The $6 million Nordstrom shell won city approval Friday for construction at Jacksonville's St. Johns Town Center, the same day landlord Simon Property Group confirmed that Natural Life, Swim n' Sport and Arhaus will join the new wing.
The Nordstrom and the new stores, comprising the center's Phase III, are expected to open Oct. 3, 2014. Interior Nordstrom construction would be permitted separately.
Permit applications show the 127,000-square-foot Nordstrom will be joined by about 36,000 square feet of retail stores in the wing attaching Nordstrom to the southwest part of the mall, between Louis Vuitton and Brooks Brothers.
The Daily Record obtained a site plan that included names for seven of the eight retailers in the wing that is capped by Nordstrom.
A Simon spokeswoman said just three could be confirmed – Natural Life, Swim 'n Sport and the previously reported Arhaus.
She said two of the names on the plan were incorrect and she could not confirm the remaining two – Disney and Free People, cautioning that landlord negotiations are sensitive.
The plan also showed a 1,587-square-foot Nordstrom ebar at the store's entrance. The ebar is Nordstrom's specialty-coffee concept.
On Friday, the city approved construction for the area's first full-line Nordstrom in the center. IBEX Construction Florida LLC is the contractor and Callison LLC of Seattle is the architect. Nordstrom is based in Seattle.
Among the confirmed or potential new retailers:
• Natural Life is shown in 2,007 square feet. It is a Jacksonville-based business with a store in The Avenues mall, which also is owned by Simon. It is a clothes, accessories and gift store targeted to "girls 8-80" with a free-spirit lifestyle.
• Swim 'n Sport is shown in 1,677 square feet. It is a Miami-based swimwear chain with 37 stores including 13 stores in Florida.
• Arhaus is shown as a 16,289-square-foot, two-story store. The Cleveland, Ohio-based furniture retailer confirmed in August it would open in the wing. It would be the third in Florida. The first two are in Naples and Palm Beach Gardens.
• Disney, which was not confirmed, would take 4,500 square feet. The store sells Disney clothes, accessories and merchandise. It has a store in The Avenues mall.
• Free People, also not confirmed, would take 2,492 square feet. Its target customers are women in their 20s interested in the latest trends and vintage collections. It has a store in the International Mall and Bay Street center in Tampa and is hiring for a Dadeland mall location in Miami. Free People, based in Philadelphia, operates more than 75 stores in the United States and Canada as well as three wholesale showrooms. Its lines are carried in more than 1,200 specialty boutiques and department stores worldwide.
Arhaus previously confirmed its plans. None of the other four returned calls or emails late Friday seeking comment.
The city is reviewing construction plans for the two multitenant buildings in the connector wing.
St. Johns Town Center representatives have said the new wing will encompass more than 158,000 square feet of retail space and will include an estimated eight stores, which are expected to be formally announced later this year.
Center General Manager Angela Crowder said in June that national and local retailers have committed to the new phase and many will be new to the market.
St. Johns Town Center shares Phase III updates through its website StJohnsTownCenter.com, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @StJohnsTownCtr.
St. Johns Town Center is a 1.2 million-square-foot retail and restaurant center at Butler Boulevard and the Interstate 295 East Beltway.
It has 11 anchor stores and 175 specialty stores and restaurants. Its developers are Simon Property Group and Ben Carter Properties.
Simon Property Group is based in Indianapolis and owns or has an ownership interest in 326 retail real estate properties in North America and Asia.
Atlanta-based Ben Carter Properties LLC, now known as Ben Carter Enterprises, has developed more than $1.1 billion, and nearly 5 million square feet, of retail and office projects since it was formed in 1993.
St. Johns Town Center opened March 18, 2005, and later added a second phase that opened Oct. 26, 2007. It brought many retailers to Jacksonville that were new to the market, including Tiffany & Co., Apple and soon, a Microsoft store.
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