Oak Ridge Today

Main Street: Ready to close by end of June, AMSE property the one remaining hurdle

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The American Museum of Science and Energy property is pictured above in central Oak Ridge.

The American Museum of Science and Energy property is pictured above in central Oak Ridge. The wide road running vertically at center-right through the aerial photo is South Tulane Avenue. The proposed Main Street Oak Ridge would be on the right side of South Tulane Avenue at the former Oak Ridge Mall. The road running horizontally at bottom is South Illinois Avenue. AMSE is the brown-roofed building at top-center.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 8 p.m. June 13.

RealtyLink, the developer that has proposed redeveloping the former Oak Ridge Mall, says it is ready to close on the roughly 60-acre site by the end of June and start construction immediately, but there is one last hurdle: The company is concerned about any redevelopment of the property across the street at the American Museum of Science and Energy that could compete with its proposed project, known as Main Street Oak Ridge.

So, RealtyLink has asked that, if the federal government wants to dispose of the AMSE property at some point in the future, the city would negotiate with the U.S. Department of Energy through the General Services Administration to either have the property transferred to the city, or allow RealtyLink to negotiate directly with DOE and GSA for a property transfer.

The Oak Ridge City Council will consider a resolution allowing the city manager to start the negotiations, should they become necessary, during a meeting on Monday, June 13.

So far, DOE and GSA have not publicly announced plans to dispose of the 17.12 acres in and around AMSE. But there have been public discussions about what to do with the property during the past 15 years or so. DOE has said it is not in the museum business. [Read more…]

Dick’s Sporting Goods, PetSmart, T.J. Maxx, Ulta to locate at Main Street Oak Ridge

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Main-Street-Oak-Ridge-Sign-Dec-21-2015

Workers from Masstar Signs of Greenville, S.C., install a new shopping center pylon sign at South Illinois Avenue and East Tulsa Road that announces Main Street Oak Ridge, the planned $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. Pictured above on Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, is Will Biggs of Masstar Signs. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 4:57 p.m.

Dick’s Sporting Goods, PetSmart, T.J. Maxx, and Ulta will have new stores at Main Street Oak Ridge, Mayor Warren Gooch said Tuesday.

Also, Belk and JCPenney are renewing their leases at the 58-acre site, Gooch said during a State of the City speech to the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge.

“Negotiations with other major retailers are ongoing,” Gooch said.

The mayor got an update from Neil Wilson of RealtyLink, which took over as master developer in September, on Monday. Wilson told Gooch that RealtyLink has come to terms with both its senior construction lender and the tax increment financing construction lender.

“We are closer to the closing on the sale of the mall property and the start of construction,” Gooch said. [Read more…]

Main Street Oak Ridge update: City staff ready for mall redevelopment

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Main-Street-Oak-Ridge-Sign-Install-Complete-Dec-21-2015

Workers from Masstar Signs of Greenville, S.C., install a new shopping center pylon sign at South Illinois Avenue and East Tulsa Road that announces Main Street Oak Ridge, the planned $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. Pictured above on Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, is Will Biggs of Masstar Signs. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Site plans have been approved for the first phase of Main Street Oak Ridge—the project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall—and construction drawings have been approved for most buildings in Phase I, a city official said Thursday.

The city staff is ready to issue demolition permits, and the staff has a utility disconnect “game plan,” said Kathryn Baldwin, director of Oak Ridge Community Development.

“We’re very much ready,” Baldwin said at a Thursday evening work session of the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission.

The Planning Commission will consider adding a lot to the subdivision plat for the roughly 60-acre site on Thursday. If approved, that change would create 11 interior lots. Officials said that requested change has to do with project financing and it’s a minor change from what was approved several months ago. [Read more…]

New stores at Main Street Oak Ridge appear unlikely by Christmas 2016

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Main-Street-Oak-Ridge-Sign-Dec-21-2015

Workers from Masstar Signs of Greenville, S.C., install a new shopping center pylon sign at South Illinois Avenue and East Tulsa Road announcing Main Street Oak Ridge, the planned $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. Pictured above on Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, is Will Biggs of Masstar Signs. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The developers haven’t confirmed it yet, but the construction of new stores at the former Oak Ridge Mall appears unlikely to be complete by the Christmas 2016 shopping season.

In November, RealtyLink said demolition at the 58-acre site could take four months and be complete by the end of this March or early next month, with construction possibly starting April 1.

RealtyLink had planned to turn over seven new stores to retailers in September 2016, and it was expected that they could open in October, in time for the holiday season.

