Lacy Beasley joined Birmingham, Ala.–based Retail Strategies in October 2013 as vice president of business development and became president nearly three years later. Retail Strategies helps match municipalities to retailers and restaurants. She recently discussed the value and importance of public-private partnerships in commercial real estate.

Why is it important for retail and restaurant businesses to work with municipalities?

Community leaders are experts on the local psychographics. Often the decision makers choosing a location for a new national or regional retail store or restaurant do not live locally and need the “story” on the local behaviors that drive retail sales. Traffic patterns, social behaviors, events and local biases can all be influencers not obvious through analytics. In addition, there are typically ordinances such as land-use plans, permits, planning and codes, and other approvals necessary from the municipality.

Is there any public-private partnership that stands out as having been especially successful during your time at Retail Strategies?

Before I joined Retail Strategies, I was a research and GIS [geographic information systems] analyst at The Shopping Center Group, in Nashville [Tenn.]. Cookeville, Tennessee, was a community where I believed the retailers should add a new location, but the market was difficult to prove. The city of Cookeville hired Retail Strategies in 2014. The Shoppes at Eagle Point is a 228,254-square-foot shopping center opening this fall that would not have happened without the diligence of the city leaders, [the] property developer [CBL Properties] and Retail Strategies, working together to create an effective public-private partnership. It is anticipated to create 600 new jobs and [to] bring $2.4 million annually in sales-tax revenue.

What are some of the challenges that both the public and private sectors face in terms of commercial real estate?

The retail real estate market is not dying, as the general population may perceive; however, it is changing. First, omni-channeling continues to push innovation — impacting commercial real estate. [So] study the trends, and be ready to adapt. Second, public-private partnerships are the new normal of commercial development; structuring retail incentives to generate a winning scenario for all parties is increasingly important. Finally, both parties must be forward-thinking when developing shopping centers today that will be impacted by autonomous vehicles in the future.