in the McCalla area.  Everyone sees the massive growth south of town and overlooks east, west and north.

Just for example, HPH is about to start another project up at the Shelby Airport exit (Savannah Pointe) that I hear is around 900 lots (it's an existing s/d they are expanding further).  And not to forget about the ever expanding Old Cahaba in Helena that is something in the neighborhood of 2,000+ lots and the soon to be US Steel s/d in Helena that is around 2,300+ I think.

You can see why people don't really pay attention to the numbers outside of the Hoover to Calera cooridor.

[HSVTiger]

rtkenmore, on Jan 20 2006, 01:12 PM, said:

As Jmanhsv mentioned in the Huntsville Development chain, CBL announced their plans for Madison Square.  AL.com is carrying an article that I believe was published in the Huntsville Times.

It mentions all the expected upgrades: new flooring, new lighting, new seating, upgraded restrooms, reconfiguring escalator locations & the main court elevator, etc.  The one thing I was expecting to hear I didn't though.  I was expecting some type of Lifestyle upgrade to go along with the renovation.  Something along the lines of what Brookwood Village did with the front of that mall.  Take the main entrance of Madison Square and create a streetscape lifestyle portion with some new names & new restaurants.

I don't know that just a renovation with a new logo is really enough to compete with Bridge Street IMHO.  I still expect to see several stores jump ship in the coming months and announce plans for Bridge Street.

Really & truly, Bridge Street is the first real test of a "Lifestyle Center" in the Huntsville market (I'm not considering either of the Target centers Lifestyle obviously - they're Power Centers).  I believe people will realize how much better the Lifestyle concept is and Madison Square will be hurting without something to set it apart.

I talked with a friend of mine in Huntsville the other day (not the Wal-Mart one) who was hearing that the tenant mix at Bridge Street (besides the already announced) was going to fall along the lines of Parkway Place with the possibility of another Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, etc.  I would not be surprised to see Abercrombie show up at Bridge Street either with at least 2 of their 4 concepts even though they have 3 of the 4 represented at Parkway Place.

Anyway...  This is a lot of "IMHO" talk for the most part.  I just think CBL should be thinking ahead of the curve and go ahead for a streetscape/lifestyle area in the front of the mall.  It would make the front much more appealing from University Drive as well rather than the acres and acres of asphalt that exist now.

I think your dead on with that evaluation. CBL has a chance to make big gains with MadSq. This mall is
not reaching its full potential. I was at Brookwood Village the other day and they have really improved that property for the better, very nice. Seems CBL wants to wait and see what they are up against with Bridge St.
Hard to get too excited about stucco, steel studs and new escalators. The upgrades will be a big improvement
however

[jmanhsv]

rtkenmore, on Jan 20 2006, 12:12 PM, said:

The one thing I was expecting to hear I didn't though.  I was expecting some type of Lifestyle upgrade to go along with the renovation.  Something along the lines of what Brookwood Village did with the front of that mall.  Take the main entrance of Madison Square and create a streetscape lifestyle portion with some new names & new restaurants.

I don't know that just a renovation with a new logo is really enough to compete with Bridge Street IMHO.  I still expect to see several stores jump ship in the coming months and announce plans for Bridge Street.

Really & truly, Bridge Street is the first real test of a "Lifestyle Center" in the Huntsville market (I'm not considering either of the Target centers Lifestyle obviously - they're Power Centers).  I believe people will realize how much better the Lifestyle concept is and Madison Square will be hurting without something to set it apart.

I talked with a friend of mine in Huntsville the other day (not the Wal-Mart one) who was hearing that the tenant mix at Bridge Street (besides the already announced) was going to fall along the lines of Parkway Place with the possibility of another Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, etc.  I would not be surprised to see Abercrombie show up at Bridge Street either with at least 2 of their 4 concepts even though they have 3 of the 4 represented at Parkway Place.

I agree, Mad Square should become more of a lifestyle center. By 2015-2016, the next time the mall is renovated, the effects of Bridge Street will be in full force and some serious changes will have to be done with the mall, do I dare say demolition? Right now, I'm happy with the steps they are taking. The mall just looks ugly from the outside.
I also agree w/ the fact that the Bridge Street tenants will be similar to Parkway Place. The shopping centers will serve the same demo.But the centers will be on opposite sides of town, and Huntsville is big enough to have 2 abercrombie's and two Pottery Barns. The restaurants will be unique however. I have a feeling Cheesecake Factory will locate there.

[rtkenmore]

jmanhsv, on Jan 20 2006, 04:56 PM, said:

I also agree w/ the fact that the Bridge Street tenants will be similar to Parkway Place. The shopping centers will serve the same demo.But the centers will be on opposite sides of town, and Huntsville is big enough to have 2 abercrombie's and two Pottery Barns. The restaurants will be unique however. I have a feeling Cheesecake Factory will locate there.

