Retail developer fills upscale malls

The firm contracted to entice shoppers to rediscover Main Street at what is being called City Creek Center is one of the largest retail developers in the United States.

Taubman Centers Inc. owns and operates 23 malls in 11 states, including Arizona, California and Colorado. It opened an office in Hong Kong last year to tap the rapidly growing Asian retail market.

The 56-year-old publicly traded company based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., typically builds in affluent, growing communities. Nordstrom, one of the strongest department-store chains in the nation, anchors several of its decidedly upscale developments. Cherry Creek in downtown Denver is a top tourist attraction, boasting Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Tiffany & Co.

Taubman malls offer "an eclectic mix of fashion, fun, dining, entertainment, one-of-a-kind travel packages," according to the company's Web site.

"You've won the lottery," said Bob Cannon, supervisor of Clinton Township, Mich., where Taubman is building a 640,000-square-foot mall. "The Taubman corporation is very choosy about the communities they go into."

While Taubman will handle the retail portion of the massive downtown redevelopment project, Utah-based Cowboy Partners will construct housing and Property Reserve Inc. will do the office space.

"This is right in the sweet spot for us. This is our core," said Dan Lofgren, principal in Cowboy Partners, a residential and mixed-use development company. Lofgren and his two partners were formerly executives with Prowswood, a residential-development firm going back to the late 1970s. The company built The Gateway condominiums, offering one-, two- and three-bedroom plans.

Cowboy Partners will build south of Social Hall Avenue and east of State Street. Lofgren said the type of housing and number of units are still in the design analysis but would appeal to many types of households. "There really is a broad range of possibilities being discussed," he said, declining to speculate on pricing as well.

Aside from those apartments, another 200 units will be built on South Temple east of Main Street, according to Bishop H. David Burton, presiding bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Property Reserve Inc. is the real-estate arm of the LDS Church. Property Reserve owns the Deseret Building on the corner of Main Street and 100 South, which will be torn down. A new office structure will replace it.

More than office and housing space, residents will be most interested in the shopping, dining and entertainment aspects of a new downtown. Taubman aims to fill half of its new retail space with stores unique to the local market.