Since 2008, not much has happened on the commercial real estate retail front in southern California, but Rick Caruso, president and CEO of Caruso Affiliated and mall magnate, believes that he can change that with a new retail/luxury residential model of shopping center[1]. The apartment and retail development, projected at $60 million, will be located near another one of Caruso’s properties, LA’s Grove shopping center.
The complex will be eight stories and consist of 88 apartments over a Trader Joe’s grocery. While smaller than many of Caruso’s other projects, it will play a significant role in the return of development to the area. Caruso, who is “committed…to pushing the bounds of the industry” through the development of high-quality retail centers[2], started the new project after a similar project quickly leased nearly to capacity – and 30 percent above the local average – within a short period after completion.
All over the country, the “right products” are moving in the real estate industry even while others struggle to stay afloat. It looks like new construction – carefully thought-out and designed new construction – could be the key to the elusive element of building that fuels most recoveries and has been notably absent from this one. Do you think that there is a place for new construction in today’s economy, or is there too much old construction for new construction to flourish on a wide scale?
Thank you for reading REJournalOnline’s Commercial Real Estate Letter!
Let us know what you think of building in today’s market below.
[1] http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-caruso-development-20110308,0,7462076.story
[2] http://www.carusoaffiliated.com/companyProfile/bios/rickc.shtml
Leave a Reply