Independence Street retail development: $10 million center to have Mediterranean feel

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Some of Springfield's priciest commercial real estate is going, going almost gone. |ret||ret||tab|

Six acres of land along East Independence Street is under contract with Chambers Real Estate Services. And at $13.75 per square foot, the 2.7 acres fronting Independence may bear the highest asking price of any vacant land in Springfield.|ret||ret||tab|

"It's the most expensive (land) that I know of," said Todd Chambers, leasing agent for the property.|ret||ret||tab|

Plans for the land also are costly. The buyer, Bob Winters of Regal Industries LLC, a multifaceted construction firm based in Ozark, plans to sink $10 million to $15 million, including the land price, into a retail and restaurant development called The Promenade. A deal is expected to close in November.|ret||ret||tab|

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The Promenade |ret||ret||tab|

Developers of the 70,000-square-foot shopping center plan to bring a taste of the Mediterranean to south Springfield. The Promenade is designed as an upscale retail center featuring arches, columns, water fountains and landscaping with a Mediterranean isle feel, said Winters, whose construction company will build the center. Godwin & Associates is architect. |ret||ret||tab|

The Promenade will develop six vacant acres on East Independence Street, sandwiched between the new Lay-Z-Boy store and Mid-Missouri Tech Center. Construction is expected to begin in December or January, should the land deal close as expected.|ret||ret||tab|

No tenants are signed at The Promenade but negotiations are ongoing, Winters said. Three verbal agreements have been reached: a national franchised day spa is to lease 10,000 square feet; an international market and deli will take another 5,000 square feet; and a national restaurant chain that is new to Springfield, similar to Applebee's, is expressing interest, Winters said. Another "solid" agreement is for a children's activity center that educates through music and exercise, Winters said.|ret||ret||tab|

Winters hopes to have four or five restaurants and 20 to 30 additional tenants, largely retail and specialty shops. He said lease rates will range from $18 to $22.50 per square foot. Build-out will take 12 months. Two restaurants at The Promenade's entrance on Independence will anchor the center.|ret||ret||tab|

Erik Pederson, project manager for The Promenade, and Winters have been conducting research and talking with prospective tenants for about a year. Research took Pederson to southern California and Houston where he analyzed other outdoor shopping centers. It was from southern California that the two drew their Mediterranean design elements, Pederson said, especially in the Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village and Calabasas areas with their shopping promenades.|ret||ret||tab|

"What I'm trying to bring from the California aspect of a promenade is that sometimes you just show up," Pederson said. "Most people go to strip centers or shopping centers for a certain reason and leave as soon as they're done. We want this to be more of a destination where people want to go and check things out."|ret||ret||tab|

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The sellers |ret||ret||tab|

The property under contract is owned by a group of individuals: Judy Crites, Richard Crites, Harold Caskey, Jeri Leigh Caskey and the John Dukewits Trust.|ret||ret||tab|

While the group is seeking $13.75 per square foot for the frontage property and $6 a square foot on the remaining acreage, Chambers said a blended price has been negotiated. He would not disclose the price.|ret||ret||tab|

The area about half a mile stretch on Independence has not been short on activity. In three years it has welcomed four new businesses: La-Z-Boy, Village Bank, Mid-Missouri Tech Center and Thompson-Pontiac-GMC-Cadillac, which is building a GM Quick Lube west of the dealership.|ret||ret||tab|

George Thompson said the dealership has 5.5 acres for sale there. Chambers said the land commands so much because it is among the last remaining vacant land in south Springfield, inside city limits.|ret||ret||tab|

"There's going to be a shortage of good commercial-zoned land (within the city) before too long," Chambers said.|ret||ret||tab|

Chambers has been working in the Independence Street area for eight years and brokered the deals for Bassett Furniture now Slumberland La-Z-Boy and Village Bank. |ret||ret||tab|

He also has a 1.33-acre parcel north of Mid-Missouri Tech Center under contract. Chambers would not disclose the buyer.|ret||ret||tab|

"If those two sales go through, that will be all of the land there along Independence that I've been working on for several years now," he said.|ret||ret||tab|

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