Royop hopes to reveal retail partners in the next few months

There still isn’t much in the way of site preparation happening out on Highway 16 these days, the much discussed somewhat anticipated Shopping Village still more of a blue print design than a giant playground of shopping nirvana.

The folks from Royop took some time to share with the Daily News, what their plans are for the most talked about retail development in recent years in the city.

Melvin Foht, vice president of development for Royop, says that he hopes to be able to announce the all important anchor tenants by this summer, though no firm timetable for development has been issued thus far. The development company recently increased the scope of the project by increasing the available land for it from 18 to 25 acres.

They intend for the site to be hold two types of retailers and services upon its completion, a number of large high profile anchor establishments which will build their own stores and a variety of smaller businesses who will rent space from Royop once they complete stretches of shopping frontages that tie the whole thing together.

The plan is to begin construction of at least the infrastructure sometime this year, hoping to capitalize on an extended period of growth for the North coast upon completion of the Container Port.

The full review of the project and a look ahead to the possible tenants in it appeared in Friday’s paper.

Royop expecting to get on with new mall project
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, May 04, 2007

Although the Royop Corporation is still working on buying more and for its Highway 16 shopping development, a company representative said they hope to announce the large anchor tenants some time in the next few months.

I think we will be in a position to do that this summer, said Melvin Foht, vice president of development for Royop.

Last November, Royop underwent a rezoning for a second parcel of land located on Highway 16, bringing the total area of land slated for the development up from the original 18 acres to 25 acres.

Our hope is we go ahead with construction this year. We are still planning to go ahead.

We havent finanalized all the rezoning there are still some transportation issues, not problems but things that have to be done, said Foht.

The Highway 16 development is being marketed as an opportunity to expand retail capacity for the growth that is expected to come with the opening of the Fairview Container Terminal in October of 2007.

Foht explained that the company is planning for two types of retailers in the development, large-box-type retailers, who will build their own stores and smaller commercial retailers who would rent from Royop.

The company will be building as many smaller commercial units as the market can absorb, he said.

We havent gone out yet to lease those smaller commercial units yet. Its really the anchor tenants, the large box tenants, that we are working on and they will build their own, he said.
We would prepare the site and level the site, put in the sewer and do the road work and then we would in turn have those large tenants build their own buildings. Then, we would build little restaurant pads little strip centres, whatever the market dictates we should build.

The company has still not announced who would be occupying the development, thought to be as many as five large stores, however Royops web site continues to show Canadian Tire as one of the proposed outlets, occupying 4.5 acres of the site.

The development has caused some controversy locally. Some people really want to see shopping dollars stopped from leaving the community for Terrace, while others feel the development on the highway will damage the downtown shopping area.

Some of Royops recent developments have featured tenants including Michaels, Petcetera, McDonalds, Wendys, Sleep Country, Burger King, Famous Players, Staples, Linens N Things, Future Shop, Moores, Marks Work Wearhouse, General Nutrition, Subway, Payless Shoes, Second Cup and Edo Japan among many others.