Real estate | Have You Heard? | Wichita Eagle Blogs

Category Archives: Real estate

Foster Design to move to the Garvey Center

Friday10:44 a.m.

WICHITA — When Gene Foster of Foster Design learned he was losing his space at Brittany Center at 21st and Woodlawn because of InfoSync Service’s upcoming expansion, his first thought was that he would move farther east.

But he didn’t like the prices.

“We couldn’t really justify building a Taj Mahal for our corporate headquarters when we could have just as nice (of a) facility downtown,” Foster says.

So now he’s moving his contract engineering firm to the Garvey Center.

“They made us the best proposal.”

And he likes that he’s going to be part of downtown’s revitalization.

“Downtown has some . . . potential,” Foster says. “If it’s handled right by our city . . . fathers, the movers and shakers, I think it could be vibrant down here again.”

He’s moving into close to 3,000 square feet by the end of the year.

Adam Clements of Grubb & Ellis/Martens Commercial Group handled the deal.

Foster says he thinks he’ll be part of a trend.

“We’ll see more people moving back downtown.”

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Adam Clements, Foster Design, Gene Foster, Grubb & Ellis/Martens Commercial Group, InfoSync Service Filed under Brittany Center, Garvey Center, Leases, Real estate | Comments (0)

Corporate Caterers of Wichita looking to expand

Nov. 13, 20096:06 a.m.

WICHITA — Ben Arnold is looking to expand his Corporate Caterers of Wichita.

“Our main goal was just to build a building,” he says.

But with the current state of commercial lending, he says, “There’s absolutely no way.”

Arnold now has 8,700 square feet at Douglas and West.

He’s looking at taking 3,400 square feet Accent Bridal & Tux is vacating two doors down. But he wants more.

“We’re trying to put a deal together,” he says.

That wasn’t Arnold’s original first choice of locales, though. He wanted downtown or the east side.

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Accent Bridal & Tux, Ben Arnold, Chelseas Bar and Grill, Corporate Caterers of Wichita, Latour Management, Olive Tree Bistro Filed under Catering, Leases, Real estate, Restaurants | Comments (4)

Piccadilly Market & Grill future is uncertain

Nov. 10, 20094:17 p.m.

WICHITA — The future of Olive Tree Bistro and Chelsea’s Bar and Grill isn’t the only thing up in the air for Latour Management.

There are reports that Walter Morris Cos., Latour’s landlord for Piccadilly Market & Grill at Central and Rock, is now showing the space to other possible tenants.

Latour president Joumana Toubia says that’s true. But she adds, “I want you to know that Piccadilly is a viable option for us.”

She’s not sure what will happen with the space in the new year.

“They asked us if we’re ready to commit,” Toubia says of signing a new lease. “I said I need a little bit of time. I’m not ready.”

Her Olive Tree and Chelsea’s are being evicted from Comotara Center at 29th and Rock.

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Chelseas Bar and Grill, Comotara Center, Joumana Toubia, Latour Management, Olive Tree Bistro, Piccadilly Market & Grill, Walter Morris Cos. Filed under Evictions, Leases, Real estate, Restaurants | Comments (10)

West-side Play It Again Sports to move to Westlink Shopping Center

Nov. 9, 20092:57 p.m.

WICHITA — The west-side Play It Again Sports is moving to the Westlink Shopping Center at Central and Tyler in early February.

That’s a mile from the store’s current location at 13th and Tyler.

“We’re just going to a little bigger spot,” says owner Scott Martin, who is unaffiliated with the east-side Play It Again.

The new space actually is much bigger, but not all of it will be retail space.

The current store is 3,100 square feet.

The retail portion at the new store will be 4,000 square feet. There also will be 5,400 square feet for new batting cages, which Play It Again doesn’t currently have.

The addition of the cages is partly to attract more people to the shop, which sells new and used sporting equipment.

Martin doesn’t want anyone to think he’s making this move because his business is booming.

“It’s been tough out there for a while,” he says. “It really has.”

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Play It Again Sport, Scott Martin, Westlink Shopping Center Filed under Real estate, Retail | Comments (0)

Rine Center for Performing Arts is coming to former Immanuel Baptist Church on South Hillside

Nov. 2, 20095:43 p.m.

WICHITA — When last we checked with Janet and Grant Rine, they’d decided not to move their Old Town Architectural Salvage to the former Immanuel Baptist Church at 147 S. Hillside.

They bought the former church and adjacent school in April but decided to put plans on hold for a while.

Now, they’re moving forward by trying to get commercial zoning for what likely will be called the Rine Center for Performing Arts.

“It’s a slow, painful process,” Janet Rine says.

