Belk plans to participate in the expansion and renovation of Monroe Mall with a $6 million addition to its department store.
Construction is scheduled to start next year on a project that will increase the size of the store by 30,000 square feet to 95,000 square feet by October 2009.
Charlotte's SouthPark department store is Belk's largest at more than 330,000 square feet.
Kathy Trull, general manager of the mall in Monroe, said she's especially glad to see the expansion there because "Belk is a source of pride for our community."
William Henry Belk started the family business in 1888 with a small bargain store in Monroe and later moved the headquarters to Charlotte.
The Monroe Mall store opened in 1979.
Don Robinson, store manager, said the renovation will allow Belk to offer a wider selection of designer and national brand apparel, accessories, shoes and home furnishings. The new space will include a new Belk and Co. Fine Jewelers shop.
Belk's expansion is part of Washington, D.C.-based mall owner Madison Marquette's makeover and planned renaming of the 385,000-square-foot mall at U.S. 74 and Dickerson Boulevard, about 12 miles east of Interstate 485.
Denise Browning, vice president of Madison Marquette's Southeast region, said the mall hopes to become more competitive and capture Union County shoppers who drive to Charlotte.
"Monroe shoppers will finally have a retail destination that reflects the atmosphere and offerings that they deserve," she said .
"We've redone the interior and taken off all the old carpet," Browning said. "We are now in the process of re-tenanting the center."
The mall is about 70 percent occupied, she said.
A new entrance to the enclosed center is to be built, and by fall the exterior is to be renovated with new signage, landscaping and architecture.
When the makeover is finished, the mall will be renamed Monroe Crossing.
Madison Marquette already has signed several new tenants -- Xtreme Play and coffeehouse Cafe don Pablo among them. Glamour Nails and Spa and Claire's jewelry and fashion accessories have moved to new stores in the mall.
J.C. Penney and Sears are the mall's other anchors.
Madison Marquette bought Monroe Mall in late 2005 for $19.7 million, its first acquisition in North Carolina.
Charlotte real estate veteran Browning joined the company about two years ago and has since opened its Southeast regional office on Piedmont Row Drive in SouthPark.
Madison Marquette, an investor, developer and operator of retail and mixed-use development, oversees about 23 million square feet of retail mainly on the east and west coasts.
Real estate experts say it's known for its redevelopment of underperforming properties.
Browning said the Carolinas are a target market for the company, which recently purchased University Mall in Chapel Hill as a redevelopment opportunity.
Doug
Smith