I hear your grumblings about Cheesecake Factory (and that would be an awesome addition for sure) but I'm not sure they've changed their general demographics enough to search out Huntsville yet.  I know for the longest time they strictly went after the Top 50 Metros and searched out the Upscale of Upscale locations, i.e. Buckhead in Atlanta, Beverly Hills, etc.  They still have yet to enter some of the largest metro areas including New York City (which I can hardly fathom why they haven't entered Manhatten yet).

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Huntsville isn't large enough for Cheesecake Factory so much as I'm saying I don't know that they've satisfied theirselves with expansion into the Top 50 enough yet to move past that.  Consider how long Macaroni Grill and PF Changs were around the Summit before Cheesecake Factory FINALLY arrived (and it was still after Birmingham entered the Top 50 Metros at #49 I believe).

You might be more likely to see CF after Bridge Street has been open for 2-5 years while they evaluate the market and viability of the center.  I don't know that you'd see them jump on board to anchor a restaurant spot from the beginning whereas PF Changs has no problem anchoring and being there to open a brand new development.

IHMO, if the Westin Hotel does well there and the other restaurants see above average waits for the industry as a whole, then Cheesecake Factory would almost definitely put Huntsville on it's development map.  The Westin clientele would be the ideal demo for the Factory (business travelers, higher end clients, etc.).


And one last comment on Madison Square...  If the population of Huntsville really takes off with this latest BRAC alignment and Bridge Street really does well, I would not be surprised to see another developer move into Huntsville with a true Lifestyle center before long.  That could be very disasterous to CBL and Madison Square

Edited by rtkenmore, 20 January 2006 - 06:16 PM.

[rtkenmore]

Wal-Mart going to Chelsea

Did anyone catch that about two months ago aparently??  I haven't heard the first thing about Wal-Mart confirming a Supercenter for Chelsea (although I figured it was all but a given).

Also, a friend of mine mentioned that he saw on NBC 13 at 6 about Eastwood Mall officially being announced as the next Wal-Mart Supercenter for Birmingham.  Did anyone catch the story?  Was it just another rumor or actually announced as a done deal??

[EvanK]

rtkenmore, on Jan 27 2006, 07:24 PM, said:

Wal-Mart going to Chelsea

Did anyone catch that about two months ago aparently??  I haven't heard the first thing about Wal-Mart confirming a Supercenter for Chelsea (although I figured it was all but a given).

Also, a friend of mine mentioned that he saw on NBC 13 at 6 about Eastwood Mall officially being announced as the next Wal-Mart Supercenter for Birmingham.  Did anyone catch the story?  Was it just another rumor or actually announced as a done deal??

Can't answer the one about Chelsea, but I did see the story about Eastwood.  13 ran the story during Today in Alabama.  They have indeed officially announced the Supercenter for the old mall property, but I don't think that comes as a surprise to anyone.  Most people knew the second Wal-Mart announced its intentions of buying the property what was coming.

[rtkenmore]

"Target says it's happening, period. Colonial Properties Trust won't go that far just yet, but a senior executive there concedes an announcement of a second phase for Colonial Promenade in south Shelby County could be forthcoming soon."

Birmingham Business Journal is reporting this morning that Target is all but assured in the next phase of Colonial Promenade Alabaster.  Commercial real estate records show three parcels of land being sold to Target Corp. with an anticipated opening in 2007.  JC Penney is also rumored although they will not confirm.

Colonial on the other hand simply says "stay tuned" for a forthcoming announcement.

I can't help but wonder what JC Penney is ultimately planning with a new store already in Trussville and a rumored store now in Alabaster.  Will the Galleria & Century Plaza stores survive or will JC Penney continue to build off mall stores in open air centers with the ultimate fate of mall locations closing up shop?  If this is their future goal, I wouldn't be surprised to see a store alon 280 at some point and possibly even Gardendale in the new Colonial project there.

View the full article.

Edited by rtkenmore, 06 February 2006 - 11:40 AM.

[rtkenmore]

And in other news, more details of the revitalization effort in the Crestwood Boulevard/Oporto Madrid cooridor are beginning to leak out ahead of the big reveal on the 9th at Century Plaza.

Quote

"The area around Eastwood Mall should have less retail, a new hotel and a surge of condominium development in the next five to 20 years, according to a new master plan commissioned by the City of Birmingham.

The Crestwood/Oporto Redevelopment Plan created by KPS Group Inc. calls for new roads, landscaping and even a bridge over Oporto-Madrid Boulevard to create a pedestrian-friendly district with shops, civic buildings and housing."

Everyone should have a look at the article as it talks about (what I think) are some far fetched ideas for the area.  I can see some of this coming to fruition but I don't know about the idea of condos & mass townhomes in that area of town.  And apparently the planning & revitalization committee has taken it upon theirselves to move stores from their current locations with the plan showing Kmart & possible Home Depot in new locations (Home Depot taking over the Kmart location).

It's quite interesting and I can certainly say I'll be at the meeting on the 9th to take a look.  I'll be there with my camara to take photos of anything I can as well to post back here.

View the full article.

