Burlington Stores signs Westdale lease

Burlington Stores, a national off-price retailer with 567 stores in 45 states and Puerto Rico, has signed a lease for a 40,400-square-foot anchor store at Westdale.

Construction has begun on the store, which will located east of Younkers, with a projected opening in the fall. It will be the only Burlington in the Corridor and one of three in Iowa.

'We have foundation in the ground and I believe they are pouring some vertical walls,” said Lisa Rowe, vice president, retail and Westdale general manager.

Burlington will offer ladies' dresses, suits, sportswear, juniors, accessories, menswear, family footwear and children's clothing. It also will carry an assortment of furniture and accessories for babies, home decor and gifts, along with a large selection of coats.

Westdale developer Frew Development Group has retained Builtech Construction, ADA Architects and YTT Design as the lead team for the Burlington project.

Westdale Executive Vice President Todd Nelson said Burlington is the first of Westdale's new anchor stores and is an important validation of the $90 million redevelopment of Westdale.

'Burlington is joining J.C. Penney and Younkers, and will serve as an important part of our redevelopment,” Nelson said. 'We thank the Burlington team for their hard work.”

Rowe said the signing of Burlington, coupled with the recent lease extension signed by Younkers, will help speed up negotiations with other prospective tenants.

'With long-term commitments from three strong national brand anchors, it allows us to accelerate deals with several additional retailers, including a new-to-market junior anchor,” Rowe said. 'We have a signed letter of intent and a lease in our hands. We are working on final lease negotiations.”

The junior anchor retailer would occupy about 25 percent of the 99,000-square-foot former Von Maur building.

The Cedar Rapids City Council on Tuesday was asked by Frew Development Group to approve changes to Westdale's master plan. The changes eliminate a parking area in front of the former Von Maur building, based on negotiations with several proposed tenants that require parking in proximity to their buildings.

The updated master plan for the mixed-use development will have 151 fewer parking spaces, primarily due to creation of eight new bio cells, a green infrastructure feature that improves water quality.

The revised pedestrian plan includes over three miles of pedestrian walkways, or 16,072 lineal feet. That exceeds the 8,853 lineal feet minimum in the existing development agreement between the city and Frew.

'We have initial space for approximately 10 to 15 specialty retailers,” Rowe said. 'Our focus becomes moving those deals to completion.

'The momentum is in our favor and I think we will see a lot of other things fall in place very soon.”