Mills will develop the project, with an estimated completed value of about $250 million, with the well-known local Stevinson family. The land, across from a 325,000-sf retail center developed by Greg Stevinson, has been in his family for about 30 years. "We're there," Stevinson tells GlobeSt.com. "We've been looking at doing a retail center on this land for 30 years. I remember talking to my dad (the late Chuck Stevinson) about that. I've been working on it for the past 14 years."

For more than a decade, Stevinson had been working with the Hahn Co. But when Nordstrom decided to go to Westcor's FlatIron Crossing regional mall in Broomfield, instead of Stevinson's land, Stevinson changed directions. "People think it's been a long time, but I could have developed this project a lot of time if I wanted an ordinary mall," Stevinson says. "I didn't want a mall that would cannibalize other shopping centers in the area."

Stevinson also doesn't want the new mall to cannibalize his Denver West shopping center, located just across the street from the Colorado Mills project. So the Mills Corp. has agreed to buy 75% of Denver West, with Stevinson owning the remaining 25%. He also will be a 25% partner in Colorado Mills.

The project, announced two years ago, had started out as a joint venture between Mills and the Bloomfield Hills, MI-based Taubman Co., also the owner of Cherry Creek shopping center and considered the crown jewel of Denver-area malls. But Taubman is no longer part of the Colorado Mills projects, says Mills spokesman David D'Onofrio. "It just didn't pencil out for Taubman, but they wish us luck," he says.

John Simon, Taubman's senior vice president and managing director of development, says the company had decided it could get better returns for shareholders by investing its money elsewhere, although he says he expects that Colorado Mills will be extremely successful. "We're two different REITs and we have two different pipelines and two different expectations and desires for returns," Simon tells GlobeSt.com. "It was fundamentally a decision of where to globally invest our capital across the US."

Tom Mathews, a retail broker with CB Richard Ellis, says he expects Colorado Mills to do well. "It's got a great location at 6th Avenue, Colfax and I-70," Mathews says. He says a slowing economy won't slow Colorado Mills, scheduled to open in late 2002. "Just six months ago, we had the signs that we were in the strongest market people can ever remember," Mathews tells GlobeSt.com. "The stock market has since made some adjustments, but in Colorado, the economy is still strong. Despite some layoffs, unemployment is still really low and some high-tech companies in Broomfield are still hiring people. Growth still remains strong and retail sales are really solid and strong."

Instant Insights /

1.2-Mil SF Colorado Mills Readies for Groundbreaking

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