Town Square (Las Vegas)

Town Square
Looking south over Town Square, 2018
Map
LocationEnterprise, Nevada
Coordinates36°4′6″N 115°10′35″W / 36.06833°N 115.17639°W / 36.06833; -115.17639
Address6605 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, Nevada 89119
Opening dateNovember 14, 2007
DeveloperTurnberry Associates
Centra Properties
ManagementFairbourne Properties
OwnerTeachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America
Fairbourne Properties
ArchitectDevelopment Design Group
Alan J. Mayer Architect
No. of stores and services125+
No. of anchor tenants6
Total retail floor area1,200,000 sq ft (110,000 m2)
No. of floors2-3
Parking5,800[1][2]
Websitemytownsquarelasvegas.com

Town Square is an open-air shopping, dining, office, and entertainment center in Enterprise, Nevada, United States. It occupies approximately 100 acres (40 ha), located one mile south of the Las Vegas Strip. It was developed by Centra Properties and Turnberry Associates. Construction began in 2005, with Marnell Corrao Associates as general contractor. Town Square opened on November 14, 2007. It has 1.5 million square feet (140,000 m2), including 350,000 sq ft (33,000 m2) of office space. In 2017, Town Square was sold to Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America and Fairbourne Properties, with the latter also handling management.

History

Town Square occupies approximately 100 acres (40 ha),[3] and is located one mile south of the Las Vegas Strip. Centra Properties initially bought 57 acres from The Howard Hughes Corporation, with plans to build an industrial park. This project was scrapped when Centra partnered with Turnberry Associates to buy an adjacent 27 acres. The purchase was finalized in January 2004, and included the Vacation Village hotel-casino, which closed in 2002. Vacation Village occupied what is now the southeast corner of Town Square. Additional acreage was also acquired from Clark County.[4][5][6] The property's location was considered desirable; its proximity to the Strip would make it an ideal tourist spot, and the site is also adjacent to Interstate 15 and the Las Vegas Beltway, providing easy access for local residents.[7]

The companies announced Town Square, an outdoor mixed-use project, in May 2004. The project was designed by Development Design Group, which previously designed Easton Town Center in Ohio and CocoWalk in Florida.[4] Alan J. Mayer Architect, a Boston-based firm, also worked on the project, referring to older cities such as Barcelona, Boston, New York, Paris and San Francisco for inspiration.[8][9] Town Square blends historic and modern architecture; its buildings are made of brick, glass, stone, stucco, and terracotta.[10][1][9] Designers spent considerable time to ensure that each building has subtle differences to one another.[11] The project has a total of 22 buildings,[12] and Development Design Group created 70 different storefront facades.[1] The project also includes $15 million worth of landscaping,[5] including palm-lined streets,[1] and a $3 million children's park measuring 9,000 sq ft (840 m2).[12][2][13]

Construction of Town Square began in 2005, with Marnell Corrao Associates as general contractor.[10][5] Town Square was built along the west side of Las Vegas Boulevard; a $5 million[14] flyover ramp was built for northbound motorists, providing them easy access to Town Square without disrupting southbound traffic.[15][16]

Valued at $750 million,[13][17] Town Square was opened on November 14, 2007, amid the Great Recession.[18][19] It opened with 38 tenants,[20] while others debuted in 2008.[21] The recession inadvertently aided Town Square by delaying several competing projects: Downtown Summerlin, Great Mall of Las Vegas, and Tivoli Village.[20] Although it was built primarily for local residents, Town Square also quickly became popular with tourists.[22]

In 2010, the project's lenders initiated foreclosure proceedings. The Soffer family, which founded Turnberry, subsequently sued Lehman Brothers, alleging that it refused to provide financing as agreed.[23][24][25] Lenders foreclosed on Town Square in March 2011 and took over the property, leasing it to Forest City Enterprises for management purposes.[26] Turnberry retained ownership of some unfinished office space at Town Square.[27] Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA) and Chicago-based Fairbourne Properties purchased Town Square in January 2017, taking an 85- and 15-percent ownership stake respectively.[28][29] Fairbourne also took over management.[30] Dornin Investment Group bought out Turnberry's remaining office space in 2018.[27]

Tenants

Various storefronts at Town Square

A nearby Fry's Electronics store, located south of Town Square, was purchased by Turnberry and Centra to become part of the mixed-use project ahead of its opening.[10][12][15] The store originally opened in 2003,[31][32][33] and closed in 2021 as the company ended operations.[34] Town Square contains 1.5 million square feet (140,000 m2),[8] excluding the former Fry's building.[35]

