A plugged-in tipster reports:
“The owner of the Park Merced Shopping Center has decided to lease up the building after its to sale Peninsula residential builder SummerHill Homes fell through. SummerHill had planned to do a $47 million, 195-unit proposed mixed-use development across from Villas ParkMerced.”
Vanguard Commercial is leading the re-leasing (office and retail including restaurants).
SummerHill made a lot of questionable acquisitions over the past couple of years, and this was one of them. They have restructured, conducted multiple layoffs, and have been selling/abandoning a number of their weaker prospects in an attempt to turn around their business.
So this is separate from the Park Merced complex? I always assumed this was part of it (and I must have missed the past proposal to redevelop this).
Wow I totally had no idea there was a shopping center there! Kinda weird how it turns its back *away* from the main road?
Like others I have passed this place hundreds of times in the past 40 years and never seen the front of it. It will never work as a shopping center unless they find a new way to get in and out of it and put up bigger signs.
P.S. To Auden, it is not just SumerHill, but EVERY devloper is having layoffs and trying to dump property to raise cash…
I lived in the tower next to this complex for five years. I think it was always intended to serve the residents of Parkmerced, not outsiders. Back in the ’90s it had a dry cleaner, barbershop, video store, pizza place, etc., in addition to a full-service supermarket. It was a bit odd, but a nice amenity.
Also, I may be mistaken about this, but I think the lack of access to 19th Avenue was deliberate. I think they didn’t want to contribute to traffic in the surrounding area (which was always a huge concern for that neighborhood). In fact, I don’t think any other retail is allowed around there — beyond what already exists (and Stonestown mall, of course) because neighbors were concerned that the area around SF state would turn into another Telegraph Ave.
If only…
That place is literally the only shopping area in Parkmerced. It was nice having the barbershop, bank and grocery store all in one place but its just looks deserted now.
former apartment broker, but of course :). and SummerHill was a somewhat average managed one, so they are a bit mroe in trouble than others.
This site is critical due to its proximity to the 19th Ave. M-Line and the proposal by parkmerced for a new retail area. The re-routing of the M-Line SFMTA route is not the preffered option, as an alternative that looks at the direct routing towards the 1952 interchange and linkages along brotherhood way and to daly city bart has NOT been considered as part of the options per CEQA for cummalative development in this area. The SFSU Masterplan and Parkmerced Vision have ignored this site and the 800 brotherhood way site owned by prior owners of Parkmerced.
UPDATE: New Plans for Three Towers to Rise on Shopping Center Site