Despite tough economic times, strip malls in Houma still thriving

A new crop of strip malls has sprouted along Martin Luther King Boulevard in Houma.

That means the effort to attract and keep tenants is ongoing.

The boulevard’s newest strip mall is the 20,750 square foot CitiPlace shopping center, built by Houma developer Henry Richard. Nearly half of the space is leased. The mall has local franchises of the chain outfits Smoothie Rox, Little Caesars Pizza, Just 4 Him Men’s Haircut Lounge and Anytime Fitness. Nail Envy is the sole independent.

“Houma’s got diversity. It’s a great place to be,” said Richard, whose CitiPlace is his only mall development.

Mike Ferdinand, CEO of the Terrebonne Economic Development Authority, said flag stores and the size of the commercial space in strip malls determine whether a shop will be successful in a mall or as a stand-alone.

“If you’re in a strip mall, smaller platform stores can take advantage of the collateral benefits of being near other stores your customers frequent that can take care of one or more wants or needs,” Ferdinand said. “Also, impulse buyers may go to shop right next to it.”

Because they do not enjoy the collateral buying that occurs in strip malls, stand-alone stores generally try to offer more, he said.

The recently-completed Houma Market Place shopping center a few blocks down Martin Luther King from CitiPlace has attracted tenants, but is looking to fill several open spaces.

“We have several tenants interested,” said Kornel Romada with the Fort Worth-based The Woodmont Company, owner of Houma Market Place.

The development has a 24,500-square-foot mall at the rear of the property – anchored by a Hobby Lobby and Stage – and three outparcel strip malls nearer to Martin Luther King.

Of the three strip malls, the two facing Martin Luther King are full. One of the malls contains a Buffalo Wild Wings Grill and Bar, Sport Clips and ACE Cash Express. The other has a Dagwood’s Sandwich Shoppe and a Verizon Wireless store.

The third strip mall at Houma Market Place, built perpendicular to the other two, has the Zen Japanese Grill & Sushi Bar as the lone tenant.

“Zen is doing a fantastic job,” Romada said. “We have a fair amount of letters of intent for the Zen building.”

The strip mall on the corner of Corporate Drive and S. Hollywood Road recently added 3,600 square feet of space for three more units, all of them occupied by Shelly’s Specialty, said mall owner Robert Cazayoux.

Norman’s Tuxedos and Something Blue Bridal Shop, owned separately, were the first buildings constructed at the site. Around 4,400 square feet of space was added adjoining Norman’s Tuxedos.

Coffee Zone occupied two of the units in that space before closing shop recently. Cazayoux said he has received frequent phone calls about renting one of the units in the former Coffee Zone location, mostly from startup companies.

Mike Cone, owner of Corporate Drive Business Suites, said the two separate strip malls at right angles to each other that make up the property will eventually be joined.

The development, constructed in 2004, has Ms O’s Sports Bar and Grill nearest to Corporate Drive.

Next to Ms O’s is the Skin Lab tattoo shop formerly occupied by Ruby’s Sweets confectionery. The development also has a Manpower staffing office, Gulf Coast Dental Lab and Bill Head transportation office.

TEDA works more with industry than retail businesses to gain tax incentives, but the agency does provide demographic information, reports and aerial photos to retailers seeking to locate in Terrebonne, said TEDA marketing and recruitment director Michelle Edwards.

“When store chains call, we send them everything we have,” Edwards said. “The main thing they come to us for is demographic information so they can have facts to promote their own site.”

“Sometimes they like to verify that the developer has the correct information,” she added. “Sometimes they just call wanting demographic information. They don’t say they’re interested, just to verify.”

Edwards markets Terrebonne Parish yearly at the International Council of Shopping Centers trade shows. The ICSC, the trade association for the shopping center industry, held its most recent convention in May.

“The more retail, the more people are drawn, the more sales tax,” Edwards said. “But there’s not a lot of (tax) incentives for retail. So we have a small part to play, but a big part to promote the area.”

While the big box specialty malls along Martin Luther King have kept consistently occupied, a major exception is the Circuit City store in the 116,000 square foot Magnolia Square shopping center at the intersection of Corporate Drive.

Circuit City filed for bankruptcy protection late last year and closed its Houma location.

“We’re actively marketing that space,” said Matt Tramel with Magnolia Square owner Inland Western Retail Real Estate Trust, based in Illinois. “That property is well positioned.”

Other mall tenants like Target, Ross Dress For Less, PetSmart, Dollar Tree, Dress Barn, rue21 and Chuck E. Cheese benefit from Houma having one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, Tramel said.

“Sales are strong at that shopping center,” he said.

The Terrebonne Parish Sales and Use Tax Department does not break down the number of new occupational licenses issued to mall tenants, but department auditor Brandi Fontenot said 513 new occupational licenses have been issued so far this year in Terrebonne.

Last year, the parish issued 695 new occupational licenses, not counting contractors associated with hurricanes Gustav and Ike. The parish currently has 5,822 active occupational licenses.

Fontenot said 336 businesses did not renew their licenses this year by the annual Feb. 28 deadline. Most of the businesses are run out of homes or are contractors, she said.

Fontenot said the department works on a case-by-case basis calling businesses that have not renewed their licenses. Businesses have 10 to 15 days to respond before an attorney’s letter is sent.

Proving businesses are operated out of homes can be difficult, she said. Many houses do not have landlines in favor of cell phones and residents often do not leave a forwarding address.

She said the department works on a case-by-case basis calling businesses that have not renewed their licenses.

Businesses have 10 to 15 days to respond before an attorney’s letter is sent, she added.

A spate of strip malls along Martin Luther King Boulevard in Houma is attracting Tri-parish shoppers. Developers are hoping to be equally inviting to retailers looking to do business in Terrebonne Parish. * Photo by KYLE CARRIER