But demolition has not started yet at the former mall property, now known as Main Street Oak Ridge.

Ray Evans, Oak Ridge retail consultant, said the opening before Christmas was predicated on demolition and construction starting in January 2016.

“For a variety of reasons, that couldn’t happen,” Evans said. [Read more…]

Planning Commission approves re-subdivision for Main Street Oak Ridge, the mall redevelopment

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Planning Commission Main Street Oak Ridge Jan. 7, 2016

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission approved a re-subdivision for Main Street Oak Ridge, the $80 million project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall as a mixed-use development including retailers, restaurants, residential units, and a hotel, on Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016. Oak Ridge Community Development Director Kathryn Baldwin is standing at right. City staff members and representatives of RealtyLink, the development company, were also present. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge officials on Thursday approved a re-subdivision that was required for the $80 million project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.

The re-subdivision includes 10 different lots, including one larger parcel in the center of the 58-acre site and other smaller lots. Officials said the re-subdivision was necessary for financial considerations, and it is a condition for closing on the property.

Oak Ridge Community Development Director Kathryn Baldwin said the city has received notice the remediation is complete on the interior of the mostly empty mall, and construction drawings have been submitted for three buildings expected to receive permits. The new buildings could be erected next to Belk and in the area where Sears is now.

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission approved the re-subdivision in an 8-0 vote during a special meeting Thursday. Planning commissioners present were Chair Stephen Whitson, Vice Chair Austin Lance, Secretary Claudia Lever, and members Charlie Hensley, Sharon Kohler, Jane Shelton, Hans Vogel, and Todd Wilson. [Read more…]

Another sign of progress: Workers install new sign announcing Main Street Oak Ridge

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Main-Street-Oak-Ridge-Sign-Dec-21-2015

Workers from Masstar Signs of Greenville, S.C., install a new shopping center pylon sign at South Illinois Avenue and East Tulsa Road that announces Main Street Oak Ridge, the planned $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. Pictured above on Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, is Will Biggs of Masstar Signs. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 3:30 p.m.

They tore down the old Oak Ridge Mall sign on Wednesday and erected a new shopping center pylon sign on Monday. It announces Main Street Oak Ridge, the planned $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall.

Although it appears a small step to some, it is another sign of progress on the long-awaited, eagerly anticipated redevelopment of the mostly empty mall. It’s actually the biggest visible change at the mall property in years.

Local officials pointed out that the sign change wouldn’t have happened without the approval of the current owner, Oak Ridge City Center LLC. Also, the change presumably required the new developer, RealtyLink of South Carolina, to spend some money on the sign and its installation, officials said. [Read more…]

Signs of progress: Workers remove old Oak Ridge Mall sign

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Oak-Ridge-Mall-Sign-Dec-16-2015

Workers from Masstar Signs remove the old Oak Ridge Mall sign on South Illinois Avenue on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015. The mall redeveloper, RealtyLink, could close on the 60-acre property in January. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 10:47 p.m.

In one sign of progress, workers removed the old Oak Ridge Mall sign on South Illinois Avenue on Wednesday as the company that wants to redevelop the property prepares to close in January.

The redeveloped 60-acre site would be a mixed-use development featuring retailers, restaurants, residential units, and possibly a hotel. It would be called Main Street Oak Ridge.

RealtyLink, the company leading the proposed $80 million redevelopment, had hoped to close on Tuesday, December 15, but the expected closing date has been pushed into January. RealtyLink only became involved about three months ago, taking over from the previous developer, Crosland Southeast, in mid-September. [Read more…]

Main Street project won’t close Tuesday; closing could be in January

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Neil Wilson of RealtyLink at Rise and Shine on Nov. 3, 2015

Neil Wilson, left, principal of RealtyLink, gives an update on the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall at an Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce Rise and Shine at TNBank on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9:30 a.m. Dec. 15.

The new company leading the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall won’t close on the property on Tuesday, and the closing could be pushed into January, officials said this month.

But it’s nothing to be concerned about, one official said Monday, adding that there are many pre-closing activities to accomplish in a short period of time, some in series.

“There have been no holdups, just a lot to do,” said Ray Evans, retail consultant for the City of Oak Ridge. “As an example, a subdivision plat has to be approved by the Planning Commission prior to closing. In order for the plat to be prepared, the property had to be re-surveyed. The new survey stakes are very apparent around the property. The plat was submitted yesterday (Monday). It will likely go before the Planning Commission at its meeting on January 7.”

