Shackleford Crossings

[tim2462]

Shackleford Crossing is a new shopping center being built at the corner of I-430 and Shackleford Road.

Some of you may know that this the site where the Summit Mall would've been built. This is going to be

800,000 - 1,000,000 sq. ft. They are going to begin groundwork soon. So far, the only tenant announced

is J.C. Penney. They will close their store in the dead University Mall. Developers are also in talks with WAL*MART for a supercenter here also. That would be great...We need another supercenter. It's good to see the I-430 corridor start filling in with development. I'll keep a look out for other possible tenants.

[Mith242]

Shackleford Crossing is a new shopping center being built at the corner of I-430 and Shackleford Road.

Some of you may know that this the site where the Summit Mall would've been built. This is going to be

800,000 - 1,000,000 sq. ft. They are going to begin groundwork soon. So far, the only tenant announced

is J.C. Penney. They will close their store in the dead University Mall. Developers are also in talks with WAL*MART for a supercenter here also. That would be great...We need another supercenter. It's good to see the I-430 corridor start filling in with development. I'll keep a look out for other possible tenants.

It's nice to see someone actually say we need another supercenter after reading so much anti Wal-mart sentiments around. I'm not saying I love Wal-mart but I do get tired of seeing them bashed all the time. I'll have to see if I can find this location on Google Earth since I'm not as familiar with Little Rock. So is University Mall that bad? I know I haven't been there is a really long time. Guess I didn't realize it was that badly off. Are they talking about closing it or anything?

[tim2462]

It's nice to see someone actually say we need another supercenter after reading so much anti Wal-mart sentiments around. I'm not saying I love Wal-mart but I do get tired of seeing them bashed all the time. I'll have to see if I can find this location on Google Earth since I'm not as familiar with Little Rock. So is University Mall that bad? I know I haven't been there is a really long time. Guess I didn't realize it was that badly off. Are they talking about closing it or anything?

Yes, it's that bad. It's at 41% occupancy...and a lot of that is non-sales business like army

recruiters, humane society, and the employment security dept...basically anyone looking for

cheap rent. Once J.C. Penney leaves, there won't be much left. Simon owns the mall, and they

don't know what do do with it. They are being sued right now, accused of neglecting the mall.

They talk about all sorts of ideas for it, but as for now, it's just there. Park Plaza is right across

the road...which is a much better mall. Then everything is moving toward West Little Rock...so

University Mall doesn't stand a chance.

[Arkansawyer]

Yes, it's that bad. It's at 41% occupancy...and a lot of that is non-sales business like army

recruiters, humane society, and the employment security dept...basically anyone looking for

cheap rent. Once J.C. Penney leaves, there won't be much left. Simon owns the mall, and they

don't know what do do with it. They are being sued right now, accused of neglecting the mall.

They talk about all sorts of ideas for it, but as for now, it's just there. Park Plaza is right across

the road...which is a much better mall. Then everything is moving toward West Little Rock...so

University Mall doesn't stand a chance.

Yep, University Mall is in bad shape. I haven't kept up too well on this, but Little Rock has looked into some ways to revitalize that whole Midtown area. Does anyone remember the specifics? I know that part of the plan is to make it more pedestrian friendly. Also, didn't UALR recently buy some land around the University Mall area? The biggest thing to happen to the area in a while was the renovation of the Hilton Little Rock Metro Center. Another hope for the area is War Memorial Park. The city is reexaming ways in which it can benefit Little Rock.

[Mith242]

Yes, it's that bad. It's at 41% occupancy...and a lot of that is non-sales business like army

recruiters, humane society, and the employment security dept...basically anyone looking for

cheap rent. Once J.C. Penney leaves, there won't be much left. Simon owns the mall, and they

don't know what do do with it. They are being sued right now, accused of neglecting the mall.

They talk about all sorts of ideas for it, but as for now, it's just there. Park Plaza is right across

the road...which is a much better mall. Then everything is moving toward West Little Rock...so

University Mall doesn't stand a chance.

Okay I almost asked about Park Plaza too. Maybe having two malls right next to each other like that wasn't a great idea. It seems that one was bound to outperform the other. And once that started happening there was no reason to bother trying to cross to the other side of the street to go to the other one. And one isn't closer to you than the other because they're both right there. I did like the look of Park Plaza better but University also had an interesting look. But I haven't been to either one since I lived in Pine Bluff and that was over a deacde ago.

