Target says deal for Detroit location is dead, but developer disagrees

[Airforceguy]

Target says deal for Detroit location is dead, but developer disagrees

Target Corp. says it has abandoned its plan to build a small-format location at a key Detroit intersection, but the developer behind the project says the store is still happening.
In a statement to Crain’s Tuesday evening, a spokesperson for the Minneapolis-based retail giant said that due to “ongoing delays and complications” getting the project at Woodward and Mack avenues out of the ground, the company is “no longer pursuing a store in this location.” The statement did not elaborate, and it’s not known whether the company is exploring other sites that could become Target’s only outpost in Detroit.Farmington Hills-based City Club Apartments LLC, run by Jonathan Holtzman, is the developer of that portion of the broader South of Mack Avenue development site at Woodward and Mack. The site is about seven acres, while City Club's portion — which is envisioned to have more than 300 residential units and other uses — is about 2.4 of that.



In a statement Tuesday evening, Holtzman said the project is still moving forward — with Target.

"We have a legally binding lease," Holtzman's statement through a spokesperson said. "We don’t have a letter from Target expressing their intent to cancel or modify the lease. We continue to move forward with our plans for this exciting mixed-use apartment and penthouse development.”

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-e...oper-disagrees

[401don]

My money is on Target backing out of it. Even if there is no specified date on the lease, a judge can rule what is reasonable.

[313WX]

If Target says it's dead, then it's dead. They have no reason to lie about this.

[casscorridor]

Entirely predictable. Target is in the process of closing several locations in major urban centers including in New York and San Francisco due to high retail theft. And those are locations which probably generate far greater revenue per square foot than the proposed Detroit store ever would.

Until crime is under control, don't expect Target to open up in Detroit.

[Danny]

The deal is already dead. Target is not interested to built their store on the corner of Woodward Ave and Mack Ave. leave that corner space to Meijers.

[Richard]

Entirely predictable. Target is in the process of closing several locations in major urban centers including in New York and San Francisco due to high retail theft. And those are locations which probably generate far greater revenue per square foot than the proposed Detroit store ever would.

Until crime is under control, don't expect Target to open up in Detroit.

I have not seen reports of what is happening in those cities,happening in Detroit,if it was it would be all over the national news 24/7 because it is Detroit.

We are in a recession and companies that expanded to take advantage of the last 10 years of good returns are now tightening their belts everywhere,it’s just the cycle,it will pass.

Target is saying the deal is dead,the building owner says,you have a lease,he does not care if they sell one candy bar as long as he gets paid.

But thats the situation that you do not want,because Target can sit on that location,pay their lease which never allows anybody else to open in that spot,so it stays empty.

Because those anchor tenants have a lease for 10-20-30 years and they may close that location,but they still keep the lease and let it sit empty so the competition cannot establish there.

That is a part of their value as a company,not that they are paying rent and keeping the space empty it becomes a loss,that space has a marketable value per sqft,so on the books it is a asset,it does not matter if they do not sell anything at a certain point.

We already see what happens to malls etc that lose their anchor tenants,they become dead pieces of real estate.

Krogers is expanding and closing stores in Michigan,but the thing is,where I am at there are no Krogers,but you see their trucks making deliveries everywhere,I am not sure what their impact is on other brick and mortar stores locally but a lot of these supermarkets may be taking a step back and seeing if the grocery delivery has the same impact as online shopping like everything else.

Win-Dixie was a long established super market in Florida,for decades,they were bought out by Aldi which is also planning expansion in Michigan.

It seems like supermarket chains are like the banks and gas stations,every ten years they do a major reshuffling of brands and names.

I agree crime and what is happening,not so much the theft but look at what has happened in the last month with the major brawls at the malls,that element has destroyed many a mall.

But in this case it a smaller footprint and easier to manage and control.

I had to fly out to San Francisco a couple of weeks ago,every product in the store I went to was behind plexiglass,this was a major chain box store,I cannot even fathom wanting to live like that let alone operate a business under those conditions.

I have been in 3rd world craphole countries that did not go to those extremes.

Any urban environment has a level of violence,but again I am not seeing those extremes coming out of Detroit.

Detroit has its issues but from an outsiders view it has a lot of redeeming qualities and potential and given the the choice of San Francisco or Detroit,I would pick Detroit,outside of my coffee cup from Alcatraz which was a cool visit in-between my tasks,no way in hell I would even think about actually living there.

[JonWylie]

Entirely predictable. Target is in the process of closing several locations in major urban centers including in New York and San Francisco due to high retail theft. And those are locations which probably generate far greater revenue per square foot than the proposed Detroit store ever would.

Until crime is under control, don't expect Target to open up in Detroit.

That's what they are saying publicly, but it may not be entirely true.

Target store closures: Theft and crime higher nearby [[cnbc.com)

• Target blamed theft and violence when it closed nine stores in four cities earlier this year, but a CNBC investigation found reported crime is worse at most of the locations it kept open near those stores.
• In some cases, Target chose to keep operating stores in busier areas that had better foot traffic or higher median incomes, even though the locations saw more theft and violence.
• CNBC’s findings cast doubt on Target’s explanation for the store closures and raise questions about whether the company’s announcement was designed to advance its legislative agenda and obscure poor financial performance.

[djtomt]

• CNBC’s findings cast doubt on Target’s explanation for the store closures and raise questions about whether the company’s announcement was designed to advance its legislative agenda and obscure poor financial performance.

This is probably the most accurate assessment. Not trying to say that theft isn't a problem, but I think a lot of retailers are overstating its impact and using it as a reason to close stores they would otherwise leave open for "optics" reasons, even if those particular stores aren't profitable.

Brick and mortar retail is in big trouble [[I know...thanks Captain Obvious). Maybe time to reimagine the ground floor piece of some of these developments.