The Wharf Reaches Record-Breaking Occupancy on Alabama Gulf Coast
The Wharf at Orange Beach, a popular shopping, dining and entertainment venue on the Alabama Gulf Coast, has reached a record-breaking total occupancy of 98% in 2021 — up from 93% in May 2020.
On the cusp of a completely full venue with only four unoccupied spaces remaining on The Wharf property, the growth has gained much interest from businesses in a range of sectors including restaurants, real estate, entertainment and retail. New tenants that have recently joined The Wharf family include Local Life OBA, Cool Shots Selfie Museum, HUK Performance Fishing Apparel, Southern Athletica, Poppy’s Boutique, Maho Shades, MA Beauty Lounge, Gulf Coast Athletics, Compass Media, the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber and The Wharf Welcome Center, The Spice & Tea Exchange, Murder Point Oysters, The Coastal Leaders Property Group, Coco LOUIE, Joanna A Boutique, Claremont Property Co., Wise Living Real Estate and more on the way that have yet to open. Nearly all are owned by area residents, making The Wharf one of the highest concentrations on the Gulf Coast of locally-owned businesses.
“As The Wharf enters its 15th year, we’re excited to welcome new establishments that will contribute to our continued success,” said Kristen Hammack, management team leader at The Wharf. “We are always looking for ways to better serve and meet the needs of both visitors and locals, and each of these new businesses brings something unique to our offerings. We pride ourselves in being a safe, family friendly venue where you can experience everything from getting married and purchasing a home to renown fishing tournaments, creative culinary options, unique shopping, energetic concerts and more — a place where ‘life’ happens.”
Tom Thumb also recently acquired and broke ground on 3.94 acres of land located at the intersection of Canal Road and Wharf Parkway East for the development of a convenience store and gas pumps. And just behind it, a 127,000 sq. ft. storage facility is currently under construction. The Wharf partnered with Jeff Barnes, broker with Stirling Properties, who is serving as the commercial leasing agent for the property and responsible for securing each of these new tenants.
“We are thrilled to work with The Wharf and welcome new businesses to Orange Beach. Despite the numerous struggles over the last year, the significance of this record-breaking occupancy for The Wharf truly demonstrates the resiliency of the community and the tenacity of locally-owned businesses, as well as the tremendous efforts of the entire team at The Wharf,” said Jeff Barnes, CCIM, senior investment advisor for Stirling Properties.
“The positive momentum is fostering new opportunities for the undeveloped parcels of The Wharf, like the new Tom Thumb and fast-serve establishments and self-storage facility. Our market dynamics and growth are very encouraging, and we are poised for continued success. We look forward to welcoming even more great tenants to The Wharf soon.”
Just last month, Shades Sunglasses and Casual Apparel, with 10 locations in four states across the Southeast, confirmed their highest-ever, single-day record in sales across all stores at its Wharf location. Shades owners, Joe and Mary Jernigan, have also recently opened HUK Performance Fishing Apparel and Coco LOUIE at The Wharf.
“Our sales during the car show a few weekends ago were higher than any Black Friday, Christmas, Memorial Day or other major-shopping holiday that we have seen,” said Joe Jernigan. “Because of the expected growth at The Wharf, we decided to open up two additional stores this year, and both businesses have already exceeded projected business model expectations. Shades at The Wharf has surpassed all other locations in sales and is on track for its best year ever since its inception in 2004 — up 30% from 2019.”
With this growth, The Wharf has made various infrastructure and general property updates along with a substantial upgrade to the nightly light show that now features state-of-the-art lasers named the SPECTRA Laser Light Experience. The spectacle is viewed by more than 115,000 visitors each year.
The Wharf Amphitheater, which was nominated for the 2019 Academy of Country Music Awards Outdoor Venue of the Year, has also received recent upgrades and will be welcoming back the C Spire Summer Concert Series this year with its first socially distant event kicking off on April 25 featuring NEEDTOBREATHE. Other top-charting industry artists are slated to perform in 2021 including the popular Luke Bryan, Jon Pardi, Brantley Gilbert, Brooks & Dunn and more.
