New plans for Cross County

One of Cross County Shopping Center”™s anchor tenants, Macy”™s, will increase its planned store expansion by 50 percent in revised site plans for the massive redevelopment project now in its second year at the 54-year-old open-air shopping center in Yonkers.

Another anchor tenant there, Sears, has put its expansion plans on hold, said officials for Macerich, the national retail real estate company managing Cross County for its New York City-based owner, Brooks Shopping Centers L.L.C. Sears had planned to add 11,400 square feet of retail space.

The amended plan for the 72-acre site, which currently has about 1,021,000 square feet of retail and office space, was reviewed last week by the Yonkers Planning Board. The plan calls for more consolidated new construction to accommodate smaller shops rather than stand-alone big-box tenants, Macerich officials said. Initial plans to improve off-site traffic access and add a direct connection to Cross County Parkway are unchanged.

Macy”™s plans to expand its retail space by 75,000 square feet, up from 50,000 square feet as previously planned, said Cross County property manager Robert Ryan. With the expansion, a five-story parking garage will be built south of the department store. The final phase of the project, expected to be completed in 2011 or 2012, calls for construction of a 150-room hotel at the south end of the site.

New tenants at Cross County include Guess? and The Body Shop. Existing tenants relocating and expanding include Aeropostale, Bath & Body Works, Brickoven Pizza Mania, Express/Express Men, New York & Co., Pet Fashion Boutique, X-clusive, Liberty Travel and Suzette Hosiery. Wet Seal will relocate to a new 25,000-square-foot building expected to open later this year. Victoria”™s Secret will add 5,000 square feet to its existing space. Haagen Dazs and Mrs. Field”™s Cookies will occupy two of the four free-standing kiosks being built on the newly landscaped grounds.

The shopping center”™s owner and retailers will invest more than $250 million in the project, Macerich officials said.