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laguy77

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  1. Laundry by Shelli Segal is a bridge level brand of women's clothing. there are maybe 3 or 4 in the country. it's not a "premier" brand but still a coveted trendy line. Mexx is a ctually a Dutch brand now coming to the US. it's like Zara but less trend driven. very impressive that Houston would be getting these stores before other markets on the East Coast. looks like this center will be more about emerging, hip brands and more mainstream lines than full on designer like the Galleria.
  2. Galleria ready to mix residential with retail http://houston.bizjournals.com/houston/sto.../01/story2.html Allison Wollam/Houston Business Journal High-rise residential plans in the works at the Galleria could give the term "home shopping" a whole new meaning in Houston. Owner Simon Property Group Inc. is drawing up a blueprint for converting the current Macy's store into upscale condos. Parties involved note that planning is purely preliminary at this point, but agree that adding a residential component to Houston's most prominent shopping mecca is highly feasible. The door to residential redevelopment might have opened on July 13, when shareholders approved the merger of May Department Stores Co., parent of Macy's, and Federated Department Stores, parent of Foley's. Retail industry sources say post-merger closings are certain at malls with now-overlapping regional chains. In the coming shakeout, the newer flagship Foley's store in the Galleria is likely to be rebranded as a Macy's and the existing Macy's is expected to close. A Federated official says no final decision has been made on the future of either store. Timely references David Simon, CEO of the country's biggest mall owner, has kept speculation on the front burner over the past few months. A week after the May/Federated merger was announced in March, Simon singled out the Galleria as a prime candidate for high-rise condos. He reportedly made the reference while discussing the company's "asset intensification" plans at a real estate conference in Florida. The Galleria was again singled out by Simon at another conference last month, where he reportedly cited the Houston property's strong potential for a successful multifamily residential component. Les Morris, a spokesman for Simon Property Group, is non-committal about discussing specifics, but indicates the concept is being considered. "Given the prominence of the Galleria in our portfolio, adding a residential component is definitely something we would look at," says Morris. He points out that mixed-use asset intensification is standard in Simon's newer projects. "All of the developments that we're currently building from the ground up have an office or residential component along with the retail," Morris says. The Town Center at Coconut Point in Bonito Springs, Fla., includes 305 condo units totaling 45,000 square feet along with 1.2 million square feet of retail space. Up the Florida coast in Jacksonville, the St. John's Town Center has a village component, a community center and a hotel. In anticipation of possible post-merger fallout, sources say Simon has already contacted The Hanover Co. about constructing high-rise residential units in the Macy's building. John Nash, president of the company known for developing multifamily residential projects, notes that Hanover is working with Simon on other properties in other markets, but is not working on any projects in Houston at this time. "The Galleria is not in the pipeline right now," says Nash. "However, Hanover is always looking for trophy properties and would like to look at and review any mixed-use, multifamily development opportunities that arise in and around Houston." Integrating components Residential and retail already co-exist north of the city. The Woodlands Town Center features residential complexes about a block away from The Woodlands Mall. "We're definitely seeing a trend where residential components in close proximity to shopping and restaurants is becoming a sought-after amenity," says Tim Welbes, president of The Woodlands Development Corp. He says high-rise units in the Galleria will probably appeal to people who own more than one home, rather than people looking to set up a primary residence. Nick Hernandez, a local retail broker with Page Partners, says the retail industry is moving toward integrating multi-use components within shopping centers. He says consolidation among anchor tenants is leaving empty stores that mall owners must find creative and adaptive ways to fill. "The Galleria is one of the best candidates for a residential component because it already has office space and a hotel, and it's also located in one of the best high-end residential areas in town," says Hernandez. "All of the right pieces are in place for this to be successful at the Galleria," he says. awollam@bizjournals.com -- 713-960-5936
  3. this might give you an idea on the direction Simon is taking with the Macy's or Foley's store once the Foley's nameplate is gone. More at the malls http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dw...l.8c9962fb.html Department stores' shoes being filled by housing, discounters - even casinos 12:43 PM CDT on Saturday, July 9, 2005 By MARIA HALKIAS / The Dallas Morning News The phrase "she lives at the mall" may soon gain new meaning at Houston's Galleria, where Simon Property Group Inc. is considering converting the Macy's or Foley's into apartments.A proposal for a $1 billion addition at Minnesota's Mall of America includes a full-fledged casino on the upper level. In Boulder, Colo., a Wild Oats supermarket will move into the Sears space next to the Foley's in Macerich Co.'s Crossroads Mall redevelopment. And in upstate New York, a real estate developer reportedly is raising $20 billion to build a megamall called Destiny U.S.A. that would feature 80,000 hotel rooms and a 40,000-seat arena. The four corners of the mall aren't reserved for major department stores anymore as industry consolidation reduces their ranks and developers look for ways to make their projects relevant to more people. Dark spaces in malls once would have worried operators, but they no longer seem as daunting. Now, the industry calls them "redevelopment opportunities." "We're