Page 22 - Westchester Economic Development Guide - 2017 PDF

WESTCHESTER WORKS RETAIL
ON THE LEADING EDGE OF RETAIL
With diverse, new and ex- panding outlets that have been reimagined to suit contemporary tastes, Westchester is a retail shopper’s paradise.
Having recently introduced a Shake Shack and a second Starbucks, the Cross County Shopping Center has sought per- mission to build more space, as part of Brooks Shopping Centers’ $300 million investment in the Yonkers property.
The Ridge Hill complex in Yonkers celebrated its fifth anniversary in 2016 with the opening of a Lowe’s Home Im- provement Center, Qdoba Mexican eat- ery and an iFly skydiving simulator. The Jefferson Valley Mall is likewise offering new and expanded stores, including a 10,000 square-foot ULTA beauty loca- tion, and a new Stone Rose Steakhouse.
Pacific Retail Capital Partners, the new owners of The Galleria mall in White Plains, are planning a range of enhancements, including bringing new uses to the center, renovations and add- ing events and public programs.
REINVENTING THE MALL
Simon Property Group, which owns and operates The Westchester, showed its confidence in the Westchester market
by making a significant investment in renovating the property. Located in downtown White Plains, The Westches- ter is an upscale retail mall with 150 specialty stores. Opened in 1995, the mall just completed a multi-million dollar renovation, which includes mod- ernized elevators and lobbies; new facades on key mall entrances and new landscaping elements; as well as an interior redesign featuring grey and beige Italian limestone.
PAULA KELLIHER
Director of Marketing, The Westchester
“This state-of-the art renovation reflects Simon’s commitment to the county and has been carefully curated to provide an ultramodern retail, dining and social ex- perience for adults and children alike.”
What’s unique about the renovation?
The renovation touches virtually every surface of the interior and exterior of the property. New and improved interior and exterior signage, sliding glass doors and new LED Energy Efficient Certified Light- ing enhance the shopping experience. New luxury amenities include upgraded valet facilities and on-call valet parking from mobile devices. A new concierge service allows for packages to be delivered to vehicles at the valet area.
In addition, two new, unique ameni- ties were recently unveiled at The West- chester: a state-of-the-art children’s play area sponsored by Maria Fareri Chil- dren’s Hospital, a member of the West- chester Medical Center Health Network, called PLAY; and an ultramodern tech- nology lounge called CONNECT. Both are located on the fourth level of the mall and are the first of their kind among the Simon properties throughout the country.
Talk about the new CONNECT Lounge.
CONNECT is a brand new tech lounge,
which provides an exclusive, contem- porary area for shoppers to relax in spa- cious, soft seating areas. It features nine flat-screen televisions highlighting sports, breaking news and more. It also includes complimentary iPads for customer use.
What new amenities will kids enjoy?
PLAY, the new children’s area, inspires imagination in a fun, welcoming and engaging environment. Engaging learn- ing stations match the national and state level benchmarks that testing systems are based on. In addition, all interactives incorporate the principles of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math).
It also includes a toddler area with small climbing areas, and other age-ap- propriate activities.
Tell us about the new dining experience.
The former dining area underwent a 100 percent renovation, working down to the studs and starting over again to create an entirely new dining environment to be known as Savor Westchester. The new dining destination, scheduled to open in April, will provide new, trendy eater- ies including some of Manhattan’s most popular and notable casual dining hot spots, and will also include a fireplace and patio for outdoor dining overlook- ing White Plains. Savor will provide our visitors with a true dining destination for today’s dynamic retail environment and will complete the transformation of The Westchester, while enhancing its reputa- tion as one of the top retail destinations in the region.
Opposite: Replacing the former Food Court, Savor Westchester will offer trendy and unique dining options. Above: The CONNECT Lounge offers shoppers luxury seating and complimentary iPad use:
20 WESTCHESTER COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GUIDE