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Feb. 20, 2002 N.C. 16 village en route DOUG SMITH Crosland is preparing to start the first building in a $20 million office-retail village near Mountain Island Lake in northwest Mecklenburg. The project, which will cover about 14 acres at N.C. 16 and Rozzelles Ferry Road, is expected to attract neighborhood services such as a day-care center, a convenience store, medical and dental offices, bank branches, specialty shops and restaurants. Eric Vargosko, vice president in Crosland's office and industrial division, said construction should be under way by late April on the first of seven 7,000-square-foot buildings. "We will start the first building and go in at the same time for permits on the next two," he said. The site is about 1.3 miles northwest of the N.C. 16-Mount Holly-Huntersville Road intersection, where development ranging from grocery stores to fast-food eateries is burgeoning. Crosland is betting that the neotraditional center with sidewalks, on-street parking and Cape Cod style architecture will appeal to customers seeking to avoid the heavier traffic at the more congested intersection. The village will be visible from N.C. 16, but the entrance will be off Rozzelles Ferry Road. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Library is negotiating with Crosland to buy a site in Mountain Island Village for a new Coulwood Branch. If a contract is signed and county commissioners approve, the library would build a 15,000- to 18,000-square-foot building there. Vargosko said he is talking with several potential tenants about space in the first commercial building but no leases have been signed. Moser Mayer Phoenix designed the village, and Mann Contractors will build it. The area around N.C. 16 and Mount Holly-Huntersville Road is expected to grow to more than 161,000 residents this year, and that's fueling the Mountain Island Lake area's commercial growth. At the northwest corner of the intersection, Granite Development has leased 65 percent of its 41,200-square-foot shopping center -- Callabridge Commons. It expects to open the center in April. Tenants include Allen Tate Realtors, Midtown Sundries, Subway, Great Clips, Mail Boxes Etc., a nail salon, a tanning salon and a veterinary clinic. Granite also is grading 48 acres at the northeast corner of the intersection for Callabridge Landing, a 200,000-square-foot center that will include a McDonald's, a Chick-fil-A, an ABC store and other tenants. Granite principal R. Craig Hunter said he's negotiating on a 20-acre site, but couldn't disclose the potential buyer. Real estate watchers believe Lowe's, Home Depot and Wal-Mart are interested in opening stores in the area. Doug Smith's Notebook • Dale Hall has been promoted to retail partner at New South Properties of the Carolinas. He will be responsible for retail development generated by the commercial real estate firm while continuing to serve such key clients as Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Staples, Pizza Hut and Pier 1 in the Charlotte area. Charlotte-based New South, whose founding partners are Will Whitley and Bart Hopper, added about 1 million square feet of retail listings and signed about 500,000 square feet in retail leases last year. The firm also did about 100,000 square feet in office and office/medical tenant representation and started about $10 million in residential land development projects during 2001. • Charlotte real estate veteran Leslie Mitchell has joined Crescent Communities Realty LLC. She will serve as sales manager for The Landing, SailView, StoneWater, Hawkes Bay, NorthView Harbour, Wildlife Bay, Wildwood Cove and Woodland Bay. Mitchell had worked with Prudential Carolinas Realty and its predecessor companies since 1984. She had been director of agent services since 2001. Doug Smith |
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