WINDHAM – Empty storefronts haven’t been staying that way for long in Windham, according to a report that shows the town has the best retail occupancy rate in the Greater Portland area.
The survey of commercial centers in the Greater Portland region was released at last week’s conference of Maine’s real estate professionals. In it, Windham’s commercial vacancy rate was listed at 3.7 percent, half that of its neighbors, including Portland, South Portland, Scarborough, Falmouth, Cape Elizabeth and Westbrook.
The average retail vacancy rate of those communities is 6.24 percent, which itself is half the national retail vacancy rate of 12.7 percent.
Karen Rich, real estate agent with Cardente Real Estate based in South Portland, compiled the Greater Portland report. For Windham’s retail numbers, she used numbers from Windham’s economic development director, Tom Bartell. Rich presented the report last Thursday to the nearly 500 attendees of the Maine Real Estate & Development Association’s annual Forecast Conference and Member Showcase.
“Part of why Windham has a low vacancy rate right now is because space has been absorbed and very little new inventory has been built,” Rich said. “And inventory that has been built is for specific tenants, like Tractor Supply or Goodwill.”
While most storefronts are filled, a few areas of North Windham remain vacant, including several sites in Sebago Plaza, the former Blockbuster location in the North Windham Shopping Center, and a few spaces in the Windham Mall.
Windham’s top rank among the greater Portland commercial centers comes as a pleasant surprise for those working daily in the North Windham commercial real estate market.
Larry Eliason, a broker for North Windham-based Butts Commercial Brokers and a member of the Windham Economic Development Corp., which is tasked with working with town government on behalf of the business community, is buoyed by the report and says the news should help convince more companies to move to town.
“I think when you look at Windham, there’s a lot of opportunity here because North Windham is really a regional retail center,” Eliason said.
He predicts the next few years will bring more retail operations to town since several sectors, like a high-quality clothing stores or chain coffee shops such as Starbucks, aren’t represented.
“Years ago, you had the men’s shop, you had a clothing store. I can go to Marshall’s or Walmart, but beyond that I have to go somewhere else,” Eliason said. “I’ve been approaching clothing retailers, shoe stores, you name it, to come look at the Windham area. You go to Biddeford, Lewiston/Auburn, the Maine Mall, those areas have a lot more variety, and I think there’s going to be more variety coming to this region.”
Dan Hancock, chairman of the retail committee of the Sebago Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce and a commercial banker at Gorham Savings Bank, is likewise buoyed by the news and gives credit to resilient Windham businesspeople.
“I think the low vacancy rate speaks to the strength of Windham businesses,” he said. “Despite the economic struggles of the past few years, they have continued to offer consumers value, and that has helped to build a loyal customer base. This has allowed local businesses to survive the downturn, and now, with many positive things starting to happen in the region that resiliency is being rewarded with increasing sales.”
Hancock also credits efforts by the Sebago Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce, the economic development group and the town of Windham to urge area residents to do their shopping locally whenever possible. A big push by those organizations in November and December helped spur retail sales in North Windham, he said.
“Working together to promote the region has stabilized foot traffic, which has certainly helped to keep doors open,” Hancock said. “Landlords have been creative in promoting events to draw people to their shopping centers. The Windham Mall, Windham Shopping Plaza and Sebago Plaza have been great examples of this with their participation in Season’s Greetings Saturday [during the holiday season].”
The only downside to a low vacancy rate is that there is limited room for new development, meaning new buildings need to be built. For example, Goodwill Industries is building an 18,000-square-foot store near Walmart, and Tractor Supply will soon open in a new building further south along Route 302. Eliason said he has received calls from retailers looking to find spaces of 9,000 square feet and larger, but has to turn them away for lack of inventory. He said the largest vacant space in Windham is 6,000 square feet, at the former Landing Restaurant.
“Retailers look at competition, then they want to look at spaces to see if it’s the right fit depending on what they need, and in some cases, office space partitions can be blown out for retail,” Eliason said. “But for most, they’re looking for 1,000 to 2,000 square feet, so it’s really not much of an issue.”
Local business leaders are looking for 2012 to be a good one for additional businesses moving to Windham. During the last few years, businesses seemed to be closing at a good clip in the North Windham area. Sebago Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Barbara Clark sees good things in the commercial district’s future.
“We are pleased that we currently have success stories to speak of: Windham Weaponry replacing Bushmaster Firearms, Rustler’s Steak House replacing Charlie Bieggs Restaurant, Goodwill Industries building a new, larger store to relocate from the North Windham Shopping Center, a new cafe? and bakery to open soon in the former Basso’s Italian Market, Tractor Supply to open in early spring,” Clark said. “Last spring, we had five businesses close in one week. Now we are turning that situation around.”
Windham’s economic development director, Tom Bartell, right, and
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