thinking about putting tenants in our centers that we never would have thought of five years ago," said William S. Taubman, chief operating officer of Michigan-based real estate investment trust Taubman Co., an upscale mall developer. Which is why Taubman is packing white-tablecloth restaurants into some of its malls, and why Simon's new Firewheel Town Center in Garland will feature office space atop the stores. Still, for all of the new cross-shopping and mixed-use projects in the pipeline, Mr. Taubman added, "It remains to be seen if all of it is going to be successful or not." Those pushing the envelope of mall redevelopment will get a big test by next year, as Federated Department Stores Inc.'s acquisition of May Department Stores Co. produces more empty real estate. About 100 U.S. malls have both Federated and May stores. Closings are certain at malls with overlap as regional chains, including Foley's, are rebranded as Macy's. Shareholders are expected to approve the merger at consecutive meetings in New York and Cincinnati on Wednesday. Simon's CEO, David Simon, told an industry conference last month that "we're extremely confident" about the Federated-May merger fallout. Simon's focus will be on retail, he said, but "there are going to be some opportunities in very dense areas where we'll look to maybe do office or multi-family residential." John Bucksbaum, chief executive of General Growth Properties Inc., the No. 2 U.S. mall developer, said during a recent conference call with analysts that a Natick Mall project in Massachusetts is just the first of many that will have residential components. In addition to Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus, the center will have two residential towers, and the grounds will include bike paths and other residential amenities. Mr. Bucksbaum also expects apartments or condos to be added to projects in Hawaii, Virginia and Las Vegas. "We're looking at it in markets where the demand is there." Hotels aren't strangers to malls, but that match-up is accelerating. For the first time, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. set up shop at the International Council of Shopping Centers annual meeting in Las Vegas in May, the industry's main leasing event. A spokesman for Starwood ? which runs Westin, Sheraton, St. Regis and other chains ? said the company is interested in mixed-use projects but that it's "too early to say if we struck any deals." Full-service restaurants in bunches are also being courted as alternatives to department store anchors. California-based Macerich has added a leasing position devoted to full-service restaurants. Taubman's new mall in Richmond, Va., Stony Point Fashion Park, has six full-service restaurants including P.F. Chang's and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse. "In terms of revenue, those six restaurants do as much volume as an anchor," Mr. Taubman said. The expansion of Dallas' NorthPark Center, which includes a Nordstrom and an AMC theater, will bring six additional full-service restaurants. Three are already there. Developers have also seen success in building up Las Vegas' shopping venues. And the combination of gambling and shopping is expanding outside Nevada. In May, Chelsea Property Group opened the 381,000-square-foot Seattle Prime Outlet on the Tulalip Indian reservation, next to the tribe's casino. "It opened very strongly," said Les Morris, a spokesman for Simon, which acquired Chelsea, the largest outlet mall developer, last fall. Other uses While Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, J.C. Penney and Dillard's, among others, are said to have dibs on some spaces that open up in the Federated-May merger, they may be competing with other new rivals that include discount giants Target Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Target ? which has said malls are now part of its new store site-selection process ? is big on Simon's radar screen, Mr. Simon said. One of the last big mall exits came with the demise of Montgomery Ward, which left Simon with 27 large spaces to fill. Target stores went into several of those vacancies, including one at Richardson Square mall. "Target has been a great partner of ours, and I think they'll be more and more a player in the mall environment," Mr. Simon said. According to a recent report by the International Council of Shopping Centers, regional malls and centers have reduced their dependence on department stores, which greatly increases mall operators' flexibility when dealing with anchor vacancies. About 20 percent of all mall anchors are discount chains, big-box stores, cinemas, sporting goods stores and off-price chains, industry data show. Taubman put a Robb & Stucky into a former Lord & Taylor anchor space at its International Plaza in Tampa, Fla. And in a sign of the times, sales from the furniture store exceeded those of the department store it replaced. Indeed, a mall expansion in Canoga Park, Calif., by Australian developer Westfield Group will see a Target and Neiman Marcus under one roof. In the air It's not just the four corners that are getting new uses. Air rights are, too, according to Dougal M. Casey, head of research at ING Clarion in New York. "It's like getting something for nothing. Putting condominiums or office space above the stores is like getting free land," he said. The Dallas area's newest regional shopping center, in fact, will have 75,000 square feet of Class A office space above the shopping. Firewheel Town Center is scheduled to open in Garland in October and will be anchored by Dillard's and Foley's. It will include big-box tenants Linens 'n Things, Barnes & Noble and Circuit City. The trend toward open-air centers in recent years has "made the point that a lot of good retail can come to a development without three or four anchor department stores, sometimes without a department store," Mr. Casey said. But he isn't convinced that the department store is always replaceable. "Say, if I had a project with a Neiman Marcus, I could sure attract more tenants," he said. "This is an industry that for 50 years was built on the idea that you need department store anchors. All this recapturing of department store space for other uses ? all of that is a book yet to be written." E-mail mhalkias@dallasnews.com
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