The project's developer, C.W. Clark Inc., celebrated the grand opening of the complex this past Sunday, along with city residents, Escondido mayor Lori Holt-Pfiler and representatives from such Gateway Center retailers such as Barnes and Noble, Baja Fresh, Panda Express and Michaels. The grand opening has come nearly a year after C.W. Clark broke ground on the project in April 2002. The La Jolla-based developer used $4.4 million of its own funds to build the complex, which was constructed by general contractor R.G. Petty, while Marshall Investments Corp. kicked in the additional $15.4 million.

Located at the northwest corner of Tulip Street and West Valley Parkway, Gateway Center encompasses a total of 115,000 sf, which is divided between retail and office space. The project's office component is housed in a 28,500-sf facility, while the rest of the complex is devoted to retail space. Gateway Center's retail portion is currently 90% leased to tenants including Barnes & Noble, which occupies 25,000 sf here, and Michaels, which has taken 23,500 sf. Additional Gateway Center occupants include First National Bank; The San Diego Union-Tribune; North County Camera; Panda Express; Baja Fresh; Mattress Discounters; Household Finance; Figure Magic; Hair Delight, Nails and Spa; Quizno's; Escondido Dental Group; Physical Rehabilitation Network; and Nextel.Mark Avilla and Matty Sundberg of BRE Commercial/NAI are handling leasing for the office building, while their BRE Commercial colleagues Steve Warfield, Tony Villasenor and Kevin Held are responsible for leasing retail space.