Tilden Ridge Breaks Ground

Tilden Ridge Shopping Center to be Anchored by Wal-Mart Supercenter and Lowe’s Home Improvement Store

Tilden Township, PA – August 14, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — Tilden Township, home of the largest and most successful Cabela’s Worlds Foremost Outfitter store in the nation, is about to become home to another large commercial project.  Construction officially began today at the site of the Tilden Ridge Shopping Center – soon to become the home of a Wal-Mart Supercenter, Lowe’s Home Improvement Store and approximately 100,000 square feet of other complimentary retail stores.

Plans for the Tilden Ridge Shopping Center were originally presented to the Township in 2004, and the project is slated to open to the public in Fall 2010/Spring 2011.

The site is situated at the intersection of Route 61 and Route 78 – the two major highways servicing the northern Berks County / Southern Schuylkill County markets.  Shoppers will be able to enter the shopping center via Cabela’s Drive – sharing the traffic signal with Cabela’s – and also via a new traffic signal that will be installed on Route 61, just north of Cabela’s Drive.

Jeremy Fogel, Principal at Ironwood Property Group; Kathy Foster,
Investment Real Estate Manager at Cabelas; Judy Romig - Vice Chairwoman
of the Tilden Township Board of Supervisors; Mark Scott - Chairman-
Berks County Commissioners

Tilden Ridge has been in the planning and design phase for almost five years, ever since Cabela’s successfully opened to the public and Tilden Township identified the area for commercial development.  The project required the direct support and involvement from the Township, County and other reviewing agencies, as well as from many private firms and individuals.“I have been working with the principals from Ironwood since they first introduced the project to the Township in 2004,” says Judy Romig, Vice Chairwoman of the Tilden Township Board of Supervisors.  “We have all worked well together to make sure the project will be successful for the retail stores that locate in the center, while still complying with the needs and interests of the residents of our Township.

“Tilden Ridge is going to be a first-class retail destination, satisfying demand from local, regional and super-regional customers,” said Jeremy Fogel, President of Ironwood Property Group, LP.  “The area is truly underserviced – most people in the region travel over 20 miles to get many basic goods and services.  The strip center shops and the grocery section of the Wal-Mart Supercenter will make Tilden Ridge a frequent destination for local and regional shoppers.  Lowe’s and the balance of the Wal-Mart Supercenter satisfy a more regional demand.  In addition, the project will feature several restaurants and service retailers that will provide options for the growing number people that use the market as a rest-stop off of the highway network.”

Dan Bobrowicz - Ironwood Property Group; Ned Kaplin - Principal,
Ironwood Property Group; Eric Knopping - Principal, Ironwood Property
Group; Judy Romig - Chairwoman of the Tilden Township Board of
Supervisors; Mark Scott - Chairman- Berks County Commissioners; Jeremy
Fogel - Principal, Ironwood Property Group

“We are very excited to have Tilden Ridge as our next door neighbor,” said Kathy Foster, Investment Real Estate Manager at Cabelas.  “Our Hamburg store continues to be the #1 store of our 30 retail stores ever since it opened in 2003.  The addition of Tilden Ridge will attract even more people to the area, complimenting our store by offering more goods and services to the community.”

Glenn Marvin, principal of Metro Commercial Real Estate, is the leasing agent for the project.  “In these uncertain economic times, the fact that both Wal-Mart and Lowe’s have chosen to focus on this site speaks to the strength of the market.”

Tilden Ridge is the second Berks County project for Ironwood.  The firm is currently working with The Goldenberg Group to complete Exeter Commons on Rt. 422 in Exeter Township.  That project broke ground in April 2008 and many of the stores opened.  Exeter Commons is anchored by Target, Giant and Lowe’s and includes approximately 500,000 square feet of total retail space.

About Ironwood Property Group
Ironwood Property Group is a real estate investment and development firm with a focus on the commercial shopping center industry.  Founded in 2003, the firm seeks to acquire existing assets and development opportunities, where its principals can add value by applying their expertise in permitting & approvals, design, leasing, finance and construction.  Ironwood is headquartered in West Conshohocken, PA.

Contact: Eric M. Knopping
Ironwood Property Group
610-941-1164 (office)
215-906-1695 (mobile)