Lease indicates Kohl’s is coming to Mount Pleasant
By Kathleen Dayton , Staff Writer

Kohl’s, the Ohio-based department store chain, signed a ground lease Monday with Avtex Commercial Properties Inc. of Greenville. Avtex is the developer of The Market at Oakland in Mount Pleasant.

Jason Smallwood, leasing agent for Avtex, confirmed that negotiations with Kohl’s had been finalized.

“That is a done deal,” he said.

Officials with the department store chain have not yet announced their plans to build in the area.

Anne Simaytis, a public relations coordinator for the chain, said Kohl’s has an ongoing real estate assessment process and is constantly reviewing sites in communities nationwide.

“When we have firm details, we are happy to share them,” she said.

Kelli Ramey, the chain’s manager of public relations, said Kohl’s normally announces new store plans just prior to store openings, which take place in spring and fall.

Jeff Ball, commercial plan reviewer for the town of Mount Pleasant, said Kohl’s had submitted an application for a building permit and he estimates it could be ready by mid-March.

“They have gone through the planning department’s required review in order to get approval for their conceptual plans, how the building looks and its size,” Ball said.

Kohl’s plans nearly 90,000 square feet of retail space on a 10-acre site at The Market at Oakland, which is located on U.S. Highway 17 near Park West.

Simaytis said Kohl’s department stores normally hire about 150 full- and part-time employees. The chain currently has 817 stores in 45 states, including seven stores in South Carolina, where its presence has been on the increase. New stores are set to open this spring in Florence and Rock Hill, Simaytis said. The chain opened a store in Myrtle Beach last October and launched its Summerville store in 2004.

Kohl’s had net sales of $13.4 billion in 2005. Sales for 2006 have not been released, but sales for the five-week period ended Dec. 30, 2006, increased 11.2% from the same period in 2005.

Simaytis said Kohl’s looks for communities with a high concentration of families and children. The chain will join a 185,000-square-foot Wal-Mart anchoring The Market at Oakland.

“Mount Pleasant is a market that a lot of retailers want to be in,” said Smallwood, the AVTEX leasing agent. “Most retailers are very aware of this market.”

The Market at Oakland broke ground in November 2004 and will be built in four phases on 75 acres, Smallwood said. Kohl’s and Wal-Mart are so far the only retailers who have signed leases.

“We’re just getting to see who’s interested in the center,” Smallwood said. “I certainly hope it attracts a mixture of national and local tenants, something that really helps the Mount Pleasant area.

The area’s burgeoning population will soon support two Wal-Marts in the area, as the discount giant plans to keep its existing Mount Pleasant store near the intersection of U.S. Highway 17 and Interstate 526 open along with the new store.

Wal-Mart, Kohl’s and any other retailer locating in the The Market at Oakland will be part of a master plan approved by Avtex and Mount Pleasant Town Council. Buildings in the project must develop facades that follow specific architectural design criteria.

The Market at Oakland is a village concept with 415,000 square feet planned for retail space and 273,400 square feet of space reserved for offices and economic development. A Wachovia bank branch office is also part of the project and is under construction at the corner of U.S. Highway 17 and Porchers Bluff Road

The Market at Oakland is being constructed on part of a former plantation with a home dating from 1859 that is still a private residence. The home and grounds are being preserved and the plans for the retail project are focused on preserving open space. More than 200 acres of the plantation property has been placed in a conservation easement.

as provided by Charleston Regional Business Journal