Developers rethinking ‘Midtown Mile’ concept
Gone are the days of filling up retail space with goods no one can afford
The commercial developers who envisioned such high-priced stores as Prada and Dolce & Gabanna lining Peachtree Street between the Woodruff Arts Center and North Avenue are saying, well, with this economic catastrophe that just happened, maybe we should revise that plan. Via this week’s Atlanta Business Chronicle (sub. req’d.):
It’s scaled back to about 601,000 square feet of existing and planned retail between the Arts Center and Fifth Street. It will include more retailers like CB2, a Chicago-based home furnishings chain that opened on the Mile last year and targets the young hip and discount-conscious urban resident.
It will also feature more regional and local retailers than the Mile’s initial plan. ...
The goals underscore an important retail transformation.
National retailers, seeing their big-box stores struggle amid new pressures such as the growing influences of Internet sales, are shifting to smaller real estate footprints.
The move is, in part, an effort to better meet the shopping needs of the average Midtown consumer, which the Chronicle says, prefers “great brands at a value.” It’s similar to what’s been proposed by the new owners of Atlantic Station’s retail center — making the area the “anti-mall.”
No one is asking for our advice, but we’ll give it anyway: Woo Cartridge World and Batteries Plus. And a Sizzler. You’ll be golden.