May 17, 2006
Center to bring 5 new brands
A $230 million development in Ridgeland will have five nationally recognized brands not in the Jackson market and will be taking another business from the capital city.
Parisian department store will anchor the 75-acre life-style center known as Renaissance at Colony Park.
Other newcomers are P.F. Chang's Chinese Bistro, Hyatt Place hotel, Ethan Allen Custom Color Centers and White House/Black Market.
Barnes & Noble Booksellers, now located in County Line Plaza on County Line Road, is another of nine tenants that have signed agreements to locate there.
The development also has received commitments from Talbots, which has a store in Highland Village; Ann Taylor Loft, which has a store in Dogwood Festival Marketplace in Flowood; and Chico's, which has a store in Northpark mall in Ridgeland.
The center is scheduled to open in October 2007, employ 600 and is projected to have annual retail sales of $162 million.
In addition to 60 retailers in 650,000 square feet, the development also will have 500,000 square feet of commercial space.
Infrastructure work is ongoing at the site, located at Old Agency Road and Highland Colony Parkway.
Construction of the retail center, two office buildings and the hotel is scheduled to begin in August, said Andrew Mattiace, president of Mattiace Properties Inc.
Barnes & Noble will move from its 25,000-square-foot facility on County Line Road into a new 28,000-square-foot building, Mattiace said.
The bookstore, which is fast becoming a primary anchor for lifestyle centers across the country, will include a Starbucks cafe, he said.
Mark Jones, a leasing agent for Heritage Property Investment Trust, which owns the shopping center where Barnes & Noble is currently located, said he was unaware of the move and had no comment.
When contacted by e-mail, as the company requested, Abbe Ruttenberg Serphos, director of communications for Barnes & Noble Inc. in New York City, said: "At this time, we have not been notified of a Barnes & Noble at Renaissance at Colony Park. We do not comment on store openings until we have a signed lease."
County Line Plaza already is coping with the loss of Office Max, which closed its doors earlier this year as part of a nationwide restructuring effort.
"We've got something working for the Office Max space," Jones said.
This is the third business to leave Jackson for this development. Merrill Lynch closed its doors in downtown Jackson and now occupies a new 50,000-square-foot office building on the site.
Cellular South will move next summer after work is completed on a 185,000-square-foot office building it will partially own. It's now located in Capitol Towers in downtown Jackson.
Mattiace, who owns several buildings in Jackson and the downtown core, said he builds properties based on customer needs, not city limits.
"We don't operate in boundaries. I do what's in the best interest of my tenants," he said.
Jimmy Heidel, economic consultant for the city of Jackson, could not be reached for comment.
City Council member Ben Allen, who represents the ward where Barnes & Noble is located, said he's known about the move for months.
"They are a huge corporation and had done their demographics and feel like they need to go," he said. "I hate to lose them, but I wish them well. I'm sure that space will (be leased) very quickly."
Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee said he believes the center will be a major addition not only to the metro area but also to the state and the Southeast.
Mattiace said studies project the center will draw from as far west as Monroe, La., or just beyond, as far east as Meridian and western Alabama and as far south as Hattiesburg.
He said he does not expect to draw shoppers from Memphis.
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