Developers Rethink the Mall for the 21st Century
Jul 27, 2010 10:52 AM, By Elaine Misonzhnik
The Trails
When Lane4 Property Group Inc., a Kansas City, Mo.–based commercial developer, bought the closed Bannister Mall at the intersection of I-435 and Hillcrest Road from a private investor in 2007, the outlook for mixed-use projects was brighter than ever.
So Lane4, which at the time was serving as a real estate consultant for the Kansas City Wizards Major League Soccer team, decided to turn the mall and the surrounding area into a mixed-use development incorporating a professional soccer stadium, approximately 2.4 million square feet of retail and 1.5 million square feet of offices on a 467-acre site. The vision was that revenue from the retail component, in combination with tax increment financing (TIF) from the city and state, would support the creation of a multi-use sports venue.
By December of 2007, Lane had secured a $230 million TIF from the city and another $20 million from the state for the new project, called The Trails. But the recession threw a wrench into the plan, which was further complicated by the shutdown of the CMBS market, where Lane had hoped to secure additional funding. Moreover, interest from retailers waned as sales faltered, meaning the plan to subsidize the stadium with income from the retail complex no longer made sense.
Lane had to wait to move forward. Unfortunately, the Wizards didn’t have that luxury. “Each year they didn’t have a stadium hurt their profits and hurt what they were trying to do, which was build up soccer [awareness] in America,” says Owen Buckley, president of Lane4 Property Group.
The Wizards ultimately accepted a stadium offer in Kansas City, Kan. That left Lane4 without a key component even as it was demolishing the remnants of Bannister Mall.
In spite of the setbacks, the firm believed in the area’s demographics. The site is on the confluence of three major roads on which 300,000 cars pass daily. In addition, more than 223,000 people live within 10 minutes of the site.
So Lane4 went back to the drawing board. It hired a nationally renowned land planner to help redesign the site. It scaled back the retail portion to 1 million square feet and opted to substitute the would-be stadium with entertainment/residential uses that are yet to be announced.
Industry insiders offer differing opinions on whether the loss of the soccer stadium should be viewed as a challenge or a blessing in disguise for the development firm. For instance, Dustin Watson, partner with Development Design Group, a Baltimore, Md.–based architecture firm, says it’s unfortunate because sports venues tend to bring in large crowds.
In any case, there seem to be plenty of unconventional uses such as a wave pool, an upscale bowling alley or a car dealership with a test-drive track attached that could take the stadium’s place, says Watson.
For his part, Buckley adds that Lane4 is determined to create something enduring. “We remain committed to building something that’s going to last 20 or 30 years,” he says.
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