Lifestyle center concept works

By Brian Sodoma

Tuesday, June 30, 2009 | 2:24 p.m.

There may be something to the lifestyle center concept after all. As valley strip retail centers battle vacancies and big box-anchor failures, Town Square, near the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard South and the 215 beltway, has now topped 90 percent occupancy for its 1.15 million square feet of retail and restaurant space.

Opening its doors in November 2007, Town Square has grown from 38 tenants to more than 100 today. Some of the big and small names include Borders, Whole Foods Market, Rave Motion Pictures, Apple Store, California Pizza Kitchen, Guitar Center, Crabtree & Evelyn and many others.

Town Square’s general manager, Mike Wethington, said: “People are starting to get the vision for what Town Square was built for.”

Open-air lifestyle centers like Town Square have become a preference for consumers in the past five to seven years, said Erin Hershkowitz, spokeswoman for the International Council of Shopping Centers. She said the last enclosed mall that was built was in 2006 in Arkansas.

“But even that mall is more of a hybrid, with storefronts on the outside,” Hershkowitz said. “I don’t look at the enclosed mall as dying, and the lifestyle center as taking over, but a lot of enclosed malls are reinventing themselves to include more lifestyle center components.”

In the case of lifestyle centers like Town Square, anchors can vary from a movie theater to a gourmet grocery, but all are complemented by plenty of boutique shops, usually surrounded by aesthetically pleasing landscapes with gathering spots, such as parks and sitting areas.

“It becomes a place to go for everyday items, not just when you want to go on a shopping spree,” Hershkowitz noted. “These centers are positioned really well, especially in an economic downturn. People still patronize them.”

Themed as the downtown of decades past, Town Square is, indeed, as it was billed, becoming a gathering place for families and friends. Streets can be accessed with motorized vehicles, and, if walking, the old-town concept feels homey, to say the least.

Wethington said management will encourage the gathering place nature of the site this summer by organizing wine walks, summer movies in the park and other events. Earlier this year, Town Square hosted two 5K runs. The site has a children’s park for families and plenty of shade for the summer heat, Wethington said. And even more misters are being added.

But Town Square also is proving to be more than just for families.

“If there’s anything that’s surprised me, is that we’ve also become a meeting place for nightlife,” Wethington added.

With 11 restaurants and more coming, such as Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza and Johnny McGuire’s Deli, patrons can enjoy a wide array of dining options before hitting the clublike venues, such as Blue Martini or the recently opened Cadillac Ranch, which features mechanical bull riding. Also, coming soon will be a dueling piano concept, as well as a murder-mystery-comedy theater establishment known as Sheer Madness Theater.

“It’s not like you’re just coming here to go to one entertainment venue, one club. You’re able to visit different establishments,” said Wethington.

Wethington also said cross marketing between retail tenants and restaurants slowly is becoming the norm. He gives the example of Grape Wine Bar holding an event at the recently opened ElevenSpa Vegas.

“It’s a case where two merchants within the same center can help drive traffic and cut down on advertising costs doing it. … It’s a much more viable option now than maybe when times were a little better,” he added.

Some tenants are even able to feed off of different types of businesses and amenities in the complex.

“I think the biggest feature for Town Square, as it affects my business, is the children’s park,” said Dean Austin, general manager of the Borders at Town Square. “We cater to customers who want to get out and spend an afternoon and enjoy the environment of a bookstore. And that’s what you have there (with park patrons).”

Austin, who said the store is seeing year-over-year increases in sales from last spring when it opened, also said even those businesses that may seem like a conflict to his are a benefit, i.e., the events at Blue Martini or even a big movie opening at Rave Motion Pictures that brings “additional footsteps to our doors.”

Kenna Warner, general manager and managing partner for Brio Tuscan Grille, said all tenants are “getting smarter about marketing together.” Brio will be getting involved with summer wine walks, and Warner is constantly on the lookout for retailers with whom she can partner for promotions or events.

“None of us benefit from (anyone) not being successful,” Warner added.

Developed by Turnberry Associates and Centra Properties, Town Square is working to fill its 350,000 square feet of office space, of which only about 50,000 square feet is leased today. While office space has struggled throughout the valley, with vacancies topping 20 percent in many submarkets, Wethington said another 30,000 square feet is currently under contract, and interest is piquing as more restaurants and retail tenants are added.

A couple of recent additions at Town Square are English Laundry and Beauty Lounge. Other tenants coming onboard later this year include Caña Tapas Kitchen and Bar, and Arleccina Gallery of Fine Art and Sculptures.