Mini Centers Gaining Popularity

ARLINGTON, TX-First it was the 100,000-sf neighborhood shopping center that was supposed to accommodate the area’s small businesses. Then came the 200,000-sf grocery-anchored retail community center that also was intended to house mom-and-pop entrepreneurs. Now a new product has evolved, as reported in the Ft. Worth Star Telegram in fast growing southeast Arlington—the 15,000-sf to 30,000-sf, stand-alone structure that will house five or six tenants and cater to the on-the-go, no time to browse shopper.

“You might even compare them to the neighborhood convenience stores,” a Fort Worth broker involved with several of the new-trend says. “They’re faster to build, easier to maintain and lease up quickly at rents the mom-and-popper can afford.” He estimates hard construction costs at $75 to $95 per sf. By comparison, Regional shopping centers generally go up today at over $200 per sf.

The broker estimates leasing rates at the mini centers are in the $10-per-sf to $15-per-sf range. At neighborhood and community centers, the rents for non-anchors can be, on average, from $16 per sf to $26 per sf and more than $30 per sf at regional malls.