The big box vacated by ShopKo on South Virginia in early 2006 finally found a tenant Whole Foods Market able to absorb almost all of the space.
But 31,000 square feet of that big box in the Del Monte Plaza remains vacant.
Tenants are lined up but not yet finalized, says Matt Holmes, principal at Retail West Inc., the building's owner. Retail West is an investor in Reno Prism Partners, based in San Francisco. The retail tenants,
Holmes adds, will be new names to the Reno area.
Retail West purchased the building while ShopKo was still resident, says Holmes, but with arrangements made for their exit. Meanwhile, the company had been in talks with Whole Foods Market from the first.
"It just takes time for them to open a new store," he says.
Even a store the size of Whole Foods Market found the sheer size of just part of the ShopKo building daunting. "The building was very deep," says Holmes. Whole Foods Market cut off 10,000 square feet in front, converted to outdoor patio seating.
Kimco Realty Corp. of New Hyde Park, N.Y., owns the 36,600 square feet of shop space at the center, which will sport a vacancy as Mattress Store is closing its doors. (The building occupied by the Macy's Home
Store and Office Max is not included in the Kimco holdings.)
