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6 Development and Redevelopment Projects Cover More Than 7.5M SF Across the Sunbelt and Midwest
Macerich Details Mall Traffic Gains and Plans for More Dick’s House of Sport Stores
Simon and CBL See Higher Rents on New Leases
Dutch Bros and PNC Plan More Than 620 New Locations
Marcus & Millichap Builds Out Retail Leasing Division
Greg Munson Succeeds Larry Heard as Transwestern Services CEO
Retail Real Estate Industry Remembers Architect and Mentor Derek Barker

Simon Breaks Ground on 500K-SF Mixed-Use Destination Near Nashville

With a $1.2 billion development pipeline and a $4 billion “shadow” pipeline, Simon broke ground Thursday on the 100-acre mixed-use Sagefield development near Nashville, Tennessee. The REIT hasn’t revealed a price tag for the nearly 500,000-square-foot open-air lifestyle project in Thompson’s Station, just south of the city. The first phase is scheduled to open by the end of 2028 and will feature 80-plus stores and restaurants and an entertainment venue, according to the Nashville Business Journal. The second phase will comprise a 120-room luxury hotel in collaboration with restaurateur and hotelier Sam Fox through his company Author & Edit Hospitality, and 65,000 square feet of leasable space.

Tanger Favors Acquisitions Over New Construction as Costs Rise

Unlike Simon, Tanger is focusing on acquisitions because of rising labor and materials costs. The retail REIT, whose portfolio is dominated by outlet malls, has been buying properties at “almost 40% on the replacement dollar,” president and CEO Stephen Yalof said during Tanger’s third-quarter earnings call. For instance, the REIT developed the 290,000-square-foot Tanger Nashville, which opened in 2023 in Antioch. But for what it would cost per square foot to build now in the Nashville market, Yalof said, “you could buy two shopping centers.”

Dan Gilbert Pledges $1B Toward $2.2B Renaissance Center Redevelopment in Detroit

Detroit entrepreneur Dan Gilbert has pledged about $1 billion to form a new nonprofit that will redevelop downtown Detroit’s iconic office-dominated Renaissance Center and adjacent 35-acre riverfront district. Gilbert is founder and chair of financial services giant Rocket Cos. and real estate development firm Bedrock. The proposed $2.2 billion project would transform the riverfront area into a mixed-use destination featuring retail, entertainment, affordable housing and public spaces, Click on Detroit reported. The nonprofit would own and operate the destination.

Renaissance Center was developed in the 1970s through an initiative led by Henry Ford II, while General Motors now owns five of the seven skyscrapers in the 5.5 million-square-foot complex. Six of the seven interconnected buildings are office towers and one is a high-rise hotel. In January, GM relocated its global headquarters from Renaissance Center to Bedrock-owned Hudson’s Detroit, a new 1.5 million-square-foot downtown mixed-use development, according to Crain’s Detroit.

Plans Advance for 650K SF of Retail, Dining and Entertainment Near Disney World

RSP Architects has begun master planning, design and architecture work for a 77-acre mixed-use development less than a mile from Walt Disney World in Central Florida. Ovation Orlando will feature 650,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment space in suburban Kissimmee, plus a 15-story, 350-room convention hotel and two other hotels. Real estate investment manager, owner and operator Accesso is developing Ovation Orlando, which will comprise three zones: The Garden, a waterfront area with upscale restaurants and boutique retail offerings; the Gallery District, a creative hub anchored by a hotel and featuring experiential retail and interactive installations; and the nightlife-focused Vibe District. Accesso is expected to break ground on the project in the first quarter of 2027, an RSP spokesperson said.

New Owners Plan Multimillion-Dollar Makeover for Boca Raton’s Mizner Park

A joint venture formed by The Georgetown Co., ACRE, CP Group and StepStone purchased the 838,840-square-foot Mizner Park retail, office and residential property in downtown Boca Raton, Florida. The seller was BGRE, formerly Brookfield Properties. The JV plans to undertake a multimillion-dollar revamp of the 30-acre mixed-use development, with the 276,461 square feet of existing retail serving as the foundation, a Georgetown spokesperson said. CP Group developed Mizner Park in the 1990s.

Georgetown will oversee the property’s retail revitalization, the company spokesperson said. Physical elements of the retail makeover will include updated building facades and hardscaping, refreshed landscaping and improved wayfinding. “The focus is on strengthening the tenant mix and improving the overall experience as part of the property’s broader repositioning,” the spokesperson said. “Georgetown sees the quality of the retail and dining offerings as a key driver of demand for both office and residential space.” The retail and office space at Mizner Park is 85% leased. Retail tenants include Birch Lane, iPic Theaters, Lilly Pulitzer, RH Outlet, Sur la Table, Tommy Bahama and Yard House, according to the South Florida Business Journal.

Vestar Buys Phoenix Site for 120K-SF Grocery-Anchored Center

Real estate owner, operator and developer Vestar has purchased a 20-acre site in Phoenix for a property offering about 120,000 square feet of retail. A 65,000-square-foot grocery store will anchor the more than $50 million project, Black Mountain Village. Vestar’s portfolio exceeds 30 million square feet in the West, with another 3.5 million square feet under active development. Its Phoenix-area retail properties include Desert Ridge Marketplace, Queen Creek Marketplace, Tempe Marketplace and Verrado Marketplace.