“It just takes time to jump through all the hoops and get everybody on the same page,” she says. “Sometimes it’s just difficult to be progressive.”

Kathy Page-Hauptman and Ann-Marie Rogers will book and produce shows that Rine says will create “a niche that’s not being met in Wichita.”

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Ann-Marie Rogers, Ben George, Caffe Moderne, Grant Rine, Immanuel Baptist Church, Janet Rine, Kathy Page-Hauptman, Old Town, Old Town Architectural Salvage, Rine Center for Performing Arts Filed under Old Town, Real estate, Restaurants | Comments (19)

You don’t say

Oct. 29, 20094:39 p.m.

“Doggone, we’ve been under contract many times. This one almost got away, too.”

— Star Lumber’s Chris Goebel, who’s finally closed a deal on his 11.4 acres at Central and Maize, where Wal-Mart now plans a Neighborhood Market

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Chris Goebel, Neighborhood Market, Star Lumber, Wal-Mart Filed under Real estate, Retail, You don't say | Comments (0)

Cinnamon’s Deli to join Five Guys and Long John Silver’s near northwest Lowe’s

Oct. 29, 20096:32 a.m.

WICHITA — A third restaurant is joining Five Guys Burgers and Fries and Long John Silver’s Freshside Grille in front of Lowe’s near 29th and Maize.

Cinnamon’s Deli will open in 2,400 square feet next to Five Guys, which will anchor the south end of the strip center there.

Long John Silver’s anchors the north end.

Central Park Place Retail is developing the 8,960-square-foot center.

Brad Saville of Landmark Commercial Real Estate and Christian Ablah of Classic Real Estate are principals in Central Park. Cook Construction is the builder.

They broke ground on the project Wednesday.

At a time that not many strip centers are under construction — and many are sitting empty — Ablah thinks “the exciting tenants that we have with this kind of location” is why he and Saville are able to proceed with theirs.

The center is 81 percent leased. There’s 1,680 square feet left to lease, and Ablah and Saville are open to either a restaurant or retail.

Look for the new restaurants to open in early 2010.

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Brad Saville, Central Park Place Retail, Christian Ablah, Cinnamon's Deli, Classic Real Estate, Cook Construction, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Landmark Commercial Real Estate, Long John Silver's Freshside Grille, Lowe's Filed under Leases, Real estate, Restaurants | Comments (13)

Office Depot wants to sublease its downtown land

Oct. 26, 20093:25 p.m.

WICHITA — It was this time last year that developers Tom and Mike Boyd started doing dirt work to prepare the former Carleton Elementary School site on Broadway near Lewis for Office Depot.

A year before that, the national retailer had announced plans to bring a 20,000-square-foot store there but continually put them on hold.

Now, Classic Real Estate is marketing the property for a possible new occupant.

“They are trying to market it for sublease,” Tom Boyd says of Office Depot.

“They’ve decided to wait on construction,” he says, “. . . because of the general retailing woes out there.”

If no one is interested in the property, Office Depot could still build on the site one day.

But Tom Boyd says if someone else is interested in locating there and doesn’t want to sublease from Office Depot, “Then we’ll let them off the hook.”

He says, “More than likely, we would make a deal with Depot and release their lease rights and make a deal with the new party.”

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Carleton Elementary School, Classic Real Estate, Mike Boyd, Office Depot, Tom Boyd Filed under Leases, Real estate, Retail | Comments (2)

Craig Burns departs First American Title to start his own company

Oct. 14, 20091:52 p.m.

WICHITA — After almost three decades with First American Title (including about 20 years when it was Security Abstract and Title), Craig Burns resigned earlier this month.

Burns had been the Kansas state manager for First American for about the last decade.

He’s not talking about his next move yet, but it looks like Burns is forming his own company, tentatively called Infinity.

More news on his plans should be coming in a week or two.

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Craig Burns, First American Title, Infinity, Security Abstract and Title Filed under Real estate, Title companies | Comments (0)

Papa John’s near 21st and Amidon closes; New location could serve Valley Center and Park City

Sept. 28, 20093:41 p.m.

pizza WICHITA — The Papa John’s near 21st and Amidon has closed, but almost everyone in that delivery area will be served by two existing stores until a new one opens.

“We’re trying to find another location,” says Terry Newman, who is partners in the business with Frank Carney.

This Papa John’s was open almost 10 years, but Newman says the rent was rising too much to continue to stay.

He says this could be an opportunity to move farther north and begin serving Valley Center and Park City.

“We’ve been looking all around,” Newman says.

By Carrie Rengers | Tags: Bennigan's, Frank Carney, Genghis Grill, Papa John's, Terry Newman Filed under Leases, Park City, Real estate, Restaurants, Valley Center | Comments (1)

Have You Heard?