Three new large shopping center projects opening this year

The new centers will bring some new retailers to the area as well as some old favorites.

West Broad Village in western Henrico County has a Kona Grill restaurant, and will have a HomeGoods home furnishings store and a Recreational Equipment Inc., (known as REI) an outdoor gear and clothing store. All are new to the Richmond area.

Westchester Commons, the retail component of the Watkins Centre off Midlothian Turnpike and state Route 288 in Chesterfield, will have a Target, a Regal Cinema as well as other restaurants and retailers.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is building a supercenter at Hancock Village, off Hull Street Road at Winterpock in Chesterfield, though the retail giant has another store 4 miles east.

J.C. Penney also plans to open two stores in the area that are not connected to a mall. One will be at Hancock Village and the other at The Shops at White Oak Village in eastern Henrico.

With the new centers opening, one local real estate expert is not sure that the area is ready for all the extra retail space. "It's a timing issue. Do we really need all of this?" asked Brian Glass, senior vice president of retail brokerage for Grubb & Ellis/Harrison & Bates Inc.

Glass said the average U.S. city had 43.3 square feet of retail space per person. In the Richmond area, it's 57.2 square feet per person.

"We have an awful lot of retail, with fewer retailers," he said.

But, he said, there is not much developers can do because the process was already in the works before the economy tanked.

Given that, the centers will open with some space not leased.

West Broad Village

Most of the West Broad Village shopping center along West Broad Street near Interstate 64 in western Henrico is scheduled to open in the fall.

The 115-acre project, which also includes housing and office space, was created as a place where people can live, eat and shop. It will have 420,000 square feet of retail space.

Lisa Ernhardt, director of project management for developer Unicorp National Development, said a grand opening is expected in the fall, but an exact date isn't set.

Several tenants have opened, including Whole Foods Market, Wachovia and First Market branches, and the Kona Grill restaurant.

Others tenants will open as their stores and restaurants are ready, Ernhardt said.

Over the next several months, Old Navy, HomeGoods and REI will open in West Broad Village. The It's Hip to be Round maternity apparel store in Carytown will open a second shop in the center.

West Broad Village also will include restaurants new to the area, including Mimi's Café, Dave & Buster's, and McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant.

Ernhardt said The Flats apartment complex above the street-level shops is open and 20 percent leased.

Westchester Commons

Westchester Commons is scheduled to open its first phase next month.

Plans call for the 975,000square-foot shopping center to have a variety of larger retailers located around its boundaries. Smaller retail tenants would locate along a pedestrian-friendly street toward the center of the project.

Gary Hough Sr., director of shopping centers for developer Zaremba Group LLC, said while Westchester Commons is 76 percent leased, the openings will be staggered.

The center will include a Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft store, Books-a-Million and Target. It also will have a 10,365-square-foot Gold's Gym and an 18,000-square-foot OfficeMax.

Eateries will include Bertucci's, CiCi's Pizza and a Five Guys Burgers and Fries.

Target and Jo-Ann Fabric open the week of March 5. Gold's Gym and Petco open in late March. OfficeMax opens in late April.

C. Lee Warfield III, executive vice president of real estate brokerage Thalhimer/Cushman & Wakefield, said the center will not only bring people from western Chesterfield, but will draw from nearby Powhatan County.

"Route 288 created an outer ring and created a whole new market" that will be served by Westchester Commons, he said.

A particular draw to the center will be Regal Cinema, which is scheduled to open April 24.

The theater should help the center's retailers and restaurants because moviegoers coming to Westchester Commons will tend to eat and shop either before or after watching a movie, Warfield said.

Other tenant spaces under construction should open by late May, Hough said.

Hancock Village

Hancock Village is under construction off Hull Street Road just east of the Woodlake residential community.

Come May, the first tenant -- LongHorn Steakhouse -- should open.

In August, Wal-Mart is slated to open its store, followed by a McDonald's.

The rest of the tenants should open between late summer and spring 2010.

Douglas M. Horack, a partner with developer EDCO LLC, said he originally had planned to have the center open at one time, but the tough retail environment meant he has had to slow down and open it in stages.

"Some of the tenants wanted to push back the opening, so this has become a phased project," he said.

The 500,000-square-foot center will be anchored by Wal-Mart.

Warfield, who represents Wal-Mart, said the chain believes it can handle a second store within 4 miles because it sells groceries. Shoppers don't like to drive long distances to buy groceries, he said. And, because of congestion along Hull Street Road, the 4-mile drive can take 15 to 20 minutes during high traffic periods.

Hancock Village also will include a Bed Bath & Beyond and feature a J.C. Penney, both of which are slated to open next year. Not having a Penney's store connected to a mall is a new concept the chain has used elsewhere in recent years.

Other tenants will include Qdoba Mexican Grill, Mattress Warehouse, Starbucks, Jersey Mike's, and Osaka Sushi & Steak, some of which could start opening late this summer.

The Shops at White Oak Village

While the Shops at White Oak Village opened in October, the center in eastern Henrico off Laburnum Avenue still has several spots that are opening in the next few weeks.

J.C. Penney is set to open March 6.

The long-anticipated Red Lobster opens tomorrow.

Contact Louis Llovio at (804) 649-6348 or .