Industry News
Opus Phoenix-Area Retail Center Moves Forward
Nov 21, 2008
By: Scott Baltic, Contributing Editor

Opus West Corp. has begun construction on, and nailed down leases for most of the space at, the 170,000-square-foot Mill Crossing retail center in Chandler, Ariz., in southeast metro Phoenix.

The site, at the southwest corner of Gilbert and Germann roads and bordering the community of Gilbert, is in the Loop 202 corridor. Loop 202, also known as State Route 202, is the beltway for the eastern Phoenix metro area, surrounding the suburbs of Tempe, Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert.

The center’s anchor tenant will be J.C. Penney Co. with a 104,000-square-foot building. Other tenants signed at Mill Crossing so far include Shoe Carnival, for 10,180 square feet; a Sears, Roebuck and Co. appliance store, for 5,000 square feet; and restaurants Ah-So Sushi, Teriyaki Experience and Berry Good Yogurt. Opus also has commitments for three pad developments by Commercia Bank, McDonald’s and Native New Yorker.

“That J.C. Penney has chosen to expand with a new store at Mill Crossing while many tenants in the market are contracting speaks to the quality of this location,” Jeff Roberts, Opus West vice president of real estate development, said in a prepared statement.

Mill Crossing is scheduled to open in fall 2009. Opus West Construction Corp. is the general contractor, and the project architects are BDG and Opus Architects & Engineers. The leasing broker is Staubach Retail.

Between them Chandler and Gilbert alone total more than 450,000 population. High tech and semiconductors are a significant part of Chandler’s economy. Intel is a major employer in Chandler, with four locations there, including the company’s first factory to be designated “environmentally sustainable” under the LEED criteria.

Finally, Opus West also recently secured zoning for Town Center at Longbow, a 50-acre power center at Loop 202 and Recker Road in Mesa, which adjoins Gilbert to the north.

 
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