Swamplot Archives by Tag: Malls

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Redevelopment Brawl at the Sharpstown Mall

August 26, 2009 – 12:40 pm
   

Developer and former Sugar Land mayor David Wallace now says his firm’s $350 million proposal to redevelop the Sharpstown Mall — approved in early July by the Southwest Houston TIRZ over the objections of the mall’s owner and manager — isn’t likely to happen: “R.D. Tanner, a partner in the firm, resigned from the TIRZ board the day his company [Wallace Bajjali Development Partners] submitted its vision for the mall. The board voted to support his firm’s bid that same day. The board is tasked with overseeing the site’s redevelopment and distributing up to $20 million of public money to assist in that effort. The mall’s owner and manager — whose own redevelopment plan was rejected by the authority in May — filed suit last week, alleging that Tanner and the TIRZ board’s subsequent requests for information were “a subterfuge” to obtain “confidential, proprietary information” they could use to make their own bid. The allegations highlight a widespread problem in Houston: that developers on TIRZ boards are often able to make decisions about tax abatements — and the use of public dollars for economic development — that ultimately benefit themselves or their projects, according to Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice, an advocacy organization that promotes openness and accountability in government.” [Houston Chronicle]

12:40 pm | 9 Comments | Read more about Financing, Malls, Neighborhoods: Sharpstown, Quicklink, Redevelopment
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Thursday, August 13, 2009

Satellite Dish: Museum of Natural Science Leaves Mall, Takes Prison

August 13, 2009 – 1:51 pm

Opening October 3rd in Sugar Land: A branch of the Houston Museum of Natural Science, smack dab in the center of the former prison farm now known as Telfair. The museum is a rehab of the old Central State Farm Prison building, but it has a better-sounding new address: 13019 University Blvd., at the corner of New Territory Blvd.

Meanwhile, far to the north, HMNS’s Woodlands Xploration Station in the Woodlands Mall is shutting down on September 7th. The Woodlands Children’s Museum next door to it will close a little less than a month later. Going into those vacated spaces: Forever 21.

Photo of new Houston Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land: HMNS

1:51 pm | 4 Comments | Read more about Adaptive Reuse, Historic Preservation, Institutional Buildings, Malls, Neighborhoods: Sugar Land, Neighborhoods: Telfair, Neighborhoods: The Woodlands
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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Okun Gets 100 Years; How Many for the West Oaks Mall?

August 11, 2009 – 11:54 am

High-stakes real estate swindler Edward H. Okun was sentenced last week in a Virginia courtroom to 100 years in prison for absconding with about $126 million in funds entrusted to his qualified intermediary company by 1031 exchange investors. Meanwhile, back on the corner of Westheimer and Highway 6, one of his former properties went up for sale.

Okun’s Investment Properties of America bought the West Oaks Mall for $110 million in 2005. The sellers of the bankrupt property might expect to get $20 million for the million-sq.-ft. mall today, reports Globe St.’s Amy Wolff Sorter:

The mall’s anchors include Dillard’s and Macy’s, which own their own space, and Sears, which is on a lease. [Holliday Fenoglio Fowler's Robert] Williamson says the Sears lease is up in 2010, but negotiations are underway to keep the retailer in place.

When Okun bought the mall from Somera Capital and CoastWood Capital a little less than four years ago, the asset was 95% leased, and sported $10 million worth of exterior and interior improvements. IPA had even larger plans for even more renovations on the 33-acre site, Williamson says.

Less than a year later, the owner was able to secure $86 million of permanent financing for the mall. Yet by late 2007, IPA had filed for bankruptcy protection to stave off foreclosure. Okun’s troubles and a failing economy dropped the mall’s occupancy to a little less than 70%.

How’s the mall looking these days?

Continue Reading This Story >

11:54 am | 4 Comments | Read more about 1031 Exchanges, Buildings for Sale, Commercial Real Estate, Foreclosures, Fraud, Leasing, Malls, Neighborhoods: Alief, Retail
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Friday, May 8, 2009

Comics Relief: Hard Times at the West Oaks Mall

May 8, 2009 – 10:05 am

What’s a struggling mall to do these days? How about turning off the air conditioning . . . and hosting a comic-book convention! Robert W. Boyd reports from the scene:

Despite a great location [on Highway 6 between Westheimer and Richmond] and not bad interior, West Oaks Mall is plagued with vacancies. And unlike malls like Memorial City Mall, West Oaks is not able to hide the gaps. . . .