Along with concerts, The Wharf is excited to safely welcome back annual events such as car shows, festivals, food events and holiday celebrations with more than 50 events slated for the remainder of 2021.
For the latest news and updates on what’s to come at The Wharf, visit alwharf.com, or follow along on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @thewharfoba. For commercial real estate information pertaining to The Wharf including executive office suites, traditional office suites, retail space and commercial sites for development, contact Jeff at 251-975-8222 or via email at jbarnes@stirlingprop.com.
About The Wharf
Located in beautiful Orange Beach, Ala., The Wharf is an official entertainment district with hundreds of family friendly events throughout the year. Enjoy shopping, drinks and dining at our 60+ unique stores, bars and restaurants. Stay onsite at the SpringHill Suites by Marriott hotel or Levin’s Bend Condominium, catch a movie at the 15-screen AMC Theatre, experience a trip around one of the Southeast’s largest Ferris wheels, take a train ride down Main Street, grab a game of mini golf, explore all that nature has to offer on a boating excursion or catch a nightly SPECTRA Laser Light Experience show — the options are endless. The 10,000-seat Wharf Amphitheater hosts a variety of well-known entertainers, and The Wharf Marina is home to some of the largest in-water boat shows and saltwater fishing tournaments on the Gulf. For more information or to book a reservation, visit alwharf.com.
A Stirling Salute
Stirling Properties celebrates success of Team Stirling & the company.
Stirling Properties hosted a virtual Stirling Salute last Friday to acknowledge and award the team and company’s remarkable success over the past year.
Marty Mayer, Stirling Properties’ President & CEO, kicked off the company-wide event recognizing the challenges of the past year and highlighting the team’s extraordinary adaptability and response. “Like most businesses, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, our commercial business slowed substantially. But we were able to pivot quickly, adapt to the challenges—which uniquely positioned us to take advantage of the resulting opportunities,” said Mayer.
He noted the favorable position the company is in today is due to the groundwork that’s been laid over the last ten years. “As a company, we took chances, made conscious decisions without having a clear view of the outcome but rather a vision of the future possibilities. That’s the reason we were able to respond to this crisis and all the crises before that. Our accomplishments are due to the collective efforts of the entire team. You have heard me say, ‘when opportunity comes, it’s too late to prepare.’ Conversely, ‘when challenges come, it’s too late to prepare.’ That certainly was never truer than in 2020.”
He and Stirling Properties’ partners thanked Team Stirling for their hard work and dedication. Brokerage Division Award recipients received recognition for Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Emerald and Ruby production levels based on individual adjusted gross commissions from 2020. Special acknowledgment was also given to Rhonda Sharkawy, Senior Retail Leasing and Development Advisor in New Orleans, for achieving the Top Commercial Producer Award —this is the 6th consecutive year she has earned this accolade.
Brokerage Awards
Ruby
Rhonda Sharkawy (Top Producer), New Orleans
Justin Langlois, Baton Rouge
Emerald
Lee de la Houssaye, Covington
Chad Rigby, Baton Rouge
Diamond
Charles Cornay, Lafayette
Nathan Handmacher, Mobile
Ryan Murphy, Covington
Jason Scott, Pensacola
Platinum
Jeff Barnes, Mobile
Steve Legendre, Baton Rouge
Ryan Pécot, Lafayette
Gold Award
Joe Gardner, New Orleans
Gaines Seaman, New Orleans
Silver Award
Thomas Bryan, New Orleans
Seth Citron, Lake Charles
Amanda Goldman, Mobile
Scott Macdonald, Baton Rouge
Bronze Award
Andrew Dickman, Mobile
Jim Dowling, Shreveport
Ben Graham, Baton Rouge
Griffin Lennox, New Orleans
Angie McArthur, Mobile
Karen McElroy, Shreveport
Stacy Odom, Shreveport
Tommy Parsons, Baton Rouge
Carly Plotkin, New Orleans
Saban Sellers, New Orleans
Dottie Tarleton, Baton Rouge
Also recognized were employees and agents who achieved special anniversaries with the company. Service Awards were given for 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45-year milestones.
