The outdoor retailer REI and the off-price clothing retailer Burlington Stores will both open new stores in the Village at Waterside in East Brainerd on May 11.
REI is entering the Chattanooga market with its 25,000-square-foot outlet, while Burlington is adding a second store in Chattanooga with its new 40,000-square-foot store at 2521 Lifestyle Way. The retailers are among 162,000 square feet of commercial development taking shape in the retail center north of Shallowford Road along Interstate-75 just north of Hamilton Place mall. A 45,000-square-foot Publix opened at Waterside last month.
“This is a great location just off I-75 and there are a lot of retailers who have wanted to get into that market (around Hamilton Place) for some time, and this is the first new construction in the market in some time,” said Brett Horowitz of developer Branch Properties of Atlanta. “We have a great tenant lineup with Publix, REI, Burlington and others we hope to soon announce that will attract a lot of shoppers to this area.”
Waterside is projected to eventually include 162,000 square feet of new commercial space in the complex originally developed by the DeFoor Brothers prior to the Great Recession more than a decade ago.
REI , which operates 147 stores in 36 states, has operated stores elsewhere in Tennesseee since 1999 and currently has stores in Brentwood and Knoxville. REI is entering the Chattanooga market for the first time with its Waterside location, which is scheduled to open May 11 and have a grand opening a week later, Horowitz said.