Shopping center Yellow Pine in Babcock Ranch is fully leased
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jul 19, 2024

The Shoppes at Yellow Pine, a shopping center under construction in Babcock Ranch, won't open until 2025 — but it's already fully leased.

Babcock Ranch is a master-planned community that spans 18,000 acres in southeastern Charlotte and northeastern Lee counties. At full buildout, it will have 19,500 residences and 6 million square feet of commercial space. Palm Beach Gardens-based Kitson and Partners is the master developer of Babock Ranch.

Kitson boasts that Babcock Ranch offers "maximum protection from major Florida weather events" because it is located 30 miles inland and 30 feet above sea level.

“Construction is about 60 percent complete, all of the buildings are up, and we’re starting the exterior finishes now,” Matt Buehler, senior vice president of commercial development at Kitson, said in a statement. "The strong interest we’ve seen has been very encouraging; not only is it confirmation that our sustainable, resilient development model is attractive to major brands, it speaks to the vitality of our community and further validates that Babcock Ranch is growing into a vibrant town.”

Shoppes at Yellow Pine is 120,000 square feet and adjacent to a Publix Super Markets Inc.-anchored shopping center known as Crescent B Commons. The Yellow Pine shopping center will include "three multi-tenant outparcel buildings fronting Cypress Parkway and two standalone internal outparcels," according to Kitson.

Medical tenants were a focus for Kitson when leasing Shoppes at Yellow Pine, and Tampa General Hospital is among those who have committed to the property. It will have a 6,500-square-foot urgent care on the property on Cypress Parkway.

National retailers in the Babcock mix

Traditional retailers that will have a presence in the Shoppes at Yellow Pine include Ulta Beauty, Marshalls, Ace Hardware and Five Below. Several restaurants also lease space in the shopping center, including Oar & Iron Raw Bar & Grill, which Kitson describes as "a standalone restaurant on the northeast corner of the site serving delicious steaks and seafood in an upscale setting."

Yummy Thai and Chinese will have a presence at the property, as well as national chains Panera, Jersey Mike’s, Five Guys, Papa John and Carvel ice cream.

Other tenants include Verizon, Fountain Pools, Seymour Orthodontics, Tipsy Hair Salon and The Laser Lounge Spa.

“The Shoppes at Yellow Pine marks a big step for Babcock Ranch, and we are thrilled to deliver more services to our fast-growing residential population,” Buehler said. “This project represents the next phase of a master plan that will see the development of six million square feet of sustainable commercial, retail, light industrial, civic and office space for our community.”