Service Awards
45 Years of Service
Judy McKee – Covington
40 Years of Service
Michele Wallace – Covington
35 Years of Service
Marty Mayer – Covington
30 Years of Service
John Arthurs – New Orleans
25 Years of Service
Charles Cornay – Lafayette
20 Years of Service
Chris Abadie – Covington
Rhonda Creel – Covington
Beezie Landry – Covington
Patrick Malik – Covington
Ryan Pécot – Lafayette
Jeanne Taravella – Covington
15 Years of Service
Carri Creel – Covington
Lindsey Palmer – Covington
Dawn Plaisance – Covington
Tara Slater – Covington
Laura Wallace – Covington
10 Years of Service
Jason Babin – Lafayette
Carolyn Ciarrocchi – Lafayette
Gregory Gautreaux – New Orleans
Jimmy Gomez – New Orleans
Joseph Kimble – New Orleans
Solomon Lewis – New Orleans
Scott Macdonald – Baton Rouge
5 Years of Service
Jaime Burchfield – Covington
Bradley Cook – Covington
Jim Dowling – Shreveport
Amanda Goldman – Mobile
Jared Lauderdale – Covington
Carly Plotkin – New Orleans
Rebecca Pritchard – Lafayette
Lesia Richardson – New Orleans
Saban Sellers – New Orleans
Stirling Properties Welcomes Amazon to Fremaux Park in Slidell, Louisiana
Continuation of industrial expansion efforts in Fremaux mixed-use development
Amazon Logistics announced Thursday that it would build a delivery station at Fremaux Park in Slidell, Louisiana. Fremaux Park is the mixed-use property that includes Fremaux Town Center retail center, multiple multifamily developments, two hotels and the Dana Corporation Service center that will complement this project in the industrial park area.
Stirling Properties recently closed on the sale of a 30-acre land parcel for the construction of the 141,000-square-foot Amazon facility located at 1914 Town Center Parkway near the intersection of Old Spanish Trail. Groundbreaking and construction timing will be announced soon. The facility is expected to be open in early 2022.
Ryan Pécot, Senior Retail Leasing and Development Advisor with Stirling Properties, represented the landlord in the transaction.
Packages are shipped to delivery stations from nearby fulfillment and sorting centers and loaded onto trucks for final delivery to customers. This marks the first Amazon delivery station in St. Tammany Parish and the third in Louisiana. It is expected to house roughly 950 Amazon Prime vans to serve St. Tammany Parish and surrounding communities. There are 150 similar Amazon delivery stations across the U.S. Amazon said the new station would create hundreds of full- and part-time jobs.
“Stirling Properties is excited to officially welcome Amazon to Fremaux Park and provide an ideal location here in Slidell to house this facility—the first of its kind in St. Tammany Parish. This new delivery station is a continuation of our industrial real estate expansion efforts. Logistics, fulfillment and last-mile distribution centers will only play a more critical role in the future of retail and commercial real estate. We hope to attract more industrial facilities to the area to further bolster and support the economic growth of Slidell and our surrounding region,” said Townsend Underhill, President of Development for Stirling Properties.
Fremaux Park is part of the roughly 350-acre regional mixed-use development located at the southwest corner of Interstate 10 and Fremaux Avenue in Slidell, Louisiana. It includes Retreat at Fremaux Town Center luxury residential apartments, The Mason Fremaux Park apartment community (under construction), Springhill Suites by Marriott (under construction) and Dana Inc. Service & Assembly Center. The adjoining Fremaux Town Center, anchored by Dillard’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Kohl’s and Best Buy, includes more than 660,000 square feet of retail and restaurant options. Additional phases are forthcoming with added residential, retail, industrial and office park. Fremaux Park is a Stirling Properties development.
