Looks like IKEA will be going up at The Rim (Houston: real estate, mover) - San Antonio - Texas (TX) - City-Data Forum

Insomniac · 10-11-2007, 11:00 PM

Melissa S. Monroe
Express-News Business Writer
MySA.com: Real Estate (broken link)

Quote:

The developer of the massive The Rim shopping center in Northwest San Antonio plans to open five or even six hotels there within the next few years and is working to lure retailers such as Whole Foods and IKEA.

The Rim center will include two Marriott hotels and an upscale boutique hotel and spa called The Stanbury. The Stanbury, also going in at a Thomas Enterprises development in Atlanta, is a luxury hotel that combines residences with hotel rooms.

Some anchors of the 800-acre site are Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World, the Palladium theater, JCPenney, Best Buy and Target.

Thomas said both Bass Pro and the Palladium have been a regional attraction for shoppers, and the Palladium is considered the seventh-busiest theater in North America.

To complement the hotels, Thomas added that the center also is getting four restaurants new to the city that he chose not to identify.

His company also is working on convincing companies to locate their headquarters at the shopping center, which will combine residential units, upscale condos, an office complex and an auto dealership.

PopsGuysRule · 10-12-2007, 12:08 AM

ohhh YEA!! IKEA!!
I haven't been inside an IKEA store since I moved from So Calif in 1995!!!
I can't wait.

martinez4 · 10-12-2007, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PopsGuysRule

ohhh YEA!! IKEA!!
I haven't been inside an IKEA store since I moved from So Calif in 1995!!!
I can't wait.

I hit the one in Austin and the one in Houston just to get my fix!!!! I would love one here.....of course my hubby would pass on it....go in for a few utensils and come out with a couch!!!!!

cheermomof4girls · 10-12-2007, 08:15 AM

Darn it, why did they have to stick in the word LURE in there? Why can't it be a for sure thing? Why, why, why?

My dad heard that they were looking at the potranco area, so hopefully they are coming for sure, and that they are just trying to figure out where they want to build. I was sad because where I just moved from, I was only 8 minutes away from the Round Rock location. It figures that I would finally get one near me, and then we have to move. It would be so great to have one here. I hope the layout is more like Houston's. I did not care for the way they did Round Rock. Oh heck, who cares, as long as we get one!

firstclassflyer · 10-12-2007, 08:23 AM

Why is everyone so hyped on having this store here? IMO-This is some of the most shoddily built furniture around. The stuff is basically made for lower income folks, college dorms and people that are just starting out and don't have enough money for higher quality furniture. We have enough of these types of stores here already.
Why would we want this here??
Wouldn't you all much rather have a higher quality store? Amazing!

Insomniac · 10-12-2007, 08:31 AM

Cheer, it's pretty much a sure thing that IKEA will build in SA. For them it's all about finding the right location. It was at first going to be Regal Hills I believe then Regal Hills was scrapped and went from a 1 million square foot retail power center to The Landmark, a large scale mixed-use center which will feature more upscale retail (i.e. smaller retail layout) and residential, office, hotel, etc. IKEA works in a power-center type development which The Rim currently features and which they will be adding to near 1604 and Vance Jackson (1/3 a mile south of the main power center that hass Best Buy, Target, Santikos, Bass Pro, etc).

I have the site plan for The Rim. I'll post it later.

Insomniac · 10-12-2007, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by firstclassflyer

Why is everyone so hyped on having this store here? IMO-This is some of the most shoddily built furniture around. The stuff is basically made for lower income folks, college dorms and people that are just starting out and don't have enough money for higher quality furniture. We have enough of these types of stores here already.
Why would we want this here??
Wouldn't you all much rather have a higher quality store? Amazing!

firstclass, IKEA isn't for lower income people I can assure you of this. If it were there'd be atleast half a dozen in every city and town in the US a la Walmart. Just because the prices are low doesn't mean it's intended for lower income, the main reason for the lower prices is because most of the stuff they sell must be assembled by the consumer. The reason IKEA is popular is because of the stuff they do sell. Also, up until a few years ago there were only a handful of IKEA stores in the US that were in the bigger metro areas. They have recently began to really expand their presence.

jerryg · 10-12-2007, 08:35 AM

I dunno, I have an Ikea dining table that's probably 25 years old, now. Noone would recognize my breakfast table as an Ikea piece, either, but it is. /shrug.

That said, I think a big part of the attraction is that it's relatively inexpensive furniture that can be used until more expensive/long-lasting pieces can be purchased, and -some- of it does look nice (some of their cabinetry, for example, really -does- look nice when properly installed). That said, lots of people seem to like minimalist, Euro-looking furniture. Not my particular bag of tea (which is something else I don't like, mind) in general, but I do have a number of their bookcases, and the couple tables I mentioned. I prefer all-hardwood and proper uphostlery.

Insomniac · 10-12-2007, 08:49 AM

Large recent aerial that shows (w/labels) The Shops at La Cantera, The Rim, The Landmark and La Joya

The Rim site plan

I'll try to explain the setup as quickly as I can, I don't want to bore anyone, lol. In The Rim site plan you can see the main power center (brown buildings) that house Santikos, Bass Pro, Lifetime Fitness, Lowe's, Best Buy, Target, JC Penney etc. That portion is 75-80% complete with stores like Staples, Dick's Sporting Goods and others under construction (as shown in the aerial). Now look at the site plan again, towards 1604 there are a group of fairly large red buildings, those are retail buildings, that would seem to be the second power center of The Rim, which would be where Thomas Enterprises would put IKEA. It's a very very look location not only being rght off 1604 but it'd be directly across the freeway from The Landmark and La Joya.

Hope that made sense.

firstclassflyer · 10-12-2007, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Insomniac

firstclass, IKEA isn't for lower income people I can assure you of this. If it were there'd be atleast half a dozen in every city and town in the US a la Walmart. Just because the prices are low doesn't mean it's intended for lower income, the main reason for the lower prices is because most of the stuff they sell must be assembled by the consumer. The reason IKEA is popular is because of the stuff they do sell. Also, up until a few years ago there were only a handful of IKEA stores in the US that were in the bigger metro areas. They have recently began to really expand their presence.

I have been to 2 Ikea stores. One in Elizabeth, NJ and the other in SoCal. I beg to differ about it being for lower income folks, college dorms and people just starting out that don't have enough money for quality goods. Sorry.