Kite Realty Plans New 255,000-SF Retail Center

MARYSVILLE, WA-A new 255,000-sf community shopping center will soon be under development here by a joint venture of publicly traded Kite Realty Group Trust of Indianapolis and privately held White Leasure Development Co. of Boise, ID. The Gateway Shopping Center will have two shadow anchors–an 88,000-sf Kohl’s Department Store and a 93,000-sf Winco Foods–a 30,000-sf junior box adjacent to Kohl’s, up to 45,000 sf of small shops, and five outparcels.The Kite-White joint venture has closed on the acreage for its $8.5-million first phase, which will include the junior box and three outparcels. When Winco Foods finalizes the site plan for its building pad and parking, the JV expects to acquire a chunk of surplus land it believes will allow it to develop the two additional outparcels and the 45,000 sf of small shop space in a $9.5-million second phase. An affiliate of the JV is performing site work for Kohl’s under a separate agreement. As for tenants, the JV says it is currently negotiating with a national retailer for its junior box space and is seeking tenants for the outparcels.White Leasure has 14 properties in various points in the development pipeline, including three in Washington state. The other Washington state projects include a 12-acre development in Walla Walla and a 12-acre development in Kennewick. Kite Realty owns interests in 41 operating properties totaling 5.8 million sf. It also has another 2 million sf in 11 properties that are under development. Gateway Shopping Center will be Kite Realty’s second foray into the Seattle-area shopping center marketplace. In December 2004, the company acquired the 73,000-sf Four Corner Square shopping center in Maple Valley, WA for $10.5 million and put under contract an adjacent 10-acre parcel as part of a plan to redevelop and expand the center. No timeline has been announced. Kite Realty president-chief executive John Kite did not make himself available Tuesday for comment. In a prepared statement, he says the development strengthens its presence in Washington State and “will serve as a platform for future opportunities in the region,” possibly with White Leasure Development.