Power center set for Marana
Tucson Mall-sized project planned near future Twin Peaks interchange
The Arizona Daily Star, March 23, 2007
by Christie Smythe,
Hoping to cash in on traffic from a planned freeway interchange, a team of developers has proposed a 1.3 million square-foot retail "power center" in Marana.
The development, called Marana Spectrum, would be nestled on a nearly 170-acre site along Interstate 10 at Camino de Mañana adjacent to the future Twin Peaks interchange.
"We think the market in that area is underserved right now," said Trey Eakin, senior vice president of development for the Barclay Group in Scottsdale, which is developing the project with Kimco Developers Inc.
The Barclay Group is also the developer for the Tucson Spectrum, which is coming to Interstate 19 and Irvington Road.
Marana Spectrum, which has an estimated price tag of at least $100 million, is expected to have roughly 100 stores, including at least three anchors of more than 100,000 square feet, according to Eakin.
The total square footage would be about the same size as the Tucson Mall.
Eakin said no tenants have yet been secured for the development, but he said the shopping center is intended to be "fairly upscale" with a number of specialty retailers, restaurants and "hopefully, a theater."
Construction on Marana Spectrum is expected to begin in 2008 and would be completed by 2010, soon after the interchange's scheduled 2009 completion date, Eakin said.
The development still faces review by the Marana Planning Commission and the Marana Town Council, but it is consistent with the town's General Plan, which designates the area around I-10 as a "corridor of commerce," said Marana planner Tim Bolton.
The Marana Spectrum project "is exciting from my standpoint," said Ed Stolmaker, president and CEO of the Marana Chamber of Commerce. "That type of growth is something that's going to help the town."
A large shopping center in the midst of Marana's still largely open spaces might be a jarring sight, however, he said.
"It will definitely change the landscape," he said.
Another large-scale commercial center is also planned nearby at the northwest corner of I-10 and West Tangerine Road.
At that location, Phoenix-based developer Westcor owns 295 acres where it intends to built a mixed-use complex.
The complex may include department stores, specialty stores and an auto mall, said Karen Maurer, Westcor Shopping Center's assistant vice president for development marketing.
Other details are not available because the development is still in the "very early site-planning phase," she said.
Contact reporter Christie Smythe at 434-4083 or
