Currently, the most desirable retail property type in theChicago metropolitan area is the grocery-anchored strip shoppingcenter. Michigan-based Meijer entered the market this year with atleast five stores planned for Chicagoland. Dominant grocer Jewelplans 10 more stores. In second place is Safeway-owned Dominick'swhich plans five more stores. Marcus & Millichap predicts thatgrocery-anchored strip centers will sell for $100-$160 per sf,community anchored strip centers for $90-$150, power centers for$80-$120 and unanchored strip centers for $80 per sf to $130 persf.

The Chicagoland area will also experience high competition fromdrug retailers. CVS entered the market this year and plans toexpand to about 100 new stores over the next several years.Deerfield, IL-based Walgreen's plans to meet the challenge byopening 25-40 more locations per year in the market over the nextfew year. Rite-Aid is expected to enter the market in 2001 aswell.

In terms of Chicago's CBD, Northern Realty Group Ltd.'s annualsurvey of retail in Downtown's State Street/Wabash Avenue corridorreports that the vacancy rate dropped to 4.3%. Average asking rentis $51.76 per sf. Critical to the future growth of this area is thelong-awaited development of "Block 37," located directly acrossMarshall Field's flagship store on State Street.