Bal Harbour Shops Completes 200K-SF Luxury Retail Expansion

Underscoring the continuing allure of luxury retail, a just-completed 200,000-square-foot expansion at South Florida’s 61-year-old Bal Harbour Shops is already 100% leased, The Real Deal reported. Thirty stores and restaurants will occupy the new wing, with Tom Ford, Boucheron, Elie Saab and Khaite among the brand-new tenants. New and existing tenants are expected to open in the new Bal Harbour space through 2028. At that point, the 600,000-square-foot Whitman Family Development property will comprise 140 tenants, with gross annual sales projected to surpass $1 billion, WWD and The Real Deal reported. The open-air retail center generates average annual sales of $4,200 per square foot, a Whitman spokesperson told C+CT.

Whitman is still pursuing a proposed addition of three 275-foot-high towers at Bal Harbour that would offer 500 apartments, as well as offices and a hotel.

House of Sport recently signed a lease for a 165,000-square-foot store at a former Nordstrom location at Macerich-owned FlatIron Crossing in Broomfield, Colorado, according to Hsieh, and a lease is in the works for Macerich’s 10th House of Sport store. Hsieh said the new House of Sport stores “are driving incremental foot traffic to the centers, sales for adjacent inline tenants and improving overall vibrancy for the shopping centers.” As of Aug. 1, Dick’s operated 41 House of Sport locations, up from 35 at the end of the 2025 fiscal year.

Simon and CBL Report Higher Rents on New Leases

Retail REITs Simon and CBL have notched higher rents on new leases so far this year.

Simon’s malls and premium outlets signed 853 new U.S. leases in the first nine months of this year, up from 819 during the same period in 2025. The new leases delivered higher average base rent and lower average tenant allowances. Average annual initial base minimum rent rose from $65.09 per square foot in the first nine months of 2025 to $76.03 in the same period this year. Another plus: The average per-square-foot tenant allowance dipped from $60.13 in the first nine months of last year to $54.12 during the comparable period this year. These figures exclude anchors and major tenants at malls, new developments, redeveloped properties and leases of one year or less.

Dutch Bros and PNC Plan More Than 620 New Locations

Dutch Bros plans to open 250 new stores next year, while PNC has raised its expansion target to more than 370 branches by 2031.

The Dutch Bros chain of drive-thru coffee shops is caffeinating the growth of its footprint. On the company’s third-quarter earnings call, president and CEO Christine Barone said Dutch Bros plans to open 250 new stores in fiscal year 2027, which begins Jan. 1. That’s a 35% increase from the 185 stores set to open this year and a more than 60% increase from the 154 stores that opened in 2025, per the Phoenix Business Journal. “Over the past 12 months, we’ve opened more shops than in any other 12-month period in our company’s history,” Barone said. As of Sept. 30, the chain had 960 company-operated shops and 313 franchisee-operated locations.

Marcus & Millichap Builds Out Retail Leasing Division

Real estate services provider Marcus & Millichap is expanding its retail leasing business through acquisitions and recruitment. During its third-quarter earnings call, president and CEO Hessam Nadji said the company has adopted a “buy-and-build approach,” purchasing boutique firms and leasing groups and recruiting leasing teams in key markets. Executive vice president and CFO Steve DeGennaro said the expanded leasing business will complement the company’s investment sales operations.

Executive managing director Joseph Caridi and senior managing director Andee Robb, both hired this summer, are now co-heads of retail leasing and advisory services. The company also recently hired Michael Puline as senior managing director and national director of retail, and Thomas Gordman as senior managing director and leader of the national net lease division.

Mall & Partners owner Bertrand Courtois-Suffit, past chair of ICSC Europe and past vice chair of ESPT, said he worked alongside Barker for more than 25 years at both organizations. “We shared the same belief that exchange enables everyone to grow, and we wanted as many professionals as possible to benefit from it,” Courtois-Suffit told C+CT. “We both were very proud to receive the ICSC [Trustees] Distinguished Service Award. Derek’s company was always a true pleasure, marked by his sense of humor. The friendly moments we shared with him were moments of laughter and good cheer. We miss him.”

Revo Educational Trust chair Julie Fitzsimmons recalled Barker’s more than 20-year affiliation with the U.K. charity, which promotes education and training related to the development, ownership, management and operation of retail and leisure real estate. Barker played a key role in the organization’s education initiatives, most recently in establishing the one-year Revo certificate program in retail and leisure place management at Southampton’s Solent University, she said. “He was committed to supporting the sector’s future leaders, led inspirational student sessions, and supported access to funding, international links, graduation and … success,” Fitzsimmons said.

ESPT secretary and trustee Eileen Connolly, a consultant at U.K.-based AL Marketing, reminisced about Barker’s integrity and passion surrounding the education and career development of young professionals. His role as the trust’s “enforcer” ensured “we delivered against all our collective values,” she told C+CT. “We met through our shared interests of the European retail and leisure industry community, and I will always have fond memories of his friendship and guidance on many journeys to conferences and meetings in Europe,” Connolly said. “Our regular trustee calls and meetings were always best when Derek was with us. We will all miss his enthusiasm and skillful support for improving … career opportunities for many. Most of all, we will miss a very dear friend.”