Village attracts pizza restaurant
Mint Hill development hopes Hawthorne's will, in turn, lure other
tenants
DOUG SMITH
The right restaurant anchor can give a mixed-use village a public face
and set the tone for attracting other tenants.
At Mint Hill Village, Insite Properties LLC is betting that Hawthorne's
New York Pizza & Bar will be that restaurant.
The owners have contracted to buy a frontage parcel on Matthews-Mint
Hill Road (N.C. 51) for a Hawthorne's to open by late next summer.
Tony Pizzo, a principal at Insite with Jay Blanton, said Mint Hill has
a shortage of sit-down restaurants and bars.
Already, he said, two other restaurants are interested in leasing space
in the 85,000-square-foot village, which includes two office and two
retail buildings.
Michael Adams, a partner in the new restaurant with his brother John
and chef Carlos Martinez, said the village's location next to Mint Hill's
town hall and the area's strong residential growth were pluses.
Hawthorne's is a homegrown restaurant group. The first opened about
21/2 years ago in Elizabeth. Another opened in March on Prosperity Church
Road in the Highland Creek area.
Adams said the customer profile typically changes during the day from
business people at lunch to families in the early evening and bar-goers at
night.
Mint Hill also was a good choice, Adams said, because the owners could
afford to buy the land and own their building.
The restaurant will occupy 4,500 square feet on the ground floor of a
two-story structure. About 4,000 square feet of rental executive office
suites will be on the second floor.
Urbana Urban Design & Architecture is designing the building with a
dining patio in front to enhance the restaurant's visibility on
Matthews-Mint Hill Road, Adams said.
Insite announced the $30 million village in early 2005 and had expected
to be under construction by now.
Blanton said progress was slowed by the planning process, because the
project had to qualify for approval under a new Mint Hill standard for
mixed-use villages.
The delay probably worked in favor of the developers, he said, because
the market is heating up much faster now as people from outside the town
seek office and commercial space there.
Insite has heard from or is negotiating with a list of potential
tenants that include a bakery, a coffee shop, a software firm, a payroll
company, an engineering firm, a financial adviser and a lawyer, Pizzo
said.
Max McLeod of McLeod Associates Architects designed village buildings
with a mix of brick, wood and siding to appear as if they had evolved over
time.
The project will be developed around a square with sidewalks,
landscaping and parking.
Pizzo said Insite plans to complete the first two buildings by late
next summer. A 15,000-square-foot retail building will front the highway,
and a 22,000-square-foot building will be sold as office condos.
Medical practices have shown interest in the offices, Pizzo said.
The next two buildings -- for retail and office space -- will be
constructed as the market dictates. Blanton expects all four to be
finished by late 2008.
Retail space will lease for $20.50 a square foot annually. Office
condos will sell for $165 a square foot with an allowance for buyers to
upfit the space.
Insite's Bart Murr, director of brokerage, is handling office space
with the two principals. Steve Rich of Harris Murr & Vermillion is in
charge of retail leasing and property management.
More information is available at www.minthillvillage.com.
Insite is the managing member of the development partnership, which
includes Mint Hill residents Bob Rowland and architect McLeod.
Doerre Construction is the general contractor.
The village covers about 18 acres, 10 of which were sold to The Evans
Co. for about 60 townhomes to be developed later behind the office
buildings.
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