The 406,000-square-foot center sits between Omaha and Lincoln, in Gretna, Nebraska. The state of Nebraska has not executed a formal stay-at-home order, though Governor Pete Ricketts has asked residents to stay home through April 30 to help prevent spread of COVID-19.

Yates has used the lockdown time to add a fire pit, a soccer field and a golf simulator and to remodel two restaurants. He has also introduced COVID-19-prevention measures, including adding semitransparent protective barriers at each store’s point of sale.

Now, Yates wants to work with tenants to use their Nebraska Crossing stores as benchmarks for reopening the retailers’ other stores. “We are looking for leadership and developing best practices for landlords and retailers to work together to bring physical shopping centers back online and create safe conditions for our customers and employees,” he emailed tenants.

Nebraska Crossing’s 80 tenants include Brooks Brothers, Coach, Gap, H&M, J.Crew, Nike and Polo Ralph Lauren. “Nebraska Crossing will be a case study, and we are in a leadership position to make this happen,” Yates wrote. “Our global retailers have asked us to take on this role and be the first shopping center back open in the U.S.”

Nebraska Crossing has acquired 100 infrared, noncontact, instant-read thermometers, planning to provide one to each store for use on customers and employees. The center will also encourage customers and employees to wear gloves and masks and will provide sanitary-wipe and hand-sanitizer dispensers in high-touch and high-traffic areas. “Our janitorial staff is using misting electrostatic disinfectant daily in all the public restrooms, storefront entrances, kiosks and common areas,” Yates wrote, adding that hospitals use the technique to disinfect surfaces.