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As construction continues on the ground for the approximately $350 million Liberty Center complex, the developer behind the project, Yaromir Steiner, delivered a pair of speeches this month providing new details about what future shoppers, residents and workers can expect when it opens.
Steiner is founder and chief executive officer of Columbus-based Steiner + Associates. Steiner and partners are building Liberty Center in Butler County's Liberty Twp., at the intersection of Ohio 129, Liberty Way and Interstate 75. The center is scheduled to open its first phase totaling more than 1 million-square-feet of mixed retail, dining, residential and office space in October 2015.
At a commercial real estate developers event on May 5, and again at a luncheon preceding the West Chester-Liberty Chamber Alliance's regional business expo on May 12, Steiner told attendees how Liberty Center was designed for changing times.
We gathered more details below of what was learned. Yet more information is expected to be released Thursday, when developers have a planned community update scheduled on site.
1. Public spaces on “steroids”
Beau Arnason, executive vice president in charge of asset management for Steiner + Associates, previously told this news outlet how Liberty Center had a community focus including a community center available for rent for meetings and gatherings. And now, even more is known about what that means.
Liberty Center will have three parks or greenspaces, including one known as The Square, which will have a music stage; The Park, which will have pop jet water fountains; and one of which is a rooftop garden called The Acropolis where a multi-denominational unity chapel will be located.
Inside Liberty Center’s enclosed shopping mall known as The Foundry is another gathering space to be called The Living Room, which Steiner described as having lounge seating and a café. He says it will be an ideal location for doing homework, meeting friends or holding small organizational meetings.
The Blue House is the event hall available for public use.
Liberty Center’s tagline is “Life. Centered.” Under that theme, property managers will be partnering with community groups to promote wellness, Steiner said.
2. “It’s a better version”
Taking what the development company has learned from building previous town centers such as Easton and The Greene, Liberty Center will be “a culmination of everything we’ve learned,” Steiner told this reporter.
And in a time of growing online sales, department stores and other retail chains are asking “do we really need another store?”
Steiner’s answer is to create a compelling environment where people want to come to justify the investment in new brick-and-mortar storefronts. Plans are to achieve that lure through the public spaces, entertainment options and integration of business and housing spaces at the site.
Liberty Center’s biggest wow factor is the common area amenities, Steiner said. “What we’re offering to the public… is comparable to what’s available downtown Cincinnati almost in quantity and size.”
3. Blame the Millennials
Key to the design and layout of Liberty Center is the Millennial generation, those defined as ages 18-34 by the Pew Research Center, who want walkable, urban areas with parks and public transportation, Steiner said.
While the center’s guests can thank the wants of Millennials for the project’s focus on community and wellness, they’re also driving retail technology use among all ages.
“I think that the consumer in general, we are more tied to technology,” said Jesse Tron, spokesman for International Council of Shopping Centers. “Outfitting centers to recognize the fact that people have these really incredibly powerful devices in their hand is incredibly important.”
For example, shopping centers nationally are installing WiFi at their properties, and using mobile applications and technology to provide customer service and alert customers to sales, Tron said. Retailers are taking more multi-channel approaches, tying products listed on websites to in-store inventory, and sending discount offers and even home delivery services to customers as they shop at the mall, he said.
4. “Restaurants second to none”
Steiner is most proud of the property's restaurant mix.
The restaurant lineup announced to date includes Northstar Café, Brazilian steakhouse Rodizio Grill, gourmet burger joint Flip Side, Rusty Bucket Restaurant and Tavern, Brio Tuscan Grill, Cheesecake Factory, Kona Grill and craft beer and pizza eatery Pie & Pints.
Don’t forget that the Cobb Theaters will open a dinner-and-movie theater at Liberty Center too.
Additionally, Steiner revealed in his recent talks that The Foundry will also have a second-level dining hall with seating for several hundred people, and choices of multiple fast-food and casual dining options.
5. Past to present represented
Future Liberty Center visitors might also notice that Liberty Center’s design pays homage to the area’s industrial history, while also incorporating modern aesthetics.
It begins with The Foundry building on the far east side of the approximately 65-acre site opening in October, so-named to highlight the area's history of paper and steel mills. A smokestack will rise from The Foundry shopping mall's roof.
The project’s first phase ends on the western border with AC Hotels by Marriott. The concept was launched in Europe in 2011 as a joint venture between Marriott International and Spain’s AC Hotels. Each AC Hotel unites a sleek, sophisticated, cosmopolitan look with the latest in technology, according to developers.
While the first phase encompasses about 1 million square feet encompassing 65 acres, developers own a total about 100 acres at the intersection and have approval to build out over time more than twice the floor space.
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