By Matt Wiley
After years of legal battles, development officially is on the horizon for the long-awaited outlet mall off S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel.
Pasco County’s planning & development department officially approved the preliminary site development plan for the Tampa Premium Outlets on October 3.
Pasco planner Owen W. Young confirms that Simon Property Group has received approval to being construction.
“Tampa Premium Outlets can begin the construction of infrastructure, but no vertical construction can commence until the building permits (which currently are under review for this site) are issued,” Young explains.” In addition to the building permits, Young says the “west ring road” connecting S.R. 56 to the planned Wesley Chapel Blvd. Extension (see map) also still is under review, but won’t delay infrastructure construction.
Simon’s outlet mall sits on 56 acres south of S.R. 56 and will be capable of accommodating 1.1 million square-feet of retail space. Although not much is known about what retailers currently are in talks with Simon to come to the new mall, Saks 5th Avenue announced in May of 2012 that the department store is planning an “Off 5th” outlet store at the site.
“We don’t have any (other) tenants to announce at this time,” says Simon spokesperson Les Miller. “It’s still too early for that.”
Miller notes that Simon is planning a groundbreaking (event) in the near future and many announcements — including future stores and a timetable to open to shoppers — will likely be made at that event.
“As this project moves toward a ground breaking, we are thrilled to welcome each (future) store to our community,” says Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce executive director Hope Allen. “The (outlet mall) is ideally located and will attract new visitors to the marketplace, generate permanent employment and bring new revenue to the area.”
Stay tuned to WCNeighborhoodNews.com for updates on the Premium Outlets as soon as they become available.
No comment yet, add your voice below!