NASHVILLE-It’s been nearly a year since the 100-year flood did more than $1 billion of damage in Nashville. One of the commercial real estate victims was Opry Mills, which was submerged by the rising waters. Now, one of Tennessee’s top tourist attractions is getting a second lease on life—and lots of new retail leases to go along with it.
Simon Properties, owner of Opry Mills, reached an agreement with its lenders, Helaba Bank and Nord/LB, to finance the rebuilding of the mall. SNR Denton partners Christine B. Fisher and Gary Goodman represented the international bank in the negotiations. SNR Denton was not immediately available for comment on the deal. Terms of the financing were not disclosed.
Construction work will begin immediately, bringing thousands of new jobs to the city. The mall is expected to reopen in 2012. Simon expects many of the mall’s original tenants to ink new leases. In fact, most of the previous anchor tenants have already made commitments, including OFF 5TH Saks Fifth Avenue, Regal Cinemas Opry Mills Stadium 20 & IMAX, Dave & Buster's, Rainforest Cafe, Aquarium Restaurant, Off Broadway Shoes, and Forever 21.
"The response from the retail community has been incredibly positive and enthusiastic," says Gregg Goodman, president of The Mills. "It's clear that they prospered at Opry Mills and are anxious to return."
Previous in-line stores that have also committed to the restored Opry Mills include Banana Republic Factory Store, J.Crew Factory, Brooks Brothers Factory Store, Ann Taylor Factory Store, Victoria's Secret, and Tommy Hilfiger Company Store. Potential new tenants include Coach Factory Store, Calvin Klein, Tommy Bahama Outlet, Talbots, Chico's, White House Black Market, Under Armour Factory House, and The Lego Store.
Simon’s timing is good. PricewaterhouseCoopers predicts Nashville’s retail is expected to perform better than most cities in the U.S. through 2012. In the fourth quarter of 2010, Nashville’s retail vacancy rate was 6.7%, according to CoStar, despite the fact that six retail buildings with nearly 90,000 square feet came online.
“Nashville retail has not experienced the downturn that many other markets have,” David Baker, principal of Nashville X Team partner firm Baker Storey McDonald, tells GlobeSt.com. “Our topography combined with our zoning policies usually prevents massive overbuilding.”
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