[tim2462]

Yep, University Mall is in bad shape. I haven't kept up too well on this, but Little Rock has looked into some ways to revitalize that whole Midtown area. Does anyone remember the specifics? I know that part of the plan is to make it more pedestrian friendly. Also, didn't UALR recently buy some land around the University Mall area? The biggest thing to happen to the area in a while was the renovation of the Hilton Little Rock Metro Center. Another hope for the area is War Memorial Park. The city is reexaming ways in which it can benefit Little Rock.

UALR bought land in the shopping center at the corner of asher and university. They are using it for classes and such. They are trying to revamp midtown...but I doubt university mall will have a part in that. They are building that upscale center on university and markham...kind of behind ihop that is supposed to have a pottery barn, williams sonoma, and other unnamed tenants that are said to be new to Arkansas.

[Arkansawyer]

UALR bought land in the shopping center at the corner of asher and university. They are using it for classes and such. They are trying to revamp midtown...but I doubt university mall will have a part in that. They are building that upscale center on university and markham...kind of behind ihop that is supposed to have a pottery barn, williams sonoma, and other unnamed tenants that are said to be new to Arkansas.

I agree about University Mall. I think Midtown would be better if it would just close its doors; something could be done with that land in the future. Several factors could lead to the area's resurgance. UALR provides a lot of potential for the area because of its growth. Having a Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma would be huge because they'd provide a type of retail not found anywhere else in the state. Further up on Markham, UAMS is really exploding with growth, and, as I said, War Memorial is getting a lot of attention. I like to see older areas of town kept up and improved rather than everything sprawling in West Little Rock. Downtown is getting lots of attention, and if Midtown is fixed up, Little Rock will really be a nice city from east to west. Midtown's proximity to Hillcrest adds to its appeal as well.

[tim2462]

I agree about University Mall. I think Midtown would be better if it would just close its doors; something could be done with that land in the future. Several factors could lead to the area's resurgance. UALR provides a lot of potential for the area because of its growth. Having a Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma would be huge because they'd provide a type of retail not found anywhere else in the state. Further up on Markham, UAMS is really exploding with growth, and, as I said, War Memorial is getting a lot of attention. I like to see older areas of town kept up and improved rather than everything sprawling in West Little Rock. Downtown is getting lots of attention, and if Midtown is fixed up, Little Rock will really be a nice city from east to west. Midtown's proximity to Hillcrest adds to its appeal as well.

You are so very right. Little Rock has so much potential. I hope we keep growing and become a more major metro area. It will be very nice to have midtown with as much activity as wlr and downtown. I think more and more ppl are realzing the potential here and finally getting in on the action. Little Rock is a very beautiful city...when people visit, they are impressed. If we keep bringing the development, ppl will keep moving here. I just wish there was something we could do about the area south of I-630 and east of University Ave. Maybe someday.

[Mith242]

I agree about University Mall. I think Midtown would be better if it would just close its doors; something could be done with that land in the future. Several factors could lead to the area's resurgance. UALR provides a lot of potential for the area because of its growth. Having a Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma would be huge because they'd provide a type of retail not found anywhere else in the state. Further up on Markham, UAMS is really exploding with growth, and, as I said, War Memorial is getting a lot of attention. I like to see older areas of town kept up and improved rather than everything sprawling in West Little Rock. Downtown is getting lots of attention, and if Midtown is fixed up, Little Rock will really be a nice city from east to west. Midtown's proximity to Hillcrest adds to its appeal as well.

Seems like I've heard that supposedly Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma are looking into Little Rock and northwest Arkansas, probably more in the Rogers area more than likely. I'd imagine that they'd do well in both areas.

You are so very right. Little Rock has so much potential. I hope we keep growing and become a more major metro area. It will be very nice to have midtown with as much activity as wlr and downtown. I think more and more ppl are realzing the potential here and finally getting in on the action. Little Rock is a very beautiful city...when people visit, they are impressed. If we keep bringing the development, ppl will keep moving here. I just wish there was something we could do about the area south of I-630 and east of University Ave. Maybe someday.

Yeah I mentioned this is my Pics of Little Rock topic, but I was pretty impressed with what little I saw of the city the other weekend. I even live here in the state and I was rather pleasantly surprised. I do think Little Rock will start getting more attention and turn more heads.

[Aporkalypse]

This has been in the works for a while, any timetable on starting construction? Is this still a Simon properties thing? If so, I would expect the same anchors - JC Penney, Sears (closing the University store), Dillard's, etc. Some serious road improvements are going to have to occur.

