Sears has announced it will convert its retail store in Aventura, FL into a mixed- use development. Details of the project reveal Sears will redevelop the property into an open-air facility, which will feature dining, other retailers and a scaled-down Sears store. The project, called Esplanade at Aventura, also will contain a hotel and offices, according to Bloomberg news.
The project lines up with the department store chain’s strategy of squeezing more value out of its extensive real estate holdings. The chain said last week that it was considering spinning off hundreds of its properties as a real estate investment trust.
For the Aventura store, Sears would repurpose the site’s parking lot, auto center and department store into a more inviting property. The plan calls for about 250,000 square feet of restaurants and retail, which would include a 20,000-square-foot Sears store and about 45,000 square feet of office space parking and a hotel.
