Shoppers Square project planned

Shopper's Square Investment Holdings, LLC, a newly formed venture headed by managing member Real Estate Affiliates Inc., has purchased 7.84 acres of land from R&E Development adjacent to Shoppers Square for redevelopment into mixed-use retail space, says Ben Kieckhefer, public relations manager for Innerwest Advertising Agency and a spokesman for Shoppers Square Investment Holdings.

Kieckhefer says the majority of the parcel, 5.64 acres immediately east of the existing shopping center, will be redeveloped into a 64,000-square-foot retail center with several different footprints that could house up to 11 new establishments.

The space can be subdivided with three larger tenants claiming between 14,000 and 20,000 square feet each, and the remaining 12,000 to be split among six to eight smaller tenants.

Redevelopment plans also include existing retail buildings east of the McDonald's at 305 E. Plumb Lane, Kieckhefer says. Terms of the sale were not disclosed, nor were the names of any potential tenants.

Twenty-two houses owned by the Casazza family will be torn down to make way for the new retail development, which will be managed by Shoppers Square Investment Holdings LLC. Homeowners have 90 days to clear out.

"They have been on short-term leases for a long time," Kieckhefer says. "This property has been eyed for redevelopment for years."

Initial site work is targeted for February, and the owners hope to have the retail center open in time for the 2008 holiday season.

"This is an area of Reno that is being redeveloped in many different areas," Kieckhefer says. "Plumb and Virginia is a pretty big intersection, and it's nice to be part of something to help rejuvenate that part of town."

Rick Casazza of Colliers International represented R&E Development, and Roxanne Stevenson of Colliers International represented the buyer.