Tampa Premium Outlets is no longer just wishes and speculation.
There are still lots of questions, however, about what tenants will fill the 441,000 square feet of shopping space.
(Fred Bellet/Photo)
Bulldozers are moving earth, and walls are going vertical on what has been a shopping destination in the making going back more than decade.
Plans have changed through the years, but now an outlet center is on the horizon: Opening day is scheduled for late October, well in advance of the 2015 holiday season.
Shopaholics, of course, are eager to see the center’s anticipated 100-plus retailers open their doors.
Like other large enterprises, the outlet center also is expected to have some ripple effects on the local economy.
Businesses that can provide accessory goods or services are likely to benefit.
And, students at Pasco-Hernando State College’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch also could reap internships to help them in their studies or jobs to help cover their expenses.
Simon Property Group, the mall’s developer, has estimated that the project will yield 300 to 500 construction jobs and as many as 800 retail jobs, once the outlet center opens.
Hope Allen, executive director for the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, is looking forward to the center’s arrival.
“We are very excited about it,” Allen said.
While the mall may create some new opportunities for local businesses, Allen doesn’t foresee a huge jump in chamber membership.
“Typically big corporations don’t join as individuals of chambers,” Allen said.
“We want the benefits to be for our members, and it means they have opportunities to do ancillary products,” she said.
One company, Signarama of New Tampa-Wesley Chapel, already has experienced a benefit.
It produced display boards that were used during the mall’s groundbreaking ceremony, Allen said.
The chamber executive anticipates similar opportunities will materialize for local businesses as the project moves forward.
While no information is available yet about the tenant mix that the outlet center will offer, Simon Property Group announced more than two years ago that Saks Off Fifth Fashion Outlet would anchor the center. And, Danielle DeVita, senior vice president of the company’s Premium Outlet Group, confirmed that during the December groundbreaking.
Simon Property Group has more than 80 Premium Outlets worldwide with a mix of upscale retailers such as Banana Republic, Diane Von Furstenberg, DKNY, Dior, Burberry and J. Crew.
The outlet mall is a major feature within the proposed Cypress Creek Town Center, a master-planned community with three developers working on different residential and commercial phases of the project.
This project isn’t the only thing kicking up dirt along the State Road 56 corridor, near Interstate 75.
Mercedes Benz is building a dealership on the east side of the interchange, Richard E. Jacobs Group and Sierra Properties are working on plans for more retail, and an ice hockey and skating complex is on the drawing board.
Stanley Giannet, provost at Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, sees new opportunities arising for students at the PHSC campus.
Besides internships and jobs, there may be scholarships, too, Giannet said.
The college offers associate degrees in areas such as business administration, business operations and marketing. All are relevant to Pasco County’s retail growth, including the outlet mall, Giannet said.
“It’s going to have a positive effect for students on campus and the community at large,” Giannet said.
Besides leading the college, Giannet was named Business Leader of the Year and Honorary Mayor of Wesley Chapel in 2014 by the Wesley Chapel chamber. He also serves on the chamber’s board of directors.
He envisions future partnerships between college faculty, chamber members, store representatives and the developer that will benefit everyone and contribute to the outlet center’s success.
“I’m looking forward to doing outreach to them,” Giannet said.
Published February 11, 2015
