NEWS

When the family-owned land that would become Southshore Commons first went on the market in 2006, competition for the site was fierce. A quick look at the surrounding region makes it very clear why the location was so coveted. Situated on 128 acres of what was once farmland at the southwest corner of the intersection of I-75 and Big Bend Road in Hillsborough County, Florida, Southshore sits in the center of a “retail bullseye;” a site in an under served market with an extremely promising demographic profile.

A joint venture between Columbus, Ohio-based Equity and its development and financial partner Columbus, Ohio-based Nationwide Realty Investors (NRI), Southshore Commons represents a first for the Tampa market: a completely integrated power center and lifestyle/specialty center combined with two limited-service hotels and substantial Class-A office space. All told, the $280 million, 1.6-million-square-foot project will include more than one million square feet of retail and dining space, 490,000 square feet of office, a 16-screen theater, and 250 hotel rooms. The retail portion of the project will include department store anchors, several national big-box tenants and junior anchors, dozens of specialty retailers and a variety of dining options that include both casual and upscale restaurants.

Southshore Commons’ design manages to link the various uses, ensuring that the retail, dining, entertainment, office and hospitality components share an aesthetic and functional connection and all flow together. That well-conceived layout and the project’s strong mix of retail, dining and entertainment offerings promise to make Southshore Commons a project that offers a rare combination: an extraordinary location and a first-of-its-kind retail destination in the southeast Tampa suburbs.

Equity CEO Steve Wathen believes that Southshore Commons will not only be a success, but will become a regional mixed-use landmark for the region.

“Southshore Commons is definitely creating a buzz,” he says, “and that’s not only because the project promises to fill a much-needed market void, but because of its potential to serve as a true destination.”