Garden City Center unveils multi-phase expansion/redevelopment

The Wilder Companies, management company for Garden City Center, Rhode Island's premier outdoor shopping venue, has detailed a multi-phased strategy to expand, reconfigure and redevelop the historic shopping center. Construction of a new 20,000 s/f building begins an extension of the iconic Village that will eventually turn former large format retail space into a mix of mid-size and smaller specialty stores. Later phases include construction of several new restaurant spaces and improved traffic and pedestrian links to the Whole Foods Market section of the center. Phase I extends Garden City's "Village" to the south with the addition of the new 20,000 s/f building immediately adjacent to Papa Razzi. The new space will be home to two premier national retailers. At the same time, the iconic Garden City gazebo will be transformed from the end-cap of the Village into the new focal point for the center. Construction is anticipated to break ground in late spring with delivery of the space to retailers in late 2012. Phase II will see the conversion of previously occupied large format stores, located in the area that is now called the Commons, into smaller 3,000 to 10,000 s/f stores and restaurants. It is anticipated the Phase II construction will be complete by early 2013. Further phases will include the addition of new restaurants and redesigned connections to the Whole Foods Market section of the center. "These plans reflect the desires of shoppers who are looking for more retail options, while meeting the space demands of today's most desirable retailers. For many years, we've had a waiting list of retailers that wanted to open stores at Garden City Center, but we simply didn't have the appropriate space to accommodate them," said Thomas Wilder, a principal of The Wilder Companies. Building upon the 2011 openings of Anthropologie, Destination Maternity, Pinkberry and Ten Thousand Villages, and the soon-to-open Soma-Intimates and Edible Arrangements, new stores and store updates have also been announced. Women's specialty retailer Ann Taylor will open its second store in Rhode Island in July 2012. Williams-Sonoma has committed to expanding its presence at the center and will build a new store. Additionally, several other Garden City Center mainstays have entered into new, multi-year leases and will be performing major interior and exterior store renovations, including: Mel & Me, Starbucks, Providence Diamond Company, Hallmark and Yankee Candle. Located on Rte. 2, Garden City Center has 500,000 s/f of retail and office space. The center is currently home to 55 shops, services, and eateries.