Among Town Square's original anchor tenants was an 18-screen Rave Motion Pictures movie theater,[12] which has since become an AMC Theatres.[36] Other anchors have included Borders, H&M, Old Navy, and Whole Foods Market.[21][37] Borders ended operations in 2011, and its Town Square location was taken over by The Container Store a year later, marking the latter's debut in Nevada.[38][39]

Other notable retailers have included Abercrombie & Fitch, Aveda, Charming Charlie, Crabtree & Evelyn, Eddie Bauer, Juicy Couture, Lucky Brand, Tommy Bahama,[1][40] and Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th.[41] A 21,000 sq ft (2,000 m2) TJ Maxx store opened in 2019, replacing Staples.[42] Also included is a Raider Image team store for the Las Vegas Raiders football team.[43] While the team's Allegiant Stadium was under construction, the Raiders had a 7,500-square-foot stadium preview center at Town Square, featuring interactive exhibits, team memorabilia, and simulations of views from individual seats and a large-scale stadium model.[44]

Town Square opened with several restaurants,[45][46] including Yard House.[12] Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar opened a location at Town Square in 2014,[47][48] as did GameWorks.[49] The latter closed in 2021, when the company ended operations.[50]

Shear Madness, an interactive play, ran briefly at Town Square during 2009. It closed as a result of the Great Recession.[51] Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar, based in Texas, operated a Town Square location from 2009 to 2012.[52][53][54]

Town Square opened with 350,000 sq ft (33,000 m2) of office space, located above the retail space.[1][13] Notable office tenants have included Amazon.com, SolarCity, WeWork,[55][56] DraftKings,[57] and the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce.[13]

