The announcement of the new anchor store comes two months after Casto officials announced plans for a $7 million renovation, and three months after the company confirmed that Trader Joe’s will expand later this year by 25 percent. As part of the project, Joseph A. Banks will be relocating and expanding its storefront. Casto officials also said it is “finalizing” discussions with what officials called a “national junior anchor” to occupy nearly 14,000 square feet adjacent to T.J. Maxx.
A spokeswoman for T.J. Maxx declined to comment this afternoon. T.J. Maxx operates two Dayton-area locations, in Austin Landing in Miami Twp. and near the Mall at Fairfield Commons in Beavercreek. A T.J. Maxx store at the Dayton Mall closed in October 2013 in conjunction with the opening of the Austin Landing store.
The remodel calls for extensive changes to the shopping center’s interior, its facade, and to the parking lot, where perpendicular parking will replace the current angled parking layout. The Trader Joe’s expansion will add 2,500 square feet to the specialty grocer’s existing 10,000 square foot store, which is the Dayton area’s only Trader Joe’s.
Other improvements will include a new pedestrian breezeway that will connect the center to the Village Shops behind the center. A new outlot is being created for a future user at the corner of Stroop and Shroyer roads, company officials said.
The 250,676-square-foot Town & Country shopping center is located on East Stroop Road, between Far Hills Avenue and Shroyer Road, and Kettering officials consider it a downtown of sorts for the suburban city. Kettering recently completed an extensive beautification project around the shopping center, installing new walkways, lighting and landscaping.
Gregg Gorsuch, Kettering’s economic development manager, said in January that a revitalized Town & Country is critical to the health of the retail market in Kettering. Today, Gorsuch said city officials are pleased with the T.J. Maxx announcement.
“We associate T.J. Maxx with first-class, upscale retail centers,” Gorsuch said. “We understand that a retailer such as T.J. Maxx can serve as a magnet for other potential tenants. This should provide a solid foundation for Town & Country for years to come.”
The retail market is becoming more competitive in Dayton’s south suburbs, with two large-scale projects — the Cornerstone of Centerville under construction less than five miles away from Town & Country, and the Austin Landing development in Miami Twp. about 10 miles away — also actively seeking to attract retailers.
The renovation project is expected to be completed in 2016.
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