Cary Town Center / Triangle Town Center - slow death

Macy's closing 150 stores.
Macy's will close about 150 department stores, but open new locations of better performing chains (msn.com)
1 article stated getting rid of duplicate stores in same cities. I wonder how that will affect Triangle Town center. I'd think that would close before Crabtree.

 

latest update on Epic Games/ Cary Towne Center Mall From TBJ. I copied and pasted so links don't work. (no real update)


As the months go by with no word about the future of the former Cary Towne Center property, it seems apparent that Epic Games has no immediate plans to move forward with building a new headquarters on the prime site in a town that's attracting plenty of developers.

Epic Games, the video game developer based in Cary, said Friday through a spokesperson that there were no updates to share. A public records request shows no updated plans have been filed with the town regarding the site located between Cary Towne Boulevard and Walnut Street.

Real estate watchers in the Triangle are starting to wonder what the future of the former mall property will look like as the town continues its rapid development spree. Dennis Donovan, a site selection consultant with WDG Consulting, said it might be tough to attract another headquarters campus like the one Epic Games proposed back in 2021 after buying the property.

“First, there aren’t many HQ relocations,” he said, adding that a stronger possibility for the site, should Epic relinquish it, might be a tech company consolidating office operations, “some of which might already be based in the Raleigh, Durham area.”

Donovan said the real demand is happening with sites that are ready to go. Starting from scratch, which would be the case in Cary, “becomes very difficult.”

The struggling mall was purchased by Cary-based Epic Games for a global headquarters - but it has a long history of headlines. And the project still hasn't happened.

Epic Games purchased the formal mall in a $95 million deal in late 2020, stating at the time that the plan was to convert the property into a new headquarters campus by 2024. But its initial rezoning request was met with pushback from town officials and residents for its apparent lack of detail. The council passed the project onto the town’s Planning and Zoning Board for review in late 2021, but the board has yet to make a recommendation.

In fact, public records show zero recent communication at all between the town and Epic Games, not even when The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) came calling, as it appears town officials first learned about Epic’s $1.5 billion minority investment from Disney from news reports media.

 

Triangle Town Center Sold
from TBJ
An embattled mall in Raleigh is under new ownership.

Summit Properties USA announced this week it had acquired the Triangle Town Center, located at 5959 Triangle Town Blvd. in Raleigh, as part of a larger acquisition of malls around the country.


Summit Properties USA, a subsidiary of the U.K.-based Summit Properties Ltd., said it has paid $700 million for shopping centers across the country, including the Triangle Town Center. It now lists the Raleigh mall on its website. The series of mall acquisitions took place over several quarters.


OFFER ENDS TODAY

Over 60% Off Your Annual Membership

Elevate Your Business Strategy with Actionable Insights and Expert Analysis

Subscribe Now

It’s unclear how much Summit Properties paid for the mall, as Wake County has not yet recorded a deed for the transaction.

Triangle Towne Center opened in 2002.

In September, Summit Chief Operating Officer Denis Nezaj filed preliminary subdivision plans for the property with the city of Raleigh.

The mall last sold in 2021 to Kohan Retail Investment Group out of Great Neck, New York. Kohan purchased the Triangle Town Center for $33.25 million, a fraction of the $174 million it sold for in 2016, according to previous reporting, following years of financial distress.

Its total assessed value is $70.9 million, per Wake County records. In 2022, Kohan sought a rezoning to allow for taller buildings on part of the property. The rezoning application was later withdrawn, according to Raleigh public records.

Neither Kohan nor Summit Properties immediately returned requests for comment.

The Asheville Mall in Asheville was also part of the recent acquisition by Summit Properties. The other malls that were part of the acquisition are located in New Mexico, New Jersey, Washington, Michigan and Minnesota.

A year ago, Kohan Retail Investment Group purchased a mall in Rocky Mount for $7.6 million, according to previous reporting.

Summit Properties USA is based in Manhattan in New York City. In addition to its retail centers, the firm also lists a portfolio of 90 residential buildings in New York City and two Manhattan hotels on its website. It will manage its mall properties in-house.


