Three major tenants come to MarketSquare in Virginia Beach

Three months, three retailers for MarketSquare, a Virginia Beach shopping center that has been repositioned with new tenants and a new name.

A 42,000-square-foot Walmart neighborhood market opened on Nov. 5, not long after Hobby Lobby opened its 53,000-square-foot store in October. Coming in December is One Life Fitness with a 51,000-square-foot fitness facility.

McLeskey & Associates developed the center, originally known as Lynnhaven Shopping Center, at 2866 Virginia Beach Blvd. in the 1970s. Originally, the major tenant was Woolco, a Woolworth outlet. The center had a history of tenants over the decades including HQ, Ames and Farm Fresh, which vacated the property at the end of 2013.

“When Farm Fresh vacated, we saw the opportunity to reposition the center to attract great national, regional and local retailers,” Cheryl P. McLeskey, CEO of McLeskey & Associates said in a statement.  “Our strategy was to renovate the center and create a vibrant market area that reflects the quality of the surrounding neighborhoods. Once we started introducing this opportunity to national tenants, they immediately saw the potential of the surrounding neighborhoods and demographics along the Virginia Beach Blvd. corridor.”

With three new anchor tenants in place, McLeskey & Associates said it would complete renovations to the remainder of the center. They include two additional buildings with small retail shops starting at 1,500 square feet up to an outparcel opportunity that can accommodate a 5,000-square-foot building. The renovations will be complete in spring 2015.

The company renamed the 176,000-square-foot center MarketSquare to reflect is repositioning. Owner McLeskey & Associates, a commercial real estate development and leasing company, is headquartered in Virginia Beach.