Tampa mall continues to expand
Two months from the expected completion date of the current renovation of Westfield Brandon, it seems more expansion at the Tampa-area mall may be in the works.
Though no concrete plans for more growth exist, officials from the mall are keeping their eyes on the future as they look for more ways to keep the shopping center growing, county officials acknowledged last week.
Talks, initiated by Brandon (a suburb minutes east of Tampa) mall officials, have been on-going for several months, said Ned Baier, a manager with Planning and Growth Management for Hillsborough County, who said that Westfield executives may be exploring future expansion options.
An aide to County Commissioner Al Higginbotham last week confirmed that talks between the county and mall had taken place, referring to them as “big picture talks”, but that nothing firm had come as a result of them.
Taylor Clifton, spokeswoman for the mall, said she was not aware of any future plans for expansion outside of the mall’s current $60 million renovation that’s supposed to be finished in March.
According to the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser’s office, the mall’s parent company, Westfield Group, owns several tracts of land at the mall site under the name Brandon Shopping Center Partners Ltd.
Only one parcel has remins undeveloped, at the southeast corner of the mall, which is typically used for outdoor attractions such as the host site for the recent ceremony of the traveling Vietnam Wall replica, and RV and automobile sales.
A second portion of land along the west side of the mall is being cut into for the center’s latest renovation.
Meanwhile, the shopping center, 459 Brandon Town Center Blvd., announced its latest round of retailers and restaurants for the project that’s slated for completion in March. At this point, all interior renovations to the food court have been complete and a new mall feature, the Westfield Family Lounge, is open.
The most recent roster of new mall tenants coming to the center include: The Cheesecake Factory; Teavana, teas and serving products; Sephora, a beauty retailer; Swarovski, crystal gifts and jewelry; Fossil, a watch retailer; Solstice Sunglass Boutique; Esmer Fashion Jewelry & Accessories; Quiksilver, a surf-inspired clothing and accessories retailer; Cache, sportswear and dresses; Swim ‘N Sport; The Walking Company; and Clark’s, footwear retailer.
The Westfield Family Lounge is in the food court and features three private nursing stations, five diaper changing stations, a diaper machine, microwave, child-sized restroom and a large, carpeted play area.
Additionally, some established retailers will relocate and open early 2007, including Panera Bread Bakery & Café, Bakers Shoes, Bebe and Icing by Claire’s.
A new 45,000-square-foot Dick’s Sporting Goods will anchors the mall’s new shopping wing on the west side of the building.
When construction is complete in March, the mall will feature 1.1 million square feet of shopping and eating space. For more information: westfield.com/Brandon.