Zohar Levy, controlling shareholder and board chairman at Summit, said in a news release that the firm sees “immense potential in transforming our retail centers into flagship assets within their local communities.”

“Our aim is to attract anchor tenants, including leisure and entertainment, alongside leading national retail tenants,” he said.

 

Some good news on Triangle Town Center from TBJ. Also, Macys has listed their closing stores and TTC wasn't on the list, so that is a plus also.


STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Triangle Town Center is now 89 percent leased.
• New restaurants and retailers are leasing space at the mall
• Summit Properties plans to develop 40,000 square feet of real estate.

GET TO KNOW YOUR CITY

Find Local Events Near You

Connect with a community of local professionals.

Explore All Events

The Triangle Town Center, which has struggled in recent years, is getting a spark from a host of new restaurants and retailers leasing space at the mall in northeast Raleigh.

On the restaurant front, A Toda Madre Mexican Kitchen recently opened. The restaurant serves street tacos, seafood, sushi and more.

In addition, a fine dining establishment based in Washington, D.C., 1865 Steak Seafood & Cigars, plans to open in the next two months in an 8,000-square-foot space in the outparcels near the mall's main entrance, according to broker Drew Huggins. The restaurant signed its lease in July.

Meanwhile, The Farmer’s Indian Restaurant has signed a lease in the former Moe’s Southwest Grill location and will open in the coming months, Huggins said.

Including the outparcels, the Triangle Town Center is now 89 percent leased, a jump from the typical 74 to 76 percent range the shopping center has seen the past five years, according to General Manager James Pruett.

“I feel like we have definitely hit a turning point and we’re heading in a much better direction than we were,” Pruett said.

Triangle Town Center’s new owner and property manager, Summit Properties USA, hired Huggins with Huggins Realty Group to broker leases at the shopping center.

“We’re cranking,” Huggins said, adding that the mall's food court is also fully leased. Pruett said the new tenants are a mix of permanent, long-term leases as well as some specialty agreements that are more short-term.

“We’re trying to focus on more regional permanent tenants that bring something different to the area instead of the same old retail you can find at any retail strip center,” Pruett said.


Pruett has been with the Triangle Town Center since 2002. He said Summit Properties was an investing partner in the property under its former owner, Kohan Retail Investment Group and has since fully transitioned the Triangle Town Center into Summit’s portfolio.

Pruett attributes the residential and hotel growth near the mall as the driving force behind the Triangle Town Center's leasing energy.

"There’s been a ton of interest in the property," he said.

The momentum at the Triangle Town Center does not stop with leasing. Summit Properties is also looking to develop up to 40,000 square feet of additional real estate on the property, Pruett said.

The previous owner, Kohan Retail Investment Group, had sought a rezoning to allow for taller building heights where the outparcels are in front of the mall.

“We’re focusing on trying to bring more of an entertainment type piece to the property,” Pruett said.

Foot traffic-wise, the mall has not seen much of a change, according to Pruett.

“Luckily we haven't seen a decline. I think we’re poised to see some sizable numbers,” he said.

Here are the tenants opening soon at the Triangle Town Center:

• Source: a sneakers store
• Rosie’s Tasty Kitchen
• Nature’s Chi: supplement, herbal and natural goods store

Here are some businesses that opened in 2024 at the Triangle Town Center:

• Miniso, Chinese retailer selling toys, electronics and more
• Animazed, which sells Anime, Manga and more
• BlazeBurgers
• Leather ‘n Heels: sells women’s cowboy boots, purses and more
• Stoneage Natural Rocks and Crystals
• Kacery: sells baked goods
• Castle Creations: customers can customize their own sneakers
• Tatu Therapy Studio: tattoo shop
• Lash Junkiez: lash bar
• The Glam Clinic: laser, tattoo removal, facials and more
• Custom Blvd.: apparel store for customized T-shirts, hats, hoodies and more

Thursday, February 13, 2025

 

Latest on Epic Games/Cary Towne Center Mall from TBJ (pay site so copied what i could)
Plans for a huge headquarters campus at the site of the former Cary Towne Center have been withdrawn, once again raising questions about the future of the prime property.