Publix plans northeast store
Winchester Road site to anchor new shopping center
Saturday, June 25, 2005
A sixth Publix supermarket in Madison County will likely be the anchor of a new shopping center on Winchester Road.
Equity One Realty & Management SE Inc. of Atlanta, a subsidiary of the real estate investment trust Equity One Inc., has announced plans for a 75,700-square-foot Winchester Plaza shopping center that will include a 45,600-square-foot Publix and other retail shops. Three outparcels are also planned that would front Winchester Road, said Peter Pelt, vice president of development for Equity One Realty & Management, the Equity One division that manages, leases and develops in the Southeast region.
Publix officials would not comment Friday on the announcement.
The shopping center is planned for the southeast corner of the intersection of Winchester Road and Homer Nance Road. The property is roughly seven miles northeast of Huntsville.
"This is an area that's experienced growth lately and it looks like the growth will continue," said Pelt.
Equity One, which is based in North Miami Beach, Fla., owns, develops and operates shopping centers located mostly in high-growth markets in the southern United States and the Boston, Mass., metropolitan area. The company has executed a lease with Publix Supermarkets Inc. Pelt didn't name other prospective tenants, but said space is available for lease in the center and outparcel space is available for lease or sale.
Site work should start in August, Pelt said, and typically construction for a project like this takes 10 months to a year. "We're looking at late second quarter of '06" for completion, he said.
Phase one of the project includes the Publix store and about 15,400 square feet of additional space. A second phase is expected to be about the same size. In all, Pelt expects the project will end up with about 12 to 15 tenants in addition to Publix.
"We anticipate going into the second phase quickly, depending on leasing," Pelt said.
Pelt said the development, including the outparcels, will take up about 20 acres.
Lakeland, Fla.-based Publix has 853 supermarkets across Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee, according to the company's Web site.
Publix stores are located in Huntsville at Piedmont Point shopping center on Whitesburg Drive, in Hampton Cove Center on U.S. 431, in Mountain Cove Crossing on Bailey Cove Road, and in Madison at the Colonial Promenade on U.S. 72 and in Madison Centre on Madison Boulevard.
Equity One also owns and manages Madison Centre. In all, the company's portfolio includes 189 properties with 129 supermarket-anchored shopping centers, nine drug store-anchored shopping centers, 42 other retail-anchored shopping centers, six retail development parcels and three commercial properties.
The announcement comes as Jacksonville, Fla.-based Winn-Dixie plans to close 326 stores overall, including six in Madison County, as it tries to cut costs and emerge from bankruptcy. One of the stores is located at 1338 Winchester Road.
© 2005 The Huntsville Times
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