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N.Y. SHOW TO LOOK AT MIXING SPORTS WITH RETAIL

BY DEBRA HAZEL

Are stadiums and other sports venues becoming the next hot anchor? That will be among the topics raised at ICSC’s 2004 New York Conference & Deal Making, to be held December 6-8 at the New York Hilton.

The New York Conference is the second-biggest event in ICSC’s annual calendar, after the Spring Convention in Las Vegas. And sports is a topical subject, given New York City’s bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

Sports and/or fitness facilities anchor such mixed-use venues as Chelsea Piers, in New York City, and they are planned for The Mills Corp.’s Meadowlands Xanadu, in East Rutherford, N.J. These and other projects will be among the subjects discussed by a panel to include James E. Dausch, Mills’ president of development, and others from both the private and public sectors.

“I’ve been on the program committee for 20 years, and this show will be the best ever because of the diverse content of the sessions, our speakers and the sheer amount of people attending the meeting,” said David J. Schwartz, president of New York City-based Olympic Realty & Development Corp. and chairman of this year’s program-planning committee. “It’s going to be great.”

Last year’s meeting drew more than 5,000 retail real estate professionals.

A second general session, “Beyond the Horizon: Tomorrow’s Trends,” will analyze the ways retailers alter their merchandise and formats to accommodate changing demographics. Roger Staubach, a football great who has become a real estate powerhouse, will discuss “Serving Your Customer in the 21st Century” at Monday’s luncheon.

In addition, a Retailers’ Runway will spotlight the expansion plans of several chains that are expanding in the region.

The meeting kicks off Sunday, Dec. 5 with the annual ICSC Barry M. Davis Memorial Next Generation Educational Scholarship Award Dinner. The event will raise funds for the scholarship, which is awarded yearly to allow an industry professional to obtain further training at ICSC’s John T. Riordan School for Professional Development. The winner of this year’s award will be announced at the dinner.

Tuesday and Wednesday will focus exclusively on deal making. Companies will display their projects and services inside 17 meeting rooms and at 349 booths on three levels at the hotel. The halls this year were reconfigured to accommodate more booths.

“We were able to make 14 more companies very happy,” said Phyllis Peterson, ICSC’s director of leasing and deal making.

By popular demand, Peterson says, Wednesday’s deal-making hours have been extended this year, to run from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., rather than to noon.