Upon opening, future plans for Town Square included a 270-room hotel.[1] TIAA and Fairbourne have also considered the addition of a hotel, which would be constructed on the property's northwestern area.[3] However, it remains unbuilt as of 2022.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Illia, Tony (November 17, 2007). "Town Square makes its south Strip debut". Las Vegas Business Press. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012.
  2. ^ a b Shriver, Jerry (November 2007). "Vegas visitors hit bull's eye with new Arrow". USA Today. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Millward, Wade Tyler (June 30, 2017). "Town Square improvement plans include hotel". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Smith, Hubble (May 22, 2004). "Developers pick Las Vegas, dub project 'lifestyle center'". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on November 11, 2004.
  5. ^ a b c Smith, Hubble (August 22, 2005). "Site work begins on Town Square project". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on December 21, 2005.
  6. ^ Shubinski, Jennifer (January 30, 2004). "Vacation Village site sold; retail development planned". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  7. ^ Shubinski, Jennifer (November 25, 2005). "New boom expected soon for LV malls". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Williams, Daniel D. (November 12, 2007). "22-Building Town Square Las Vegas Set to Open". GlobeSt. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "UNIQUE by design". Las Vegas Review-Journal. June 9, 2007. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  10. ^ a b c Illia, Tony (May 23, 2005). "New $400 million Strip urban village breaks ground". Las Vegas Business Press. Archived from the original on April 27, 2006.
  11. ^ Smith, Hubble (January 16, 2007). "Retail adds 7.4 million square feet". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on February 2, 2007.
  12. ^ a b c d e "Hip to be Square". Las Vegas Review-Journal. May 20, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  13. ^ a b c d Smith, Hubble (November 11, 2007). "And now, the Main attraction". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  14. ^ Smith, Hubble (November 15, 2007). "Full crowd for partial opening". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  15. ^ a b Smith, Hubble (May 29, 2006). "Construction under way for Town Square project". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on September 11, 2006.
  16. ^ "Town Square will build fly-over ramp to ease traffic woes". Las Vegas Business Press. May 22, 2006. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  17. ^ Curtis, Anthony (2007-11-04). "Town Square grand opening set". The Honolulu Advertiser. Retrieved 2015-10-10.
  18. ^ Friedman, Ann (October 27, 2014). "Executive Snapshop: Jaimesen Mapes, marketing director, Town Square". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  19. ^ Robison, Jennifer (November 14, 2007). "Town Square debuts but in less-than-auspicious times". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  20. ^ a b Hansel, Mark (April 17, 2009). "Town Square gets jump on its would-be mixed-use competitors". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  21. ^ a b Smith, Hubble (January 16, 2008). "New center still awaits three anchors". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  22. ^ Hodge, Damon (October 15, 2010). "Meant for locals, Town Square is popular Vegas tourist site". Travel Weekly. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  23. ^ Green, Steve (January 13, 2011). "Lenders seek to foreclose on Town Square mall in Las Vegas". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  24. ^ Edwards, John G. (January 14, 2011). "Lenders seeking to foreclose on Town Square". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  25. ^ Green, Steve (February 16, 2011). "Lehman Brothers won't oppose planned Town Square mall foreclosure". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  26. ^ Green, Steve (March 9, 2011). "Town Square foreclosed on, Forest City takes over leasing". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  27. ^ a b Segall, Eli (January 19, 2018). "Investors buy 129K square feet of office space at Town Square". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  28. ^ Segall, Eli (December 22, 2016). "Investors buying Town Square south of Las Vegas Strip, sources say". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  29. ^ Segall, Eli (January 30, 2017). "Town Square Las Vegas under new ownership". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  30. ^ Gurbal Kritzer, Ashley (January 30, 2017). "Tampa firm partners with TIAA to buy Vegas mall in massive real estate deal". Tampa Bay Business Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  31. ^ Jones, Chris (November 26, 2002). "Fry's plans to open by Christmas". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on November 18, 2005.
  32. ^ "Crowds in Store". Las Vegas Review-Journal. January 18, 2003. Archived from the original on January 12, 2005.
  33. ^ Smith, Hubble (February 1, 2003). "Fry's traffic boosts project's prospects". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on December 1, 2004.
  34. ^ Ng, Jonathan (February 24, 2021). "Fry's Electronics closing all stores, including Las Vegas location". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
  35. ^ Shubinksi, Jennifer. "Town Square is for real south of Mandalay". In Business Las Vegas. Archived from the original on 2006-05-19. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
  36. ^ Taylor, F. Andrew (January 15, 2014). "Town Square Las Vegas welcomes new additions". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  37. ^ "One-Stop Book Shop". Las Vegas Business Press. April 7, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  38. ^ Green, Steve (February 7, 2012). "The Container Store to enter Las Vegas market at Town Square". VegasInc. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  39. ^ Goldberg, Delen (May 10, 2012). "Q&A: Container Store CEO talks about Las Vegas economy, company's new store". VegasInc. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  40. ^ Carroll, Laura (October 18, 2012). "Shops thriving, tenants coming as Town Square nears five-year milestone". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  41. ^ Stapleton, Susan (March 10, 2015). "Two new Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th stores opening in Las Vegas". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  42. ^ Lilly, Caitlin (February 19, 2019). "T.J. Maxx opening at Town Square Las Vegas". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  43. ^ "The Raider Image Town Square Opens In Las Vegas". Retrieved 2018-02-05.
  44. ^ "Silver and black history: Stadium preview center in Vegas filled with Raiders memorabilia". Las Vegas Sun. 2018-02-03. Retrieved 2018-02-03.
  45. ^ Knapp Rinella, Heidi (November 15, 2007). "Town Square bringing new restaurants as well as some old favorites to location". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  46. ^ "Osteen set to bring his lowcountry cuisine to high rollers in Vegas". Nation's Restaurant News. July 10, 2007. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  47. ^ Segall, Eli (August 5, 2013). "Fleming's steakhouse opening at Town Square in Las Vegas". VegasInc. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  48. ^ Stapleton, Susan (January 17, 2014). "Fleming's Busts on the Scene at Town Square Today". Eater. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  49. ^ Knapp Rinella, Heidi (August 5, 2014). "Small Plates: Gameworks with restaurant opens in Town Square". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  50. ^ Ross, McKenna (December 27, 2021). "Las Vegas GameWorks complex at Town Square has closed". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  51. ^ Brown, Joe (July 16, 2009). "Critically praised 'Shear Madness' to end run, in Las Vegas anyway". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  52. ^ Rilling, Deanna (November 10, 2009). "Piano envy: Pete's Dueling Piano Bar". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  53. ^ Lax, Rick (November 18, 2009). "Pete's dueling pianos have migrated from Texas to Town Square". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  54. ^ Katsilometes, John (May 15, 2012). "Lid closes on Pete's Dueling Piano Bar at Town Square". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  55. ^ Totten, Kristy (August 15, 2013). "SolarCity opens Las Vegas headquarters at Town Square". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  56. ^ Segall, Eli (September 17, 2019). "Amazon, WeWork leasing office space at Town Square Las Vegas". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  57. ^ Horwath, Bryan (January 15, 2020). "DraftKings opens office at Town Square to 'deepen ties to Las Vegas'". VegasInc. Retrieved November 1, 2022.