The 48,000 Square-Foot, Open Air Luxury Retail Destination Targeted to Open in 2016

WHITE PLAINS-Faros Properties and Caspi Development recently received site plan approval and will begin leasing Heritage White Plains, a 48,000 square-foot, open-air, luxury shopping and restaurant destination.

The companies recently made the announcements.

Heritage White Plains is at 120 Bloomingdale Road across from Bloomingdale’s, south of the Westchester and adjacent to the  145,000 square-foot former Nestle Headquarters that the partners own and are actively renovating.

Heritage White Plains is positioned for luxury and exclusive retail tenants who prefer an intimate “main street” environment over an enclosed mall, officials said. The environmentally conscious Heritage White Plains development will include between 12 and 18 boutique retailers, specialty shops and restaurants along with pedestrian walkways, a public arts plaza and an outdoor cafe.

Spokesmen said that the design creates a new type of lifestyle center with pedestrian friendly shopping and dining. Heritage White Plains offers ease of access-immediate highway access and abundant on-site parking – this is unmatched in other fashionable shopping destinations, officials added.

Faros and Caspi have retained Arrowstreet Inc. , an architecture and design firm based in Boston, to handle all aspects of development. Arrowstreets’s design for Heritage White Plains incorporates both modern and classical notes, combining refined contemporary details with natural materials. The full service architecture, urban design, planning, interiors and environmental graphics firm has been creating award winning projects worldwide for more than five decades.

“Arrowstreet is among the top architecture and design firms in the world and has extensive experience in environmentally friendly luxury development.,” said Joshua Caspi, principal of Caspi Development. “Their innovative design and sustainable approach align with our vision for the property. We are thrilled to have them onboard.”

“In addition to filling the last gap in retail expansion along the Bloomingdale Road corridor, Heritage White Plains will provide a new type of center not yet seen in Westchester County,” added Alex Leventhal, managing partner of Faros Properties. “Heritage incorporates a high level shopping experience into a sophisticated urban lifestyle environment.”

Faros Properties said that it will continue to seek direct and venture investment opportunities nationwide as the company expands its portfolio. Company officials said that the firm will continue to explore over-looked development opportunities created by the recent economic downturn.

Faros Properties is a New York City-based real estate investment firm established by Alexander Leventhal, Jeremy Leventhal and Elliot Gould as a platform to target long term private investment opportunities. Faros primarily targets core investments in supply-constrained markets with high concentrations of intellectual capitals, officials said. Faros and its predecessor companies trace their roots to family owned operations. The family has, for more than six decades, been actively involved in construction, development, acquisition, management and financing of more than 50 million square feet of real estate internationally.

Caspi Development has been a leader in the ownership, management and development of residential and commercial real estate for more than 40 years. Based in Purchase, the company is known for its diversity and ability to respond to market condition and capitalize on opportunities, according to company spokesman.

In recent years, the company has acquired, through joint venture, approximately 1,600 apartments in New York City. Most recently, Caspi Development projects include a 500-unit apartment package in the Bronx with Finkelstein Timberger and CBRE Capital Markets, as well as a number of high-end apartment projects in Brooklyn with Artemis Real Estate Partners.

Other notable Caspi Development Projects include:

• The 600-room Holiday Inn in midtown Manhattan on 57th Street.
• The Chambers Hotel, a luxury 80-room hotel off Fifth Avenue and 56th Street.
• The Stamford Marriott Hotel in Stamford (Conn.).
• The Classic Stamford  and Hartsdale.
• 235-245 Main Street, a 158,000 square foot office property in White Plains.
• The Sanborn Map Building, a 75,000 square foot office property in Pelham.