by Hannah Keogh
Fargo-Moorhead’s population is expecting to grow nearly 50 percent by 2045, causing developers and city planners to clash over use of the remaining land available.
A population boom draws developers to the area. This was seen in the Bakken (western North Dakota’s Oil Patch) in 2012 and is true in Fargo today. “There’s more people that compete with me than there was 10 years ago. And most of those guys are coming from Williston and have to keep themselves busy to be successful,” said Kevin Christianson, president of Property Resources Group.
This sense of urgency in response to population and industry growth is not something Christianson shares with his competition. “I don’t like to just develop to develop. There has to be demand generators to make sure it’s successful,” said Christianson.
Property Resources Group controls much of the remaining area with development potential in West Fargo and Horace. Fargo residents have been anxiously awaiting one of their biggest building projects to date, the proposed Fargo Outlets at Timber Creek.
If built, Fargo Outlets at Timber Creek would be the first outlet center in North Dakota and the only one between Albertville, Minn., and Boise, Idaho, a trade area that includes some 2.6 million potential shoppers, according to PRG's analysis.
Christianson sees an outlet mall as the answer to combat the Amazon effect. “You look at our enclosed mall, still today it’s one of the most successful in the country. There’s a lot of offerings we can’t have because there’s no space,” said Christianson.
Although outlet malls are an answer, lack of space for stores to come to Fargo is not necessarily the problem. Fargo has a history of being financially helpful to small businesses and developers who want to revitalize an existing area of town. This is not the market Christianson looks at as a financial reality for the area.
“(The city of Fargo) likes the romance. The reality is if it doesn’t work financially they have a problem. The city wants great pictures,” said Christianson. “You can do anything, anytime but you might not be able to do another project after that.”
Christianson has held off on pushing the outlet mall’s development because of the current economic state of retailers in the country. “If I would’ve started four years ago, half the retail businesses would’ve been bankrupt by now.”
“When stores pull back they’re going to pull smaller markets first. Now they’ve got to get their feet under them again. They’re starting too; I’ve seen a lot of signs of it but I’m not putting a lot of resources into it today,” said Christianson.
Christianson did confirm that a Cash Wise’s store will be built on part of the land that is planned for the outlet mall. “We started with a grocery store because that’s daily traffic. That’s what is going to make retail healthy, whether it’s an outlet mall or lifestyle spot.”
Kevin Hurd, communications and engagement specialist for parent company Coborn’s, confirmed that Cash Wise plans to build a 60,000-square-foot grocery store at the site just north of 52nd Avenue South and east of Interstate 29, along with a freestanding liquor store, fuel pumps, car wash and a drive-thru Caribou Coffee. Construction is expected to start this year, with a target opening in mid-2018.
When asked about the projected growth of the area, Christianson said his gut is to not put much stock in that estimation. He will not start development until all the retail pieces are in order, something that a projection cannot help jumpstart.
“Stores aren’t going to rely on a statistic. They aren’t going to open a store and wait for 20 years to see it work,” said Christianson.
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