West Oaks needed to occupy its empty stores (even if temporarily), or at least cover them up. And it needed to get people in the mall who could at least potentially patronize the remaining stores. So that’s where Comicpalooza came in.

Continue Reading This Story >

10:05 am | 9 Comments | Read more about Attractions, Commercial Real Estate, Economic Conditions, Leasing, Malls, Neighborhoods: Alief, Retail
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Friday, May 1, 2009

The Grand Exit

May 1, 2009 – 11:59 am

Those long-lingering plans by the Simon Property Group to build a mall called “The Grand” on 134 acres wedged between I-10 and the threatened Grand Parkway — catty-corner to the Katy Mills Mall — appear to be uh . . . “in question.” The Houston Business Journal’s Jennifer Dawson reports:

The circular acreage surrounded by a mall ring road has at various times been earmarked for an outlet mall, regional mall, lifestyle center and mixed-use center.

Simon recently began marketing the vacant land for sale through local retail brokerage firm Page Partners.

Hmmm . . . how best to spin this?

Continue Reading This Story >

11:59 am | 1 Comment | Read more about Development Strategies, Katy, Land for Sale, Malls, Proposed Developments
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Thursday, April 16, 2009

Malls Gone Bankrupt, Please Keep Shopping

April 16, 2009 – 4:01 pm
   

Deerbrook Mall and The Woodlands Mall both filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today along with their owner, General Growth Properties. The parent company owns more than 150 mall-like properties around the country, including Baybrook Mall, the First Colony Mall, and Willowbrook Mall. It also owns Grand Parkway booster Bridgeland and a portion of The Woodlands Operating Company. “General Growth is seeking protection from its creditors after failing to persuade a majority of its debt holders to give it more time to refinance billions of dollars in debt racked up during the housing boom. The company’s retail centers, office properties and master-planned communities ‘will be open for business as usual as the company restructures its debt,’ Thomas H Nolan Jr., General Growth president said in a conference call today. ‘Customers will see no change in the services and amenities we provide.’” [Houston Chronicle]

4:01 pm | 2 Comments | Read more about Bankruptcies, Malls, Quicklink
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Thursday, March 12, 2009

Grand Parkway Segment E: Mall Shopper Express Lanes

March 12, 2009 – 8:55 pm
   

Approvals by the Harris County Commissioners Court this week — along with the timely arrival of $181 million of the state’s stimulus money — means nothing but a new Sierra Club lawsuit now stands in the way of building Segment E of the Grand Parkway toll road. The segment, which will cut through the Katy Prairie between I-10 and 290, will allow shoppers a convenient and direct link from the Katy Mills Mall to the new Houston Premium Outlets mall in Cypress, just west of Fairfield. “Peter Haughton with General Growth Properties said, ‘We need this road to continue the build out of Bridgeland, which we hope will be one of America’s best master planned communities.’” [abc13]

8:55 pm | 15 Comments | Read more about Freeways and Toll Roads, Katy, Malls, Neighborhoods: Cypress, Neighborhoods: Fairfield, Proposed Developments, Quicklink
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Wednesday, March 11, 2009

On and Off Cite: What’s the Matter with Houston Pavilions?

March 11, 2009 – 3:23 pm

Houston’s Downtown office district, writes Christof Spieler in the RDA’s OffCite blog, “wraps around Pavilions on two sides. It ought to be delivering swarms of office workers to restaurants and the book store. But at lunchtime on weekdays, Pavilions seems empty compared to the streets a few blocks away. What’s wrong?”

In Cite, the blog’s paper-bound cousin, Max Page wishes all the stores in Houston Pavilions had simply faced the street, and that the apartments and condos hadn’t been cut from the project:

Like the residential component, the decision about whether to orient the project to the existing street grid, or turn away, was made in the wrong direction. [Architect Roger] Soto laments the choice. “We had some compelling ideas about activating the street,” he told me. “But in the end, the developer chose to attach retail stores to a ‘central spine,’” perhaps because that approach created a scheme that more closely resembled the traditional covered malls [Developer William] Denton had spent years developing.