For leasing or sales information, contact Ryan Pécot at 337.572.0246 / rpecot@stirlingprop.com or Bradley Cook at 985.246.3720 / bcook@stirlingprop.com.
Mandina’s Restaurant Coming to Spanish Fort Town Center
Stirling Properties, in partnership with Cypress Equities, announces New-Orleans-based Mandina’s Restaurant will be joining the tenant lineup at Spanish Fort Town Center mixed-use development in South Alabama.
Mandina’s Restaurant has been a New Orleans institution since 1932, serving Italian and Cajun-Creole seafood, steaks and pasta. This marks the third location for Mandina’s Restaurant and the first outside of Louisiana. The original restaurant is located on Canal Street in New Orleans. A local franchisee opened the second Mandina’s on the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain in Mandeville, Louisiana, and is now venturing into Alabama. The newest Spanish Fort location will occupy 3,997 square feet of space located on Bass Pro Drive across from “The Fort” Container Park. Menu items and operation will closely resemble that of the Mandeville restaurant.
Angie McArthur, Broker Associate, and Jeff Barnes, Senior Investment Advisor/Broker Associate with Stirling Properties, serve as the leasing team for the property owners, Dallas-based Cypress Equities, and helped to secure the new restaurant for the center. The duo has worked with the overall Spanish Fort Town Center project since 2015.
“Stirling Properties is thrilled to welcome Mandina’s Restaurant to Spanish Fort Town Center and be a part of the evolution and growth of this dynamic community center. The addition of more great restaurants and retailers continues to attract patrons and diners to the development and benefits the surrounding retailers—this is a true destination location for everyone,” said McArthur. “We are proud of the great strides made to move this project forward—from Cypress Equities’ investment in the Pavilion and park to the revitalization of the small shops and the latest addition of The Fort. We look forward to welcoming more great tenants and amenities to Spanish Fort Town Center soon!”
Spanish Fort Town Center, anchored by Bass Pro Shops, Kohl’s, Cavender’s, La-Z-Boy, Urban Air Trampoline & Adventure Park and The Fort Container Park, is a 230-acre premier master-planned development located at the intersection of Interstate 10 and U.S. Highway 98 in Baldwin County. The center includes 450,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, a residential apartment community, office space, hotels, banks and entertainment options.
Over the last two years, Stirling Properties has helped to successfully secure more than 44,000 square feet of new leases for the retail center, adding Urban Air Trampoline and Adventure Park, Direct Furniture, Oishi Japanese Bar & Grill, Dixie Dental, The Fort restaurants and Cavender’s to the diverse tenant lineup. McArthur and Barnes are also currently in negotiations with various businesses that will add another 140,000 square feet of hotel and other uses.
For Spanish Fort Town Center leasing & sales information, contact Angie McArthur at (251) 375-2481 / amcarthur@stirlingprop.com or Jeff Barnes, CCIM, at (251) 375-2496 / jbarnes@stirlingprop.com.
Stirling Properties awarded leasing of Canal Place shopping center in New Orleans
Targeting high-end local & regional retailers to join strong national retail presence.
Stirling Properties, in partnership with O’Connor Capital Partners, has been awarded the leasing assignment for Canal Place, Downtown New Orleans’ premier shopping destination, located at 333 Canal Street on the edge of the historic French Quarter.
Anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue, Canal Place is a 3-story, 260,000-square-foot upscale shopping center featuring more than 30 retailers, including luxury fashion and beauty brands, boutique clothing stores and home goods, as well as restaurants, a food court and theater. The Canal Place tenancy boasts a dynamic mix of high-end national stores such as Louis Vuitton, Tory Burch, MCM, lululemon, Anne Fontaine, Anthropologie, Tiffany & Co., J Crew, Brooks Brothers, and vineyard vines, to name a few.
