Fayetteville, N.C. – 

Developers officially broke ground on the complete redevelopment of the Marketfair Mall at 1916 Skibo Rd. on Friday, March 14. The groundbreaking event brought community members and local dignitaries to the site to learn new details about the project and celebrate the transformation of the space into a modern, open-air shopping center and movie theater destination for Fayetteville residents.

At the event, Fayetteville Mayor Nat Robertson and Cumberland County Commissioner Jeannette Council spoke about the growing area and benefits of the redevelopment for the town, while developers shared highly anticipated project updates with the community. Fort Bragg’s 82nd Airborne Division Band also joined in the celebration, performing music throughout the event.

“We’re thrilled to announce that construction on Marketfair is fully underway and the overall redevelopment is projected for completion in October 2014,” said Dusty Wiederhold, managing development member at Sunbelt Ventures. “The main portion of Marketfair shopping center will have a contemporary L-shape layout centered by Carmike Cinemas. The new retail and restaurant offerings will aim to provide Fayetteville community members with a fun new destination for movie date nights, shopping with friends and community events.”

The property boasts more than 54,000 square feet available for lease, with 12 spaces starting at 2,009 square feet. Renderings and site plans shown at the event displayed an inviting community destination as well as plans for three new driveways into the plaza from Skibo Road, Campground Road and Morganton Road. The new entryways will help traffic flow into the shopping center and allow easier access to the new businesses – which will be announced in the coming months. The plaza is also designed to have better signage at road access points, lighting and landscaping features, and a large parking lot with ample spaces for Marketfair patrons.

A new website for the shopping center was announced at the event, providing residents with a resource for up-to-date news on tenants and construction progress at www.shopmarketfair.com. Current plaza anchors Carmike Cinemas, Gander Mountain and H.H. Gregg are expected to remain open throughout the construction process. Grant-Murray Real Estate, a Fayetteville-based full-service commercial real estate firm, is spearheading leasing for the project.

The Marketfair groundbreaking event marked a construction milestone for the project and the first of many updates providing insight on what locals can expect when the shopping center opens. For more information on the redevelopment, visit www.shopmarketfair.com and www.facebook.com/shopmarketfair. For additional leasing information, please contact Patrick Murray at patrick@grantmurrayre.com.

About Marketfair

WSB Retail Partners, LLC is working in conjunction with Westport Capital Partners LLC on the complete redevelopment of the Marketfair property. The project includes transforming the mall space into a modern, open-air shopping center with various retail and restaurant offerings that aims to provide Fayetteville residents a fun new destination for shopping, dining and catching a movie. Current tenants Carmike Cinemas, Gander Mountain and H.H. Gregg are expected to remain as anchors of the shopping center and stay open throughout the construction process. Marketfair is owned by an entity owned by certain funds managed by Westport Capital Partners LLC and is managed by WSB Retail Partners, LLC. For more information, visit www.westportcp.com and www.wsbretail.com.