Cambridge Properties is primarily a retail developer. But its proposed University City entertainment district in Charlotte, N.C., is unlikely to include soft-goods retailers as tenants.
“We’re looking to ‘Amazon proof’ the district,” explains Jay Priester, Jr., Cambridge’s Vice President of Leasing and Development. In other words, Cambridge is looking for tenants that don’t compete with the online monolith.
Good luck with that. Online shopping captured nearly 12% of total U.S. retail sales last year, according to Commerce Department estimates. It is expected to grow at an 8–12% clip annually through 2020, according to National Retail Federation projections.
Consequently, some entertainment districts are going light on retail, partly because “the bulk of the leasing demand is for dining and entertainment,” say Barry Hand, a Principal with design mega-firm Gensler in Dallas.
But not every developer or AEC firm believes that retailing is anathema to an entertainment district. The Gila River Indian Community in Arizona intends to develop a 68,000-sf entertainment district in Phoenix that would bridge its Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino and Phoenix Premium Outlets.
Quite a bit of the new development around the L.A. Live entertainment district in downtown Los Angeles is mixed-use with a strong retail component. “When you’re adding residential to an entertainment district, retail becomes an ‘I need’ space,” says Daun St. Amand, a Senior Vice President for CallisonRTKL.
Callison designed Oceanwide Plaza, a three-tower, 1.5-million-sf residential and hotel building that is scheduled to open across the street from L.A. Live in early 2019. Oceanwide will include roughly 153,000 sf of specialty retail shops. St. Amand says that AEG, L.A. Live’s developer, has been keen on new construction around the district that offers retail options, which downtown Los Angeles lacks.
Five hundred thousand people work in downtown L.A.; 50,000-60,000 live there. Another 10,000 housing units in downtown’s South Park neighborhood will be delivered within the next two years. “Entertainment districts are becoming more like community centers, where people can come and hang out,” says Ed Sachse, Executive Managing Director–Investments and Leasing Brokerage for Kennedy Wilson Properties, Oceanwide's leasing broker. “People are looking for experiential environments, and retail is becoming more like that.”
He points to sports apparel and high-end boutiques as examples of retailers that continue to lure shoppers. Oceanwide, he says, will have around 25 shops ranging from 1,500 to 10,000 sf, all selling “affordable luxury” products.
Related Stories
Sustainability | Aug 15, 2023
Carbon management platform offers free carbon emissions assessment for NYC buildings
nZero, developer of a real-time carbon accounting and management platform, is offering free carbon emissions assessments for buildings in New York City. The offer is intended to help building owners prepare for the city’s upcoming Local Law 97 reporting requirements and compliance. This law will soon assess monetary fines for buildings with emissions that are in non-compliance.
Office Buildings | Aug 10, 2023
Bjarke Ingels Group and Skanska to deliver 1550 on the Green, one of the most sustainable buildings in Texas
In downtown Houston, Skanska USA’s 1550 on the Green, a 28-story, 375,000-sf office tower, aims to be one of Texas’ most sustainable buildings. The $225 million project has deployed various sustainable building materials, such as less carbon-intensive cement, to target 60% reduced embodied carbon.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 31, 2023
6 multifamily housing projects win 2023 LEED Homes Awards
The 2023 LEED Homes Awards winners in the multifamily space represent green, LEED-certified buildings designed to provide clean indoor air and reduced energy consumption.
High-rise Construction | Jul 26, 2023
A 33-story Singapore tower aims to reimagine work with restorative, outdoor spaces
Architecture firm NBBJ has unveiled design details for Keppel South Central, a commercial tower in Singapore. The project, which is slated for completion in late 2024, will transform the original Keppel Towers into a 33-story, energy-efficient building that aims to reimagine work by providing restorative spaces and connections to the outdoors.
Designers | Jul 20, 2023
Mary Cook Associates brews up coffeehouse-inspired apartment community
The MCA design team worked closely with the developer and design architect to create an interior concept inspired by Decatur, Ga.’s, tree-lined streets, boutique retail, and vibrant restaurant and coffee shop scene.
Mass Timber | Jul 11, 2023
5 solutions to acoustic issues in mass timber buildings
For all its advantages, mass timber also has a less-heralded quality: its acoustic challenges. Exposed wood ceilings and floors have led to issues with excessive noise. Mass timber experts offer practical solutions to the top five acoustic issues in mass timber buildings.
Mixed-Use | Jun 29, 2023
Massive work-live-play development opens in LA's new Cumulus District
VOX at Cumulus, a 14-acre work-live-play development in Los Angeles, offers 910 housing units and 100,000 sf of retail space anchored by a Whole Foods outlet. VOX, one of the largest mixed-use communities to open in the Los Angeles area, features apartments and townhomes with more than one dozen floorplans.
Standards | Jun 26, 2023
New Wi-Fi standard boosts indoor navigation, tracking accuracy in buildings
The recently released Wi-Fi standard, IEEE 802.11az enables more refined and accurate indoor location capabilities. As technology manufacturers incorporate the new standard in various devices, it will enable buildings, including malls, arenas, and stadiums, to provide new wayfinding and tracking features.
Mixed-Use | Jun 12, 2023
Goettsch Partners completes its largest China project to date: a mixed-used, five-tower complex
Chicago-based global architecture firm Goettsch Partners (GP) recently announced the completion of its largest project in China to date: the China Resources Qianhai Center, a mixed-use complex in the Qianhai district of Shenzhen. Developed by CR Land, the project includes five towers totaling almost 472,000 square meters (4.6 million sf).
Architects | Jun 6, 2023
Taking storytelling to a new level in building design, with Gensler's Bob Weis and Andy Cohen
Bob Weis, formerly the head of Disney Imagineering, was recently hired by Gensler as its Global Immersive Experience Design Leader. He joins the firm's co-CEO Andy Cohen to discuss how Gensler will focus on storytelling to connect people to its projects.
