Gateway Marin

Shopping center destined to become heart of the community; new leases announced

Rossmoor, CA (May 19, 2016) – Last night, Walnut Creek’s beloved Rossmoor Shopping Center received approval from the Walnut Creek Design Review Commission (DRC), the third of three approvals necessary to begin the Center’s dramatic redevelopment, destined to make it the heart of the surrounding community and influencer of shopping patterns. Previously the Center received unanimous support from the Walnut Creek City Council and the Walnut Creek City Planning Commission. There will be further refinements to access and circulation and landscaping, etc. However, the Ownership’s redevelopment plans and re-zoning are now formally approved and entitled and the project can move forward. The project will also include a Public Art component and the DRC provided guidance as to the locations of this unique component of the project.

Tallen Capital Partners, LLC and Citivest Commercial, LLC, along with their equity partner, led this 30 month redevelopment planning and leasing process. Expected to take approximately 15 months, this phased redevelopment includes a refreshed facade, drive-through pharmacy, fashion-forward boutique shops and charming restaurants. The revived center will be dotted with plazas for friends and family gatherings, hundreds of new trees, lush plantings, beautiful lighting, highly accessible parking and more. Ground breaking is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2016 with completion expected in the fourth quarter of 2017 or the first quarter of 2018. The architectural design team is led by veteran Bay Area architect Norman Sears of SGPA’s San Francisco office.

Recent lease signings include:

  • New long-term lease with Safeway, an existing tenant
  • New long-term lease with CVS Pharmacy, an existing tenant who will move to a new pad location that includes a drive thru for consumers’ convenience
  • A new long term lease with local Rossmoor retirement community stakeholders and realtors Better Homes & Gardens, an existing tenant who will move to a new, completely renovated location
  • A long-term lease with Starbucks, a new 2,000 square foot prototypical store with a drive thru

“We are very pleased to have been granted the re-zoning and entitlements and we’ve worked very closely with the community and the city of Walnut Creek for the past two and a half years to bring the entitlements for this redevelopment to fruition,” said Mr. Tallen, principal, Tallen Capital Partners. “We’re thrilled to bring in compelling new shops and restaurants making this a destination for both the local community and the entire East Bay. We have developed a wonderful working relationship with the community and feel privileged to be the team, which after 50 plus years, will transform the Rossmoor Shopping Center into a suburban oasis to serve not only the Rossmoor retirement community but also the young families, daily commuters and residents of Walnut Creek Lafayette, Alamo and surrounding neighborhoods. In addition, we are delighted that the project was approved just prior to our International Council of Shopping Centers conference next week and we anticipate increased leasing velocity.”

“We’re delighted by the care that has been put into revitalizing this center,” said Walnut Creek Mayor Loella Haskew, “and we appreciate the dedicated approach taken by Mr. Tallen and Mr. Belden, Citivest Commercial, LLC, chief operating officer, to ensure that this renovation meets the needs of the many people who call the Tice Valley home.”

“We listened to the community, the Planning commission, the Design Review Commission and as a result are adding 270 new trees, 60 bicycle racks and approximately 29,000 square feet of new anchor tenants and shops,” said Mr. Belden. “We will reconfigure the shopping center and are adding lifestyle and health related components via a well-planned interconnectivity between the plazas, landscaping and retail and restaurants.”

About Tallen Capital Partners, LLC
Tallen Capital Partners, LLC, specializes in repositioning retail and mixed-use properties and invests in value added properties located in high growth corridors and coastal communities with high barriers to entry. The firm is led by Terrence Tallen, a 30-year veteran in retail real estate development and investment industry and one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s leading retail acquirers, investors and developers. A representative sampling of Mr. Tallen’s projects include: Napa Tahoe Crossings and 649 Beck Avenue in Fairfield; The Gateway Retail Center in Southern Marin County, Rossmoor Shopping Center in Walnut Creek; Oliver Road Multifamily Redevelopment and Marina Landings Shopping Center in Marina, which includes the only Walmart to be developed on the Monterey Peninsula.

About Citivest
Citivest is a full service real estate investment company specializing in adding value and achieving excellent returns for its investors through strategic acquisitions, ground-up development, and property repositioning, including renovation, leasing, and management improvements. Dwight Belden, chief operating officer directs the operational and transactional activities of the firm’s projects with more than 30 years of development and investment experience in the Western United States.

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