beginning of fourphases.

The company expects to have up to 71 retailers on the 100-acresite, which should be finished by spring 2010, says Larry Evinger,FVP of retail for the firm. "We'll have about 56 retailers in thenext phase, and another 10-15 after that," he says. A Rue 21 hasalso opened at the property, and a Justice for Girls is underconstruction, he says. "That's all that's open now, though we havesome additional leases that are signed that we will announce soon,"he tells GlobeSt.com. "We're working on more anchors, we do expectto bring some more in soon." He wouldn't detail who's being wooed,but says they will "be complementary to what we will have in thecenter."

Evinger says the property is perfect for the local market. "It'sa growing area of northwest Indiana that's seen a lot of housinggrowth. There's a strong customer base and strong incomes, and itseems to us like it's a place that's going to grow and prosper," hesays. Evinger pointed out the popularity of the city, includingcompanies looking to move into the Eastport Center (ValparaisoIndustrial Park), which is on the southeast side of Valparaiso andjust south of US Highway 30. Several companies have moved to thislocation, including ME Simpson Co., the United Way of PorterCounty, Follett Books, J&N Enterprises and Machine ToolSpecialists, with the Indiana Vocational Technical College alsoplanning to locate to the park.