Stirling Properties’ commercial advisors Carly Plotkin and Lauren Ryan are serving as the leasing agents for the property. Working with the team at O’Connor Capital Partners, they are targeting best-in-class local and regional tenants to complement the strong national tenancy already present at Canal Place.
“We are excited to work with Canal Place, one of the most prestigious, renowned shopping centers in our region. As part of our marketing and leasing efforts for the property, we are focused on bringing the best local and regional retailers to the center, further expanding its great retail mix, while also highlighting the local flair of New Orleans and our surrounding region,” said Plotkin.
“With its proximity and walkability to New Orleans’ CBD, French Quarter, Riverwalk area, and all the exciting new developments coming on-line this year, Canal Place is uniquely positioned in the heart of everything, making it the perfect location for high-quality brands looking to expand their customer base,” said Ryan.
Canal Place also offers direct frontage to the Canal streetcar line, cruise line terminal access and is connected to Westin New Orleans Canal Place Hotel, creating opportunities to capture local and visiting customers. Multiple leasing opportunities range from 8,860 square feet to 385 square feet, including retail and second generation restaurant space and food court stalls. Short term operators can be accommodated, as well as long-term tenancies.
For leasing information on Canal Place, contact Carly Plotkin at cplotkin@stirlingprop.com / (504) 620-8120 or Lauren Ryan / lryan@stirlingprop.com / (504) 620-8124.
President’s Message: Lessons Learned
As midnight approached on December 31st and the end of the year was in sight, there were all sorts of GIFs, memes and messages circulating, illustrating how anxious we were to finally close the door on 2020. The whole world was exhausted and eager to move on.
But I believe before we slam that door on 2020 and block it from our memories, we should take a moment to look back and reflect on the valuable lessons it taught us—both good and bad—and take them forward with us.
I, too, have pandemic fatigue and am beyond ready to move on. However, my exhaustion stems not just from COVID but also from the constant animosity, anger and vitriol on so many issues that only seemed to escalate to a boiling point in 2020. I am disappointed and disheartened by the numerous topics that have become divisive between families, friends, neighbors and coworkers. And I am disgusted that our children and grandchildren are watching adults behave in ways that we (should) teach them not to. We must do better.
So, what are some of the lessons of 2020 that I think are worth taking into the new year?
- Spend more time listening than speaking (or tweeting). Who knows, you may learn something new. You may understand someone else’s point of view. You may even gain a new perspective.
- Have more empathy for others. We don’t know what it’s like to walk in someone else’s shoes. But maybe if we do more of the first thing I mentioned (listening), we might just learn something about them and see things differently. We can’t judge someone else looking only through the lens of our own life experiences.
- We are better together. No matter what we are trying to accomplish—whether it be in sports, in battle, in our community, in our workplace—we are more successful when we work together, not separately. We saw that firsthand in our region post-Katrina when we finally decided to work collaboratively rather than parochially, and we are all much better for it.
- Treat others the way you wish to be treated. No matter what religion you may believe in, they all espouse some version of this basic humanistic value. How quickly and often we seem to forget this most fundamental teaching.
- Help others in need. During this challenging time, so many people and businesses are struggling, more so now than ever. Pay it forward and do something to proactively help someone else. My favorite quote (by John Wooden) says, “You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.”
These all seem so simple and yet sometimes so elusive. So, as we turn the page to 2021, move on from an exhausting year, and set our New Year’s resolutions of healthier goals, business accomplishments and plans, I hope those resolutions include looking outward and aren’t solely focused inward. A new year presents a perfect opportunity to make changes—right wrongs, try a little harder, be more open-minded.
This year, let’s all resolve to learn from the past, take the important lessons to heart, and set a better example for those that follow.
I wish you all a very Happy New Year…and a better 2021!
Marty