University Mall has been dying for years as pretty much anything nice opted for Park Plaza as it without a doubt the most upscale mall in Arkansas by a large margin. There isn't the space to redevelop it as anything nice. For years the appraised value of the mall has been the price of the property alone. The property is extremely coveted - St Vincents' wants it for medical office space and Target has wanted to put in a Super Target in the area for years. At one point Target tried to convince the city to sell some of the War Memorial Golf Course land to put in an upscale shopping center they would anchor but there was a lot of outrage about getting rid of mid-city park land. There was talk of upscale apt and a mixed use development there and of making the area a TIF to upgrade the area's infrastructure. Nobody wants to see Midtown go down. However, it would remain the primary shopping area for the Heights, Hillcrest, and Leawood - all of which are thriving areas.

Park Plaza is thriving, it's the most successful mall in the state in the types of stores it draws and occupancy though at 550k SF it is fairly small. However everything hinges on Dillard's. Dillard's helped build Park Plaza, which is its highest grossing store nationally, and it actually owns both its stores - anchors on opposite sides of the mall. The problem is should Dillard's elect to close one or both stores it could leave the rest of the mall hanging if they chose not to sell the anchors to a competing chain. Opinion has been split on whether they would do this or just open a new store in the new mall and leave Park Plaza as is.

The terrible incidence of having two malls so close dates back to the 1960s when malls were open air and both of these were successful open air one-level malls, they were converted sometime in the early 80s I think. Park Plaza had beautiful fountains in a courtyard. Ironically, now everything has gone back to the open-air setup. The vast majority of new major mall developments are open air, especially in warmer climates.

I thought Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma were a done deal. They were initially supposed to move into a new development near Park Plaza but sat to wait out the Summit Mall circus that kept LR retail paralyzed for a long time. Last I heard they were going into either Pleasant Ridge or another West LR development, I can't remember which.

[Aporkalypse]

Also for Mith, there was some mild dissension when Wal-Mart built at Highway-10 and Chenal. Ultimately it was accepted, though, because they vowed to put in a more upscale red/brown brick structure more in place in the area. They did and it seems to fit. They even used different flooring, etc than their ordinary stores.

[nandle]

I thought Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma were a done deal. They were initially supposed to move into a new development near Park Plaza but sat to wait out the Summit Mall circus that kept LR retail paralyzed for a long time. Last I heard they were going into either Pleasant Ridge or another West LR development, I can't remember which.

Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma are actually going into the Midtowne Little Rock development across from Park Plaza. From the website of the realty company that is functioning as the main leasing company on the project:

MidTowne

Designed in a true urban setting, this lifestyle center in Little Rock, Arkansas will be one of the most important influences to the City

[Aporkalypse]

Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma are actually going into the Midtowne Little Rock development across from Park Plaza. From the website of the realty company that is functioning as the main leasing company on the project:

MidTowne

Designed in a true urban setting, this lifestyle center in Little Rock, Arkansas will be one of the most important influences to the City

[tim2462]

Cool, I had thought that had been scrapped. Excellent news, all of those are first class.

We have Pei Wei Asian Diner and Cantina Laredo her in Dallas. Both are pretty upscale, even by Dallas standards. All of those stores are found on Lover's Lane in University Park, which is high dollar central. White House/Black Market should be new to Arkansas as well, I think.

[/quote

Simon Sold the property after the summit mall fell through. I don't understand why people fought against

the summit mall since the 80's, but this shopping center is coming in with no fight at all.

Dillard's is moving out of Park Plaza...it is one of the main anchors for "The Promenade at Chenal"

that is being built on Chenal across from Nuvell, near Rahling Road.

[Mith242]

Wasn't it Dillard's that was located at both ends of Park Plaza? Does anyone see this being a problem with Park Plaza eventually turning into a University Mall type situation?

[mcheiss]

We have Pei Wei Asian Diner and Cantina Laredo her in Dallas.

Is a Pei Wei suppose to open up soon in Dallas?

It seems like I heard someone talking about one opening there soon?

Edited December 5, 2005 by mcheiss

[Aporkalypse]

Is a Pei Wei suppose to open up soon in Dallas?

It seems like I heard someone talking about one opening there soon?

I don't know but there are already about 15 here. They're all over the place.

Wasn't it Dillard's that was located at both ends of Park Plaza? Does anyone see this being a problem with Park Plaza eventually turning into a University Mall type situation?

