If It's ICSC Next Week - Will Anyone Hear?

If It's ICSC Next Week - Will Anyone Hear?
Yeah - it's a play off the tired old axiom but it's still appropriate. Next week is the big shopping center and commercial real estate conference in Las Vegas. Normally a huge deal for the developers who reel in national and regional retailers for new centers, new space, new stores. This year it's likely to be WAY down in attendance and even farther behind in deals. We've spent some time recently working with brokers and developers trying to find retailers for new projects, existing space, you name it. There is little happening.
Today's LA Times.com has a storyabout banks teetering on the edge due to commercial loans. The numbers are staggering. If we really are hitting bottom and starting back up this part of the business climate has to gain strength. If developers and by default banks start to fail because of commercial loans then we have hit only a plateau - and the bottom is still somewhere lower.
There are retailers out there expanding and several are looking to buy their dirt rather than lease it. Companies like In-N-Out have cash and strong sales and are now looking at markets that previously there were no vacancies. There are plenty now.