Cities are becoming retail dealmakers

CRE360 Partners says municipalities are now actively recruiting retailers, health and wellness tenants, and development partners instead of waiting for proposals to arrive. The shift toward research-backed, community-centric development could help determine which retail projects move forward as ground-up construction rebounds.

Why it matters: - Municipalities are taking a more direct role in shaping retail growth, which can speed approvals and steer projects toward uses local communities actually want. - The shift is raising the stakes for retailers and developers, who now face cities that arrive with site options, tenant targets and a plan to push projects through the pipeline. - CRE360 Partners says the trend matters most as development activity improves and capital becomes more available.

What happened: - CRE360 Partners said it saw a clear change in municipal behavior at the retail real estate industry’s largest annual gathering in Las Vegas. - Across roughly 100 meetings at the event, the firm said cities and economic development authorities acted like active dealmakers rather than passive reviewers. - Municipal teams recruited specific retailers, matched them to land and partners, and offered to fast-track approvals. - The firm described the trend as “community-centric development.” - Ken Jacobs, Director of Real Estate at CRE360 Partners, said he has attended more than 20 of these shows and had never seen municipalities show up in this way. - Jacobs said mayors, consultants and local teams came with an agenda and asked CRE360 Partners how it could help deliver what communities want.

The details: - Daily-needs grocery remains the base case for most retail development. - Cities are now also pursuing health, wellness and recreation uses. - The list includes urgent care and other medical-retail formats, along with pickleball, tennis and similar amenities. - CRE360 Partners compared the strategy to the grocery industry’s last-mile approach, which pushes stores closer to where people live. - Karen Sebastian, Director of Real Estate Transactions at CRE360 Partners, said municipalities are proactively pursuing the retailers their communities are demanding. - Sebastian said cities are helping line up land and partners while trying to move projects through the process quickly. - CRE360 Partners said its role is to bring research that identifies which retailers actually fit a community and then help execute the deal. - The firm said cities have become more sophisticated and now value data over wish lists. - A city may want a marquee specialty grocer, but the demographics may not support that tenant. - CRE360 uses trade-area research and a gravity-model sales forecast to identify realistic retailer targets. - The firm said the forecast is built to match the methodology grocers use internally and is typically accurate to within roughly 5%. - CRE360 then builds a leasing strategy around the anchor tenant. - The firm said a credible forecast can help a project move ahead of others when decision-makers are reviewing 20 to 50 submissions a week. - Kevin Bissell, SVP of Real Estate Research at CRE360 Partners, said a sales forecast that shows a store will perform can move mountains. - Bissell said municipalities now want proof that a retailer and a community are a fit, not just a name on a list. - CRE360 Partners said the pairing of in-house research and transaction execution helps municipalities and developers pursue realistic tenant lineups. - The firm also said research-led planning can prevent teams from chasing unviable tenants. - CRE360 Partners said development is returning after several years of limited ground-up activity. - The firm pointed to easier capital access and stronger demand, with momentum across the South and a warming Midwest.

Between the lines: - Municipalities appear to be competing more aggressively for retail investment, which could give well-prepared cities an edge in landing projects. - The emphasis on data suggests a narrower path for new retail, where feasibility and tenant fit may matter more than brand-name wish lists. - The broader target mix also signals that cities are using retail development to support quality-of-life goals, not just shopping.

What’s next: - CRE360 Partners expects research-led, community-centric planning to play a defining role in which projects move forward. - Municipalities that can pair land, incentives and speed with realistic tenant demand may be better positioned to close deals. - Retailers and developers are likely to face more city-led outreach as communities continue to recruit desired tenants. - More information is available at cre-360.com and on CRE360 Partners on LinkedIn.

The bottom line: - Cities are moving from gatekeepers to participants, and that could reshape who gets retail projects built first.