At the City-Neighborhood meeting of 10/1/13, Assistant City Manager Garrett Evans -- who oversees (among many other things) City government economic development activities -- reported that one of numerous advances toward healthy City growth -- was the successful acquisition of more than one-third of the former Best Buy retail space, at Century Plaza, by Harbor Freight Tools. [It's not yet clear what will happen with the other two-thirds]
Yesterday's following report by our area's Contra Costa Times reporter, Eve Mitchell, fills in the details on this very prompt and welcome achievement. To visit her report, on the main website, along with other pertinent stories, please click here.
And, a very grateful well-done to all!!!
David Nelson
Harbor Freight Tools to fill retail space in Pittsburg once occupied by Best Buy
PITTSBURG -- The ultimate man cave is coming to Pittsburg. [BIG SMILES at the clever way she put this -- the place really is an "ultimate man cave." -- DN]
Harbor Freight Tools, which sells power, automotive and hand tools, is slated to move into part of the retail space that once housed a Best Buy electronics store in the Century Plaza shopping center.
The Best Buy has been vacant since May 2012 when it shuttered as part of a companywide closure of stores nationwide. The Pittsburg location would be the Harbor Freight Tool's second location in Contra Costa County.
"We'll be open in late November," John Batten, vice president of Harbor Freight Tools said Thursday.
"Pittsburg gives us a nice location ... It has good visibility," he said of the location site that parallels state Highway 4. It will serve not only Pittsburg customers but also those from Antioch, Oakley and Brentwood and other East Contra Costa communities who are looking for a wide assortment of tools that include various brands and the retailer's in-house brand, he said.
The retailer has signed a 10-year-lease to occupy 18,000 square feet of the 50,000 square-foot retail space which was once occupied by Best Buy, said Doug Messner, vice president of Sierra Pacific Properties, which owns the shopping center.
Best Buy still had a lease agreement for several more years when it closed its doors at the Pittsburg location, Messner said. The lease had to be bought out before a new tenant could be found, he said.
"That let us move forward with Harbor Freight," Messner said.
Construction crews are putting up a new facade in preparation for the arrival of Harbor Freight Tools, which also has stores in Fairfield, Pleasant Hill, San Jose and Stockton and Vallejo.
"It's going to add something we really don't have," said Messner, adding that unlike other stores such as Home Depot that carry tools in their hardware and home improvement store inventory Harbor Freight Tools specializes in tools.
"Harbor Freight Tools will be another quality retail addition to the Century Plaza shopping center. With the recent renovation of the Maya Cinemas and the renovation of several of the restaurants, Century Plaza is looking better than ever," city manager Joe Sbranti said in an email.
Harbor Freight Tools is a privately held company based in Calabasas (Los Angeles County) and has more than 450 stores nationwide.
Contact Eve Mitchell at 925-779-7189. Follow her on Twitter.com/EastCounty_Girl.
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