Friendly Center

Friendly Center

Location	Greensboro, North Carolina, United States
Opening date	August 1957 (August 1957)
Management	CBL Properties
Owner	CBL Properties
No. of stores and services	140
No. of anchor tenants	6
Total retail floor area	1,237,000[1]
No. of floors	1-2
Parking	Parking by storefronts throughout the center, subdivided by crosswalks
Website	www.FriendlyCenter.com

Friendly Center is a large, open-air shopping center located in northwestern Greensboro, North Carolina, near the intersection of Wendover Avenue and Friendly Avenue. The shopping center opened in August 1957, and with its inward orientation, Friendly Center could be classified as an outdoor lifestyle center. Its anchor tenants include Belk, Macy's, and Sears. Other tenants include Barnes & Noble, Old Navy, The Grande Theatre a 16-screen multiplex cinema operated by Regal Cinemas. It also contains Harris Teeter's flagship supermarket location encompassing 72,000 square feet (6,700 m2) and Whole Foods Market.^[2] There are specialty "foodie" stores tucked away in the back corner by Harris Teeter such as the Savory Spice Shop ^[3] and Midtown Olive Oil. It features a number of national retailers such as Banana Republic, Victoria's Secret, The Limited, Bath & Body Works, Express, The GAP, Eddie Bauer, Talbots, Birkenstock Feet First, Pier 1, and New York & Company.

In early 2006, construction of The Shops at Friendly Center began after the nearby Burlington Industries office building was demolished. Its opening on October 19, 2006 introduced retail shops that had not previously been present in the Piedmont Triad market such as an Apple Store, Brooks Brothers, REI, J. Crew, Coldwater Creek, White House Black Market, Pendleton, J. Jill, and Johnston & Murphy. Several chain restaurants located in the center, including P.F. Chang's, Fleming's Prime Steak House and Wine Bar, Bravo Cucina Italiana, and Mimi's Cafe. On November 8, 2006, a 72,000-square-foot (6,700 m²) Harris Teeter supermarket opened as the chain's largest in North Carolina.^[4]

On April 3, 2007, Starmount Company put Friendly Center up for sale along with most of their other commercial real estate.^[5] On October 5, 2007, CBL & Associates contracted to buy Friendly Center and all of Starmount Company's retail and office holdings. On January 4, 2008, The Triad Business Journal reported that CBL & Associates paid more than $200 million for Friendly Center and the Shops at Friendly Center.^[6]

Tenants

The Shops at Friendly Center

Savory Spice Shop^[7]

Anchor stores

• Harris Teeter (72,000 sq ft., largest store in the chain)
• Belk (139,880 sq ft.)
• Macy's (149,152 sq ft., formerly Hecht's, originally Thalhimer's)
• Sears (164,892 sq ft., 17,194 sq ft (1,597.4 m²). TBA, 182,086 sq ft (16,916.3 m²). total)
• REI

Entertainment

• The Regal Grande Theatre (60,806 sq ft., 16 screens)

References

External links

• Friendly Center official site
• The Shops at Friendly Center
• Greensboro Travel Guide - Friendly Center
• News & Record - Bank, shops to replace Harris Teeter

Coordinates: 36°05′09″N 79°49′56″W / 36.0859°N 79.8323°W / 36.0859; -79.8323