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PROFILE OF MACON, GEORGIA’S RETAIL MARKET
Updated for March, 2009

The Macon retail market can be divided into 6 main areas: North Macon, East Macon, South Macon, Macon Mall Area, West Macon, and Sub-South. According to Fickling & Company’s annual survey of over 8 million square feet in Bibb County, the overall retail market currently supports about a 75% occupancy rate. However, much of the vacancy is attributed to aged big box buildings and poorly positioned centers with vacant anchor space. Over the last few years the retail segment incurred significant growth, especially in March 2008 with the opening of Shoppes at River Crossing, a 750,000 square foot development in north Macon.

North Macon AreaNorth Macon Area

In 2006, Bass Pro Shops opened a 130,000 square foot retail store adjacent to their 430,000 square foot distribution facility near the Bass Road/I-75 interchange. This ignited the area’s transition into what many believe will be middle Georgia’s premier destination retail corridor.

Jim Wilson & Associates and General Growth partnered to open Shoppes at River Crossing, a 750,000 square foot retail development located at the Riverside Drive/I-75 interchange one mile south of the Bass Road interchange, in March 2008. Dillards, Barnes & Noble, Bonefish Grill, Cold Water Creek, Talbots, Ann Taylor Loft, Gymboree, and Christopher and Banks are some of the initial retailers in the project. Additional stores joined the center in the fall of 2008 including Belk, Ulta and DSW. A 20,231 sq. ft. space was completed for Circuit City at the same time however the retailer liquidated before opening in the space. Dick’s Sporting Goods is constructing a store next door for a planned summer 2009 opening. This spring Gap/Gap Kids joined the list of approximately 60 retailers and restaurants now in the shopping center.

New businesses continue to join Fickling and Company’s retail development anchored by Bass Pro Shops on Bass Road at the I-75 Interchange. New to the project, which is planned to total 500,000 square feet when complete, are McDonalds, Zaxby’s, J. Christopher Restaurant and Piedmont Bank. BB&T Bank and a national suites hotel chain have purchased parcels for development at the interchange. Additionally, a large national retailer has made a commitment to Phase Two of the project, named North Macon Plaza, and negotiations continue with several junior anchors and other retailers and restaurants for the development.

The newest retail project in north Macon is Bass Plantation, a 66,000 square feet retail development, is opening Summer of 2009 with Publix as the anchor in the southwest quadrant of the Bass Road and I-75 interchange. Mellow Mushroom and a Mexican restaurant have freestanding buildings under construction on outparcels adjacent to the center.

Macon Mall AreaMacon Mall Area

The Wal-Mart located at Westgate Shopping Center at the corner of Pio Nono and Eisenhower Parkway (US 80) relocated to the I-475 interchange on Eisenhower Parkway. Thus began the shift of retail to the western Eisenhower Pkwy area between Macon Mall and I-475. In 2005, Home Depot, which was also located at Westgate Shopping Center, vacated the area to join other major big boxes at Eisenhower Crossing. There are currently over 800,000 square feet of vacant big box space along the Eisenhower Parkway corridor from Pio Nono Ave. to Bloomfield Road.

Macon Mall added several new in-line retailers including Cinnabon, Anna’s Linens, a skate shop and new fashion forward apparel tenants. The mall also saw major changes over the past 18 months beginning with the purchase and subsequent closing of Parisian department store by Belk Stores, Inc. This was followed by the Fall 2008 relocation of Dillards department store to Shoppes at River Crossing then the closing of Linens N Things and Steve and Barry’s as part of nationwide liquidation programs. Old Navy consolidated its mall store into the nearby Eisenhower Crossings location.

The 500,000 square foot Eisenhower Crossing Power Center completed an 80,000 square foot addition in the Fall of 2006 adjacent to Home Depot. Major tenants in the expansion include HH Gregg and PetsMart. Tenants already located in the original development include Target, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Best Buy, Michael’s, Kroger and Ross. Early this year Goody’s vacated their location in the center as a part of a chain-wide liquidation.

West Macon AreaWest Macon Area

Some development activity has taken place on the west side of the Zebulon Road/I-475 interchange. CVS, Zaxby’s, and Auto Zone have opened on out-parcels at the front of Shoppes at Ansley, an existing 23,450 square foot strip center constructed by Opus Development near the entrance to their Ansley apartment complex. A 13,000 square foot small strip center has been constructed across Zebulon Road from this development. While vacancy on the east side of I-475 at Zebulon is approximately 8%, the most recently constructed 35,000 square feet of retail space just west of the Zebulon Road/I-75 interchange has a much higher vacancy rate.

Sub-South Hartley Bridge Road AreaSub-South Area

The significant residential growth in the sub-south Macon market, which spills over into north Houston and Peach counties along I-75, has spurred retail development in the area. Moon Family Properties has announced a 150-acre retail development, Hartley Station, to be located on the west side of the I-75 and Hartley Bridge Road interchange. Businesses who have joined the project early are McDonald’s, Zaxby’s and Waffle House. Several other businesses are negotiating to go in the project including restaurants, a bank and a grocery store. A few small unanchored retail strips have been built by local developers on the east side of this interchange near the existing Kroger-anchored center.

Summary

New retail developments in north and sub-south Macon, coupled with the restaurants and small shops that typically follow, have created excitement in the Macon retail market. However, this growth will create vacancies as retailers reevaluate their positions in the market and some decide to make strategic relocations within the area. A survey of over 8 million square feet of retail in the Macon area at the end of 2008 reveals a current market retail vacancy rate of around 25%. Indicated vacancy rates for specific areas are given below.

Area Square Footage Surveyed 2009 Available Sq. Ft. Percent Vacant
East Macon 866,000 121,900 14.1%
Macon Mall Area 4,120,000 1,402,000 34%
North Macon 1,700,000 310,000 18.2%
South Macon 436,900 57,800 13.22%
Sub-South Macon 201,500 17,000 8.45%
Vineville-Forsyth 420,000 54,000 12.96%
West Macon 311,000 37,000 11.90%
TOTAL 8,055,400 1,999,700 24.8%


This report was written by Larry Crumbley, CCIM, SIOR, CPM, CRE and Hazel Dennis.

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