Earlier today Stirling Properties, CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. (NYSE: CBL), City/Parish President Joey Durel and other dignitaries commemorated the groundbreaking of Ambassador Town Center, an approximately 425,000 square-foot shopping center anchored by Costco Wholesale. Other major retailers include, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Field & Stream, Marshalls, HomeGoods, Nordstrom Rack, Off Broadway Shoes, Chuy’s, Panera Bread, Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, World of Beer and Blaze Pizza. Most of the retailers committed to the project are either first-time locations within Lafayette or Louisiana, or both. The 58-acre site is located at the corner of Ambassador Caffery Parkway and Kaliste Saloom Road. Construction began this month with a projected opening of March 2016.
“Stirling Properties is excited about our partnership with CBL to develop Ambassador Town Center and believes that this joint venture brings the best possible team together to build this project,” said Stirling Properties’ Senior Vice President of Development Townsend Underhill. “We know this site to be an excellent location for a retail development in this market and we are happy to continue our long and successful development history in the City of Lafayette.”
“Ambassador Town Center is well-located and has attracted a best-in-class retail line-up even before construction commenced,” said Michael Lebovitz, CBL’s Executive Vice President – Development and Administration. “We are pleased to partner with Stirling Properties on this project and are looking forward to announcing additional retailers as the development progresses.”
Ambassador Town Center is expected to create approximately 2,200 construction jobs, 1,000 permanent jobs and generate nearly $9 million annually in sales taxes for the City of Lafayette.
“This project is a sign of Lafayette’s strong economy and our willingness to work with the private sector for needed infrastructure in our community,” stated Joey Durel, Lafayette City-Parish President. “Retailers like those that have committed will be a regional draw for Lafayette, and the public infrastructure that will be built with this project, providing a route parallel to Ambassador Caffery, is necessary for one of the fastest growing areas in the state of Louisiana. Companies make decisions on where to locate based on long-term projections. This decision says that they have confidence in the future of our area.”
“This investment is a reflection of Lafayette’s economic strength and success over the past 15 years. It’s undeniable that entertainment sector, including retail, is one of the pillars of Lafayette’s economic base. Entertainment contributed $2.4 billion to Lafayette’s GDP in 2012; and over the past 10 years the entertainment sector’s GDP has grown 62 percent,” states Gregg Gothreaux, President and CEO of Lafayette Economic Development Authority. “The Ambassador Town Center development will be a shopping destination, not only for local residents but for the region, magnifiying its economic impact.”
For leasing information, please contact: Ryan Pecot, 337.572.0246 or rpecot@stirlingprop.com, or Rodney Gordon, 423.553.8704 or rodney.gordon@cblproperties.com.
