The Landmark apartment complex, which is scheduled to open this fall, will house one of the nation’s first TargetExpress stores.
Students will be able to buy groceries across from the campus with the opening of a TargetExpress along Route 1 in July, city officials said.
The 14,617-square foot store will be located underneath Landmark, an off-campus apartment building under construction in the previous location of the Maryland Book Exchange, said Michael Stiefvater, city economic development coordinator.
The store is expected to bring more people into downtown College Park and will create more buzz in the area, Stiefvater said.
TargetExpress is a new, more flexible format of the Target brand that caters to guests in rapidly growing, dense urban areas, according to Target’s guest relations staff. It will offer many of the same services as a regular Target, but condensed in a smaller venue. Anticipated sales volume, site constraints and the specific needs of a community factor into bringing an express store to the area, said guest relations staff.
Allie Peck, a sophomore education major, said she will continue to shop at the Target in Greenbelt because she lives in The Courtyards. But the location of this store would be convenient if she ever needed something while downtown, she said.
Stiefvater said the deal was made with Landmark’s developer, CA Ventures, and sees it as another step in the ongoing development of College Park.
“As we try to make College Park a more vibrant, walkable community, having amenities like this store are central to accomplishing that goal,” he said.
Other students think the store will make buying groceries and other goods more convenient while allowing College Park to be more of a true college town.
“For people who don’t have a car, I think a Target close by would be a great idea,” said Matt Wells, a sophomore enrolled in letters and sciences. “It makes it more of a college town and makes everything downtown more accessible to students.”
Target works with local officials to choose new store locations and determined the empty space under the Landmark fit the bill, according to guest relations staff.
Downtown College Park not having a communal place to shop played a role in CA Ventures leasing a TargetExpress, especially after it saw the usefulness of the store around another college campus, said David Israel, senior vice president of risk management for CA Ventures.
CA Ventures visited the first TargetExpress, located near the University of Minnesota’s campus, and saw the store’s effectiveness near a college campus, Israel said.
“The [Minnesota] store was bustling with activity and the students loved the convenience of being able to grab everyday essentials and shop for their groceries with ease,” Israel wrote in an email. “Having a TargetExpress in our building will be a great amenity for University of Maryland students and residents in the surrounding neighborhoods.”
While Landmark leases don’t begin until August, the store is set to open in July, Stiefvater said, which could make the apartment complex an attractive location for students to live.
Originally, the Book Exchange was going to move back into the empty space below the apartment building, but Stiefvater said the decision to lease the TargetExpress instead could have to do with Target being a more reliable tenant.
The Book Exchange was unsure about continuing to have a storefront location in College Park, Stiefvater said.
Landmark officials declined to comment.
