Rancho Cucamonga Sees a Retail Transformation
While retail is struggling in some areas, it is thriving in Rancho Cucamonga, which has become one of the most popular retail markets in the Inland Empire.
“Rancho Cucamonga is one of the hottest submarkets in the Inland Empire,” Blake Kaplan, an associate at JLL, tells GlobeSt.com. “The development of Victoria Gardens put Rancho Cucamonga on the map. Once retailers, office users and home builders saw the success of that lifestyle center, they realized that Rancho Cucamonga could become a hot spot for commercial real estate in the Inland Empire. Over the past few years, we have seen new homes with resident migration, new and revitalized retail centers with a new crop of tenants including daily needs, restaurants and entertainment and office users expanding into the area because of the rich amenities, transportation corridor and labor. What was once a retail area with a single focus of Victoria Gardens that appeals to locals and tourists is now a comprehensive retail landscape that appeals to everyone from the professional to the Millennial to the family to the tourist.”
The population growth has been the chief driver of the retail activity, and higher income families are migrating to the market attracting new retailers. “Leasing activity has been very strong as companies try to satisfy demand from the growing office and expanding residential neighborhoods,” explains Kaplan. “Higher density and higher income families are driving new and expanded food concepts as well as lifestyle and daily needs retailers to the area. Multiple neighboring freeways also provide tremendous accessibility from neighboring communities.”
The population growth has also fueled an increase in rental rates in Rancho Cucamonga. “Retailers, restaurants and entertainment businesses are willing to pay the higher lease rates for areas that demonstrate consistent consumer attention,” says Kaplan. “Additionally, they are also looking at the future opening businesses in areas that show potential for sustainable growth.”
Victoria Gardens has been the catalyst of the retail growth, and the foot traffic has spilled into the surrounding areas. “The Victoria Gardens area has been the epicenter of retail years for the past few years but that is changing quickly. Attention from the Victoria Gardens Mall, which gets 16 million visitors per year, is driving foot traffic to other areas like the Foothill Boulevard corridor west of Interstate 15,” says Kaplan. “Some areas with opportunity like Foothill Boulevard and Rochester Avenue are seeing a vibrant 56,000 cars per day. The Rancho Ontario corridor continues to have success with retailers and that area will continue to grow. People still want home ownership and that migration to Rancho Cucamonga and nearby areas will have a positive impact on retail growth from daily needs to food to services.”