South Bay Center is located between Massachusetts Avenue, Allstate Road and Southampton Street right off Route 93 at the confluence of the city's South Boston, Dorchester and Roxbury neighborhoods. The 450,000-sf center has a number of anchor tenants including Super Stop & Shop, OfficeMax, Marshalls and Old Navy as well as Home Depot and Toys 'R Us.

The store replaces a former Kmart. "There was huge demand to bring Target into Boston proper," says Joe Pierik, vice president of the northeast region for Edens & Avant. Pierik notes that the new Target is part of E&A's overall expansion and renovation plan for the center.

The company has owned the urban shopping center since 1998 and recently announced plans for a $30-million expansion of the property. Edens & Avant acquired an eight-acre industrial parcel located along Massachusetts Avenue, adjacent to the 46-acre center, and plans to demolish the existing 135,120-sf building to make room for the redevelopment plan. Upon completion of the project, South Bay Center will comprise approximately 540,000 sf. The expansion project is subject to city approval. Construction is expected to begin sometime this summer and completed by the end of 2005.

There are currently 1,249 Target stores in 47 states. Edens & Avant is the nation's largest private owner and developer of grocery-anchored shopping centers with 220 owned assets in 20 states throughout the eastern US. The company regional headquarters in Boston and Washington, DC and has its corporate headquarters in Columbia, SC.