Southwest Florida’s Mixed-Use: The Strada at Mercato

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Milhaus Development

Guest Post by Kyle Nicholas, Market Analyst and Intern with Milhaus Development
This is the second of a three part series on Southwest Florida:

Until Mercato was developed, North Naples fell behind Naples and South Fort Myers for development of retail shops. Mercato connects these two communities and enables the residents and tourists a venue in which they can enjoy the pinnacle of retail shops, restaurants, and bars.

Every year, I celebrate Christmas and New Year’s in southwest Florida with my family, and my cousins and myself typically find ourselves spend New Year’s on Naples’ 5th Avenue South. This year, we switched it up and were pleasantly surprised with the time we had at Mercato. We were able to spend the evening enjoying some of the best seafood ever at McCormick’s and Schmick’s, and then found our way in The Pub and Blue Martini. Mercato’s entertainment connects its’ goers with venues, they’re unable to find elsewhere in the area.

Unfortunately, due to the untimely completion of Mercado, retail occupancy suffers. Residential sales struggle, and some units are being converted to rentals. With these large spaces sitting vacant, the potential for Mercado hinders.

With retail vacancies at unheard of numbers, how is it feasible to fill these spaces to help drive residential sales of some of the nicest condos in the area? Everyone knows retail traffic provides a significant portion of residential sales. Are short-term retail leases at a lower rates the answer to the struggling economy?

This entry was posted in USA Southeast

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