Progress accelerated at several major retail centers in Cy-Fair in the second half of 2016, including three tied to some of the area’s prominent master-planned communities.

Leslie Martone, president of the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce, said the new retail is coming on the heels of new homes.

“I’d like to think the area is more attractive now that mobility options are greater than just Hwy. 290 or [Hwy.] 249,” she said.

Lakeland Village Center

In Bridgeland, developer Howard Hughes Corporation has been busy attracting businesses, such as Marble Slab Creamery and Active Life Dentistry, that have opened in the past year. Lakeland Village Center is 54 percent occupied with 38,678 square feet of retail space still available to rent. 

Business at the center has met expectations, and Rip Reynolds, vice president of leasing and sales, said he anticipates a significant increase in new tenants in 2017.

Reynolds said the developer is interested in filling the remaining space with a coffee shop, a sandwich shop, a fitness apparel store, a boutique fitness studio, a clothing boutique, a mattress company, a therapeutic massage center, a nutrition and vitamin shop, a small home improvement store, a pool supply retailer, a shipping store, an orthodontist, a title company and a cellphone carrier.

“Our goal is to finish leasing tenant space in Lakeland Village Center in 2017,” Reynolds said. “We want it to be a community amenity, enjoyed by residents in Bridgeland and neighboring areas.”

In addition to the growth of Lakeland Village Center, Bridgeland will see the new four-story Bridgeland High School, Wells Elementary School and the new Houston’s First Baptist Church campus open in 2017 and will introduce Parkland Village—Bridgeland’s newest collection of residential neighborhoods—this year as well.

Boardwalk at Towne Lake

Developer Caldwell Companies attracted nearly 20 new tenants to Cypress in the past year at its Boardwalk at Towne Lake development, located on Barker Cypress Road. The corridor has restaurants, office space, a fitness studio, medical offices and shopping options.

“Historically, Cypress hasn’t had a central place for people to gather, and The Boardwalk has provided a community where families can shop, dine and spend time together,” said Jennifer Symons, vice president of marketing for Caldwell Companies.

On the second floor, there is office space that overlooks the lake, and there are several dining and retail options downstairs, making it an ideal location to entertain clients, Symons said. New executive suites will open soon with flexible lease options for individual offices, virtual offices or co-working spaces.

While most of the center is leased, Symons said the one remaining retail space on the water has been reserved for a Mexican eatery. The developer is close to finalizing a deal with a well-known restaurant but could not confirm the name of the business or a timeline for its opening as of press time.

Two other restaurants, Taisho Steak & Sushi and Burgerim, will open in early 2017, as will the retailer World of Beer.

Caldwell officials said they plan to add more parking options in the coming year to prevent overcrowding at the retail center. In the meantime, valet parking is an option during peak hours, Symons said.

Once additional parking is available, the developer will also finalize plans for another retail and office building in the same area, across from Breakfast Brunch Cafe.

Fairfield Town Center

Washington Prime Group, the developer behind Fairfield Town Center, finished construction on the first phase of the development in November, and tenants have been moving in since then.

Old Navy, Party City and Marshalls/Homegoods are a few of the businesses to open in the big-box tenant spaces of the center in December. A smattering of openings are planned for the next two months as well.

Tenants planning to open in February include MOD Pizza, Jimmy John's, Subway, Sally Beauty, Pump'd Nutrition, Jersey Mike's, a yogurt shop and a Chinese restaurant. These tenants will be joined in March by Dress Barn, Russo's New York Pizza, Poolwerx, Wingstop, Yoko Japanese and a UPS store. The 600,000-square-foot Fairfield Town Center is located along Hwy. 290 near the Fairfield master-planned community.

“Without exception, all the tenants to have opened so far have reported sales that are above what they planned,” said Paul Ajdaharian, executive vice president of community and lifestyle centers at Washington Prime. “The center is off to a very strong start."

The next and final step for the center involves completing Phase 2, which will offer around 150,000 square feet of new space. No tenants could be confirmed, but Ajdaharian said residents can expect an announcement early this year. He said the strong sales for recently opened tenants bodes well for the center's ability to attract quality tenants moving forward.

"The best thing the trade area can do is support the project because that shows the loyalty that tenants are looking for," he said. "So far, the Cypress trade area has proven to be very loyal to supporting the shops close to home."

Record-breaking retail

The northwest area was one of the top performing markets in Houston for retail in 2016, according to Robert Kramp, director of research and analysis with real estate research firm CBRE.

Net absorption in 2016—the amount of occupied space at the end of the year compared to the beginning—totaled 560,000 square feet in the far northwest submarket, a new record, Kramp said. The far northwest market includes the new Cy-Fair area projects.

Despite 496,000 square feet of new space opening, the occupancy rate hit 94 percent. The rate in what CBRE considers prime properties hit 98.7 percent, Kramp said.

"There is virtually no space available," he said.

This story is one update from The January Issue. View the full list of 10 things to look for here.