Whole Lotta HoCo Shakin’ Goin’ On

Whole Foods Market , Columbia Town Center

It’s official. Whole Foods Markets has inked a deal to occupy what amounts to the second and third floors of the former Rouse Company headquarters in Columbia Town Center. In a joint release this afternoon Whole Foods and Howard Hughes announced plans to significantly alter the interior of the Frank Gehry designed building  “creating a spectacular double height space for the store by removing the floor above the main level in the building.”

The four story building will now be a three story building but that's another story...

It’s a grand slam for John DeWolf and Howard Hughes. Back in March he was in the bottom of the ninth with this deal.

When you couple this with the announcement of GGP’s plan to reopen the main entrance of The Mall and the previously announced Metropolitan project, you get the sense that the long awaited Town Center makeover just kicked into high gear.

But wait there’s more…

Clyde’s has finally renewed their lease in Town Center. Sources have told me that the mainstay of Town Center dining is about to embark on an epic makeover. I hope to have more info on those plans soon.

It’s not just Town Center that’s happening either. The former Rocky Run Tap & Grill on Dobbin Road has been gutted, stripped down to the studs as it transforms itself into the Columbia Ale House. This is a big job, a large investment and very good news for HoCo beer drinkers.

There’s a whole lotta shakin goin on in HoCo this summer.