Despite the malingering economy, commercial real estate sources are reporting more activity at the Watkins Centre -- partially driven by a traffic count of 70,000 vehicles a day going by on Route 288 and Midlothian Turnpike and the future growth of the area.
At last week's meeting of the Western Chesterfield Business Alliance, it was reported that a full service Hilton hotel is headed to the Watkins Centre. In the office park located in the southwestern quadrant, possible tenants include a cellular company looking for 100,000 square feet and two medical firms from Washington, D.C. and Texas wanting 80,000 square feet.
"As the economy gets worse, we get sicker," quipped Walton Makepiece, senior vice president of CB Richard Ellis, a commercial real estate firm. "[Success at the Watkins Centre] is going to happen, it's just a matter of time. We're getting a lot of activity, particularly from the medical community."
Karen Aylward of the Chesterfield Economic Development Department said the office component of the Watkins Centre is targeting corporate headquarters and research and development prospects.
The Watkins Centre's retail component, Westchester Commons, is expected to have a minimum of 600,000 square feet of retail by next October. At build-out, it will have nearly double that. Some have expressed concerns because the retailers that have committed to Westchester so far are not upscale. Two leasing experts who attended the alliance's meeting last week predicted there will be some turnover of tenants, making room for more upscale stores.
Retailers like to see affluent residential neighborhoods around their stores before they sign a lease, but currently much of the area is vacant land. That will change in coming years, however, since Roseland (5,400 new homes) and Grayco (1,600 homes) already have approved zoning nearby.
One of the anchors of Westchester Commons is Target, scheduled to open next March. Just four miles east, the Target across from Chesterfield Towne Center is currently undergoing remodeling to be better prepared for its own competition.
Usually four-lane divided highways become a barrier for many shoppers. On Hull Street Road there is a Wal-Mart located just east of Route 288 while a new Wal-Mart will open just three miles west on the other side of Route 288 across from Woodlake.
"There will be a couple of hotels out here [at the Watkins Center]," Rob Hargett of Rebkee told the group, adding, "We're in a bit of a lull because of the economy."
Next door to Westchester Commons is a separate commercial project called the Shoppes at Westchester. According to Hargett, that project, which could house 185,000 square feet of retail and 60,000 square feet of office space, is 70 percent leased. CVS opens there on Oct. 13. Rebkee is also leasing a 16- acre center called Westchester West for office and retail, and the prospects for both centers include Ukrop's and Lowe's.
A stoplight at Midlothian Turnpike and Watkins Centre Parkway originally scheduled for last May is supposed to be in place by mid- November. The amount of traffic eastbound on Midlothian Turnpike makes it dangerous to turn left onto Watkins Centre Parkway going past Village Bank's new corporate headquarters.
Check out more stories in this edition of the Chesterfield Observer, now a weekly publication.