How about the action along that central spine?

Continue Reading This Story >

3:23 pm | 3 Comments | Read more about Malls, Neighborhoods: Downtown, Retail, Shopping Centers
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Friday, February 20, 2009

Brazos Mall Closure Rumors Denied, Store by Store

February 20, 2009 – 9:56 am
   

Sure, The Limited and Waldenbooks in Lake Jackson are shutting down. But more important: All other stores at the Brazos Mall are staying open! “El Chico, a Mexican restaurant located in the mall, has had many people asking them if they are closing, said Dorian Farciert, marketing director for El Chico. The constant questions have become frustrating and a little demoralizing, especially considering the restaurant is not closing, she said. ‘We are doing really well,’ she said. ‘We have no intentions of closing.’ Farciert said she and the El Chico staff are getting tired of the rumors that the restaurant is planning to close. ‘We know we’re not closing,’ she said. . . . Rumors also have been spread that JC Penney is closing. Though a few JC Penney stores in other states might be closing, the JC Penney in Lake Jackson plans to remain open, Supervisor Chanel Nelson said. In fact, the store was just remodeled, she said. . . . Mall officials confirmed Dillard’s does not plan to close, either. Julie Bull, a spokeswoman for Dillard’s, said the corporate office has not announced any closings for Lake Jackson. . . . Sears is doing well and has no plans to close, [a Sears employee] said.” [The Facts]

9:56 am | 1 Comment | Read more about Malls, Neighborhoods: Lake Jackson, Openings and Closings, Quicklink, Retail
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Friday, February 13, 2009

Houston Pavilions: Lucky Strike Out, Hats Off, Shoes Back in Boxes

February 13, 2009 – 4:20 pm

Last week Lucky Strike Lanes announced that the stalled buildout of the company’s new upscale bowling alley and lounge in Houston Pavilions would be “put on hold” — indefinitely. This time the company isn’t complaining about delayed equipment deliveries, though. It’s delayed money deliveries:

“At the moment we are seeking financing to complete the project and are having meaningful conversations with potential Houston-based partners as well as investors from elsewhere in the country,” Lucky Strike President Dolf Berle said. “We are still dedicated and committed to opening in Houston.”

Meanwhile, this past Wednesday night HAIF poster houstonartstudent reported the quiet withdrawal of two minor — and seemingly out-of-place — retail tenants:

Continue Reading This Story >

4:20 pm | 4 Comments | Read more about Malls, Neighborhoods: Downtown, Nightlife, Openings and Closings, Retail, Shopping Centers
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Wednesday, November 5, 2008

The Fairy Dust Was Real

November 5, 2008 – 7:14 pm
   

It’s going to be tougher for 4- to 12-year-old Houston girls to find makeover parties once the Club Libby Lu stores in the Baybrook Mall, Deerbrook Mall, Galleria, First Colony Mall, and The Woodlands Mall all close. Saks has announced it is shutting down all 88 Club Libby Lu locations nationwide by the first part of next year. “In an effort to fully comprehend just what has been lost, let us now read from Club Libby Lu’s explanation of their services. ‘At the party, girls arrive at the Club. They are all greeted by a fairy and make a wish on her fairy dust. Each girl then creates her own secret Club name. Then their Libby Dus™ comes true. After dressing up and playing games, they visit our Goodie Shop and make their own Goodie Bags. Singing and Dancing, all the girls celebrate the guest of honor.’ This is the part of the post where we’d write something to sort of wrap up, but we’re too busy laughing and have decided to quit while we’re ahead.” [Consumerist]

7:14 pm | Add a Comment | Read more about Malls, Openings and Closings, Quicklink, Retail
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Friday, October 17, 2008

A Soft Opening for Houston Pavilions

October 17, 2008 – 9:20 am

House of Blues at Houston Pavilions, Downtown Houston

Walkways at Houston Pavilions, Downtown Houston

At the new House of Blues last night: Jay-Z. And three blocks away, Books-A-Million and a roman-numeral flagship version of Forever 21 are now open! But between them in Downtown’s brand-new mixed-use street-hovering mall? Not much going on . . . yet:

The developers of the three block long Houston Pavilions said the pavilions will be the place to go, but for now it’s mainly a lot of space.

