REAL ESTATE

Deborah Butler grew up in a college town. More importantly, she watched her family grow one store into a mega-retail-complex in Gainesville, Florida, that keeps on growing. The University of Florida has been very, very good to Butler and her family, and Butler has lots to say about the symbiotic relationship of higher education and retail.  

Donahue Schriber announced the next phase of Del Mar Highlands Town Center at RECon this week. The 120,000-sq.-ft. addition of GLA will bring the total square footage at the San Diego property close to 400,000.   Called The Collection, the new phase will be anchored by local natural foods grocer Jimbos…Naturally! The company’s leasing strategy for the remainder of the space will focus on retail, dining, and services catering to the area’s highly educated, affluent, and time-constrained consumers.   

Forever 21 has entered into a partnership with mall owner GGP Inc. to debut a new, freestanding brick-and-mortar retail format.    The Los Angeles-based fast-fashion giant will launch Riley Rose, a beauty boutique, at 13 GGP regional shopping centers, with 10 locations opening in 2017. According to a report by newbeauty.com, the new concept will be experiential, millennial-focused and Instagram-friendly.    

Not one, but two leaders in retail real estate have been named to LinkedIn’s Top 50 Companies list.    CBRE came in at No. 18 and Jones Lang LaSalle at No. 21, ahead of such companies as Adobe, Oracle, and Coca-Cola.   The social media site for professionals determines rankings by interest in a company's jobs, interest in a company's brand and employees, and employee retention among its 500-million-plus members.  

Rascall Flats will be appearing in an extended engagement, band members hope, in Gainesville, Florida.   The famed country band chose Celebration Pointe, an under-development town center heavy on dining and entertainment options, as the site for one of the first Rascall Flatts Bar & Grills The very first is due to open in Cleveland, with Los Angeles and Connecticut to follow.  

Those crazy actin’ and burger-flippin’ Wahlbergs Mark and Donny, along with brother Paul and other family members, have opened at Grand Bazaar Shops on the Las Vegas Strip.   The new center located on Bally’s doorstep and across from the Bellagio picked the busiest intersection Vegas to place a culinary assemblage of the hottest new names in casual dining that are beginning to spread to malls and open-air centers nationwide.  

The City of Angels has joined the growing list of cities that will feature an Amazon Books store.   Amazon submitted a building application to open a 5,227-sq.-ft. suite at the Westfield Century City mall in Los Angeles on May 9. The online retailer received initial plan check approval the same day, according to a record on the L.A. Department of Building and Safety website.