I kind of mentioned this before but yes. If Dillard's didn't own their own stores anchors would jump at coming into that mall. However, Dillard's actually owns the stores and is not a tenant, they don't have to sell the stores back to the mall or another anchor. That will be a big problem if it comes to fruition.

That development across from Rahling Road was the one that was supposed to have the Parisian originally, I wasn't sure what was going on with that, it seems to have been slow to come to fruition. I'd be shocked if Dillard's completely abandoned their current top-grossing location to go way out on Chenal where nobody not from West LR would think of finding them. The Shackleford Crossing location would make more sense.

[Arkansawyer]

The shopping center is due to begin construction in the 1st quarter of 2005, totaling 130,000 square feet on approximately 10 acres. The tenants will include Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, Chico

[RemusCal]

Wasn't it Dillard's that was located at both ends of Park Plaza? Does anyone see this being a problem with Park Plaza eventually turning into a University Mall type situation?

Dillards is not suppose to completely pull out of Park Plaza, but suppose to add another store in West Little Rock. They believe the market can support 2 stores. What I would rather see is Dillards pull out to West Little Rock and put in a Nordstrom, Lord and Taylor, or Saks in the place of Park Plaza to anchor this and add higher end stores in Park Plaza. That would truly revitalize Midtowne Little Rock.

[Aporkalypse]

Dillards is not suppose to completely pull out of Park Plaza, but suppose to add another store in West Little Rock. They believe the market can support 2 stores. What I would rather see is Dillards pull out to West Little Rock and put in a Nordstrom, Lord and Taylor, or Saks in the place of Park Plaza to anchor this and add higher end stores in Park Plaza. That would truly revitalize Midtowne Little Rock.

I'd like to pull a Nordstrom's but I don't think they will go to a market this small yet. Saks certainly won't unless it's the Parisian store and there's one of those going into Pleasant Ridge. I also believe the market can easily support two Dillard's with minimal competition in the market.

There's always the possibility that Dillard's would leave one store and occupy the other, downgrading the size to what would be a normal-sized store at another mall.

However, the important thing to consider is Dillard's owns its stores, it doesn't lease them. Dillard's could hold onto a vacant store to stifle competition if it wanted.

[Architect]

I'd like to pull a Nordstrom's but I don't think they will go to a market this small yet. Saks certainly won't unless it's the Parisian store and there's one of those going into Pleasant Ridge. I also believe the market can easily support two Dillard's with minimal competition in the market.

There's always the possibility that Dillard's would leave one store and occupy the other, downgrading the size to what would be a normal-sized store at another mall.

However, the important thing to consider is Dillard's owns its stores, it doesn't lease them. Dillard's could hold onto a vacant store to stifle competition if it wanted.

Guys, to clarify, adding a Dillard's in west LR would create THREE Dillard's in the market. There is also a large Dillard's store at McCain Mall in NLR, which is of course the same market.

[mcheiss]

I guess sense LR is the Headquarters of Dillards it makes sense.

It's like up here in NWA, we are the Headquarters of Wal-Mart and we have 8 Supercenters in the Region with another one on it's way.

I do agree that LR should try to diversify it's retail market a bit more. I do know that Parisian is coming into one of the Lifestyle Projects, but I myself would like to see a Lord & Taylor or even a Federated.

[tim2462]

From Arkansas Business:

Across the river, in the capital city, there could be even more Wal-Mart shuffling.

We told you last November that Shackleford Crossing, the 97-acre retail and office development on the site of the now-abandoned Summit Mall project, would be anchored by a Wal-Mart Supercenter.

We touched base with the developer, Steve Clary, chairman and CEO of Little Rock

Edited April 2, 2006 by tim2462

[skirby]

Across the river, in the capital city, there could be even more Wal-Mart shuffling.

We told you last November that Shackleford Crossing, the 97-acre retail and office development on the site of the now-abandoned Summit Mall project, would be anchored by a Wal-Mart Supercenter.

We touched base with the developer, Steve Clary, chairman and CEO of Little Rock

[Aporkalypse]

Across the river, in the capital city, there could be even more Wal-Mart shuffling.

We told you last November that Shackleford Crossing, the 97-acre retail and office development on the site of the now-abandoned Summit Mall project, would be anchored by a Wal-Mart Supercenter.

We touched base with the developer, Steve Clary, chairman and CEO of Little Rock