Evans said RealtyLink has had geotechnical staff on site doing core borings during the past few weeks.

“In addition, they have been working on completing the environmental work,” he said.

Officials said RealtyLink and its contractor remain committed to having stores open for seven of the new tenants for the 2016 Christmas season. [Read more…]

New developer plans to close on former mall on Dec. 15

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Neil Wilson of RealtyLink at Rise and Shine on Nov. 3, 2015

Neil Wilson, left, principal of RealtyLink, gives an update on the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall at an Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce Rise and Shine at TNBank on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 11:15 a.m.

The new company leading the project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall plans to close on the property on December 15, an executive said Tuesday. It’s the first time a closing date has been announced by one of the developers associated with the project.

The new developer, RealtyLink, plans to have a minimum of seven stores open by Christmas 2016, Principal Neil Wilson said. That would include four stores adjacent to Belk and two adjacent to Walmart.

Wilson declined to name the stores but said the new mixed-use development, called Main Street Oak Ridge, could include a sporting goods store, a cosmetics retailer, one or two apparel merchants, and a 20,000-square-foot electronics shop that has signed a letter of intent. There could be a total of about 150,000 square feet of retail in those stores. There are roughly 130,000 square feet of retail at JCPenney and Belk, which will have a new facade and entrance.

Wilson said his company, which is based in Greenville, South Carolina, wants to start demolition on the enclosed spaces between the two remaining anchors, Belk and JCPenney, the day after it closes on the purchase of the roughly 60-acre property in the center of Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Mall demolition could start end of Nov., eight new stores could open by Christmas 2016

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Sears at Oak Ridge City Center

Demolition work at the former Oak Ridge Mall could start at the end of November at the former Sears store, and eight new stores could open at the redeveloped 60-acre site by Christmas 2016, officials said Monday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 6:55 p.m.

Demolition work at the former Oak Ridge Mall could start at the end of November at the former Sears store, and eight new stores could open at the redeveloped 60-acre site by Christmas 2016, officials said Monday.

RealtyLink, the new master developer announced in September, has been looking at the mostly vacant shopping center in the heart of Oak Ridge since 2009. They replace Crosland Southeast, which had been working on the $80 million redevelopment project for more than two years.

RealtyLink, which is based in Greenville, South Carolina, hopes to close on the property, which is now owned by Oak Ridge City Center LLC, at the end of November.

A demolition permit has already been issued, but it’s not in RealtyLink’s name. [Read more…]

Council to consider amending mall plan, inviting DOE to discuss travel practices

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Oak Ridge Mall

The Oak Ridge City Center, which could be redeveloped as a multi-use town center known as Main Street, is pictured above. Also known as the former Oak Ridge Mall, the L-shaped building is at center. The white building at center left is Walmart, and it is not part of the proposed redevelopment. Neither is the white building at center top, the Tinseltown Theater. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 12:35 p.m.

During a special meeting Tuesday, the Oak Ridge City Council will consider amending the economic impact plan for the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. The change is being considered primarily because the master developer has changed.

The amendment to the economic impact plan, which also includes a date change, will be considered a day earlier, on Monday, October 19, by the Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board and Anderson County Commission.

The Industrial Development Board has a public hearing and special meeting on the $13 million tax increment financing, or TIF, for the redevelopment and an amendment to the economic impact plan at 3:45 p.m. Monday, October 19, in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Training Room. The County Commission is expected to consider the amendment in a meeting that starts at 6:30 p.m. Monday in Room 312 of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton. [Read more…]

Some minor changes, but Main Street project still expected to open for Christmas 2016

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Main Street Oak Ridge Belk on March 2, 2015

Construction for the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall could start first near the Belk store, the city’s retail consultant said this month. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

There have been some minor changes to the plans, but the new developer at Main Street Oak Ridge still plans to open the retail-driven, mixed-use development by the Christmas 2016 holiday season, the city’s retail consultant said last week.

RealtyLink, the new South Carolina-based developer, took over as master developer in September, replacing Crosland Southeast, the firm that had led the redevelopment effort for more than two years.

Oak Ridge retail consultant Ray Evans said RealtyLink has a good relationship with Crosland, a North Carolina-based company.

“They have essentially picked up where Crosland left off,” Evans said.

RealtyLink has plans for about 60,000 more square feet of retail than Crosland did, giving the project a total of about 460,000 square feet of retail, including in the two remaining anchors, Belk and JCPenney. [Read more…]