[Shawn35816]

Thanks man. That's great!

Edited by Shawn35816, 06 February 2006 - 01:58 PM.

[elb401]

[Huntsville is big enough to have 2 abercrombie's ]

I work for Abercrombie and I would highly doubt it that Huntsville is big enough for two A&F.  It may be large enough for a canoe room store (2 rooms in the front a middle room and two rooms in the back). The company just closed the Abercrombie in Montgomery and Biloxi.  The company is keeping the stores in B-ham and Mobile. They are kind of centers for their regions. I'm sure A&F is looking at Huntsville for the smaller size store, if they are looking. If they are going to open up another in the state it will be in Huntsville for sure. Huntsville is going to grow a lot in the next few years. But if I hear anything about them opening up one.....I'll sure let ya'll know.

[jmanhsv]

^They've had a location here for 3 years at Parkway Place. Both the abercrombie and A&F stores are fairly large. I was using the store as an example of the types of stores that are going into Bridge Street.

[elb401]

Yea...I talked to my boss about it today. I thought ya'll had one....but it seemed the way you were talking about it that ya'll didn't.  Ya'll would have a canoe room store. But that AL stores are mostly in different districts. Mobile is in the FL district for example.

[elb401]

Oh....by the way my sister is moving there. Do ya'll have any good suggestions about areas. She wants to live in a historic area. shes coming up there the weekend after next to look.

[nitek_of_mobile]

Just a couple of thoughts on Mobile's Retail Market

The majority of stores underperforming at Eastern Shore Centre seem to be the smaller, locally based boutiques, such as Sam & Me, Bark Avenue Pets, Centanni and Bello Bakery.  The larger retailers, such as William Sonoma, Chico's, Sharper Image and Pottery Barn, have been reporting "excellent sales".  The expanses of vacant storefronts in Eastern Shore Centre are slowly being tenanted with conventional mall retailers, such as Journey, PacSun and Aeropostale. Also, mall management announced the opening of five additional stores. The purpoted closing of Hollister comes as a mild suprise to me, seeing as that store is moderately crowded with people. Perhaps South Alabama can't support multiple Abercrombie stores?  The biggest dissapointment of Eastern Shore Centre's tenant roster is the noticeable abscence of any of the Gap store formats, save for Old Navy over in the Eastern Shore Plaza power center component.  After opening a store in Montgomery's mediocre Shoppes at EastChase, it was almost expected that Banana Republic would locate a store in Eastern Shore Centre.  Perhaps the lack of a Spanish Fort store is tied into Gap Inc's moribund holiday sales in all formats.

The name of the "lifestyle center" under construction in Mobile's affluent Spring Hill community is Legacy Village (91,000 square feet), which ties into the Legacy Oaks luxury community.  It's being developed by the Mitchell Company, somewhat notorious for its community supermarket-anchored strip malls and a passel of regional malls.  I'm curious to see which nationally known upscale tenants it will attract. As it stands most retailers are enamoured by the excellerated growth of the eastern shore suburbs and not with the city of Mobile.

Aronov Properties of Montgomery is, suprisingly, still developing a large (320,000 square feet) regional shopping center located diametrically opposite Eastern Shore Centre at the I-10/SR 181 interchange. More than likely, this will be developed into another power center-- possibly anchored by Lowes Home Improvement.  Originally, this development was going to be Eastern Shore Town Center, achored by either Parisian or McRae's and a multiplex theater. Elevation drawings were spotted on the website of the architectural firm HKW of Birmingham.

Spanish Fort Town Center, a 1 million square foot value-oriented open-air regional mall is being constructed at the I-10/US 90/98 interchange. The anchors for this development are Bass Pro Shops and JC Penney. I wonder what's going to happen to the Bel Air Mall JCPenney store? Expect a motley assortment of typical power center filler stores to serve as inline tenants.

Speaking of JCPenney, rumor has it that a national department store chain is looking to build a store out on Schillengers Road in the burgeoning sprawl of West Mobile county. Do you think JCPenney will close the behemoth Bel Air store and replace it with two smaller stores (West Mobile and Spanish Fort)?

[jmanhsv]

Wow, I didn't know the East Shore was getting so much development.
That reminds me.... Sharper Image is another store I'd like to see locate at Bridge Street.

elb401, on Feb 7 2006, 07:02 PM, said:

Oh....by the way my sister is moving there. Do ya'll have any good suggestions about areas. She wants to live in a historic area. shes coming up there the weekend after next to look.

Hey elb, you talking about Huntsville? If you are, I'd recommend Five Points, Twickenham and Old Towne, all just east of downtown. Old Towne and Twickenham are a bit pricey, though. Five Points is a pretty cool historic neighborhood that's undergoing a renovation right now.

[nitek_of_mobile]

jmanhsv, on Feb 7 2006, 09:03 PM, said:

Wow, I didn't know the East Shore was getting so much development.

Yeah, the eastern shore alone will add about 2 million square feet of retail space before the next decade.