Brookfield’s Stonestown set to turn chunk of Nordstrom space into distribution center

A chunk of Brookfield’s Stonestown Galleria will be redeveloped into a distribution center as the developer plugs another 26,000 square feet of the gaping hole left when upscale retailer Nordstrom shut its store at the mall on San Francisco’s west side.

Utah-based contractor Culp Construction Company recently sought approvals for a 26,000-square-foot parcel delivery service at the ground floor of the mall, according to documents filed with the city’s Planning Commission.

The new facility will be built in a portion of what was previously the location of Nordstrom, which announced plans to shutter its 160,500-square-foot store at the mall in 2019.

Another chunk of Nordstrom’s square footage was taken by Target, which expanded its lease from 30,000 square feet to 90,000 square feet. A 34,434-square-foot portion of the vacated space remains vacant, the Planning Commission filing showed.

Stonestown Galleria is part of a 41-acre site that Brookfield has earmarked for a $2 billion redevelopment. The mall, which sits on an 11-acre lot, is planned as the centerpiece of the project, which will include 2,930 housing units in buildings ranging from three to 18 stories high.

The site, at 19th Avenue at Winston Drive, is adjacent to San Francisco State University and currently anchored by Regal Cinemas, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and the expanded Target. Other tenants include Apple, Victoria’s Secret, Sephora, Uniqlo, H&M and Zara.

The new lease aligns with the expanding square footage of distribution center operators in shopping malls. According to research from data firm Coresight research, online retailer Amazon converted space at 25 shopping malls into fulfillment centers between 2016 and 2019. Amazon’s biggest conversions include the repurposing of an entire Baton Rouge, Louisiana ,mall into a 3.4 million square foot distribution facility and the redevelopment of a Knoxville, Tennessee shopping center into a 220,000-square-foot facility.

Representatives for Culp Construction and Brookfield did not respond to requests for comment.