Lansing Twp. - More than 100,000 shoppers are expected to flood the grounds of the Eastwood Towne Center this weekend after doors open for the first time Thursday, the center’s officials said.
Despite construction concerns and delays, the shopping complex will open for business at 10 a.m.
“We’re going to work right up until the last minute to get ready,” said Mark Fallon, director of real estate and one of the partners at Cincinnati-based Jeffrey R. Anderson Real Estate.
The 192-acre, about 64 store-front mall, located on Lake Lansing Road near U.S. 127, will be the largest shopping center in Greater Lansing.
The center is filled with familiar stores like Gap, Lane Bryant and Pier 1 Imports. Stores new to Mid-Michigan include Banana Republic, Gap’s upscale brand, and the trendy Forever 21, a women’s clothing store for teens and young adults.
The center attempts to combine a downtown shopping experience with the convenience and brand name stores found at malls. Shoppers must walk outside to visit different shops. Developers gave store owners freedom to decorate their storefront with personal flavor to create a boutique-style atmosphere.
“We thought it would be cool to let the tenants have free-standing stores,” Fallon said, adding the center’s appearance is an upscale alternative to the traditional indoor mall.
Besides the stores, the center will house an 18-screen movie theater owned by Owosso-based Neighborhood Cinema Group. Fallon said the theater is set to open in mid-October. In late 2003, superstores Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart will also open in the complex.
Dietetics junior Kristin Tindle said she has only shopped in Meridian Township since she’s been at MSU, but looks forward to shopping at the new mall.
“I will definitely go there,” she said after learning that her favorite store, J. Crew, is located in the center.
Tindle said she thinks the new center will be fun to visit because the open-air complex is unlike other area malls.
Tindle’s friend, dietetics junior Anna Lubert, drove through the shopping complex for a sneak preview. “It looks really nice,” she said. “It seems that some of the stores are more expensive, but I will still shop there.”
For some, the best part of the mall may be the eats and treats.
Restaurants new to the area include P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, which opens in late October, Johnny Rockets, a hamburger and malt shop, and Mitchell’s Fish Market, a restaurant specializing in fish from both coasts. Max & Erma’s, Smokey Bones BBQ & Sports Bar, Claddagh Irish Pub and Bravo! Italian Cucina round out the menu. “The restaurants in the new shopping center are unique,” Lubert said, adding the restaurants add a variety to where students can take their parents for dinner.
Audrey Barney can be reached at barneyau@msu.edu.