“It’s different because you don’t have a lot of nightlife down here. But with the restaurant, the Foundations Room, and the music hall at the House of Blues, we are going to bring people to the Pavilions,” [said] Deb Eybers, President of the House of Blues.

They won’t just bring people. Tenants will also be coming to the area. But for now there are just a handful of businesses.

More are slated to come on line in December and even more in the spring. Then the complex will be at 60 percent capacity.

The complex extends from Main St. to Caroline between Dallas and Polk — only a few surface-parking-lot blocks from the Toyota Center and Discovery Green.

Continue Reading This Story >

9:20 am | 6 Comments | Read more about Malls, Mixed Use, Neighborhoods: Downtown, New Construction, Nightlife, Office Space, Openings and Closings, Retail, Shopping Centers
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Thursday, October 9, 2008

Delinquent Debt: West Oaks Mall Sale!

October 9, 2008 – 2:36 pm
   

Here’s another chance to clean up some of the wreckage left by mysterious investor Edward Okun: “West Oaks Mall in Houston . . . has $81.3 million in delinquent debt attached to it in the form of commercial mortgage-backed securities. Joseph Luzinski, the federally appointed bankruptcy trustee for West Oaks Mall, said he hopes to sell the mall by year’s end, though store closures continue to hamper its value. [The mall] . . . is about 80% occupied, having lost a J.C. Penney, Linens ‘n Things and Whitehall Jewelers. The mall recently cut a deal to keep its Steve & Barry’s LLC store open amid that retailer’s bankruptcy. The special servicer for the mall’s debt, LNR Partners Inc., attempted to foreclose in September 2007, but Mr. Okun forestalled the move by putting the mall into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection the next month. A federal grand jury indicted Mr. Okun on fraud charges last March after his 1031 Tax Group LLP, a company that helped facilitate tax-free real-estate deals for small investors, collapsed into bankruptcy and didn’t return $132 million of investors’ money.” [Wall St. Journal; previously]

2:36 pm | 4 Comments | Read more about Commercial Real Estate, Financing, Foreclosures, Fraud, Malls, Neighborhoods: Alief, Openings and Closings, Quicklink
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Wednesday, October 8, 2008

No Bice: Still Behind on the Rent

October 8, 2008 – 11:34 am

Bice Ristorante, Houston Galleria

An austere bit of stationery is taped to the door of Bice Ristorante in the Galleria, indicating that mall owner Simon Property Group has changed the locks until Bice comes up with $164,731.37 in rent. The letter is dated from mid-July. And somebody has finally noticed!

“Seriously, how do you fall this far behind on rent?,” asks Tasty Bits author Misha. A few pix below:

Continue Reading This Story >

11:34 am | 5 Comments | Read more about Leasing, Malls, Neighborhoods: Galleria, Openings and Closings, Restaurants, Retail
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Monday, July 28, 2008

Pearland Town Center Ready To Open: Pull on Up!

July 28, 2008 – 3:42 pm

Plan of Pearland Town Center, Pearland, Texas

The drive-thru mall with extras known as Pearland Town Center opens this Wednesday, at the intersection of 288 and FM 518! But it’ll be so much more than just a collection of chain stores arranged neatly in a giant parking lot:

Sixty-two apartments rest on top of retail stores, giving residents a downtown feel without the hassle of daily traffic. Granite countertops complement the kitchen of each unit along with stainless-steel appliances.

The above-retail units will be available for leasing July 30 while another set of 238 freestanding residential units will be accessible in late 2009. One-bedroom apartments will lease for $1,300 per month, and two-bedroom loft apartments will lease for $1,900 per month.

75-percent of the 85-percent-leased mall will be open Wednesday, reports David Kaplan in the Chronicle.

Plan of Pearland Town Center: CBL & Associates

3:42 pm | 10 Comments | Read more about Malls, New Construction, Openings and Closings, Pearland, Retail, Shopping Centers
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