Back in the Box

Empty big-box stores in the Tampa Bay area present opportunities for expanding retailers and other groups looking to lease large space at reasonable rates. That includes shops that are new to the market that can open more quickly than investing in new construction.

Nordstrom Rack, a clearance center for the well-known department store chain, found what appears to be a perfect spot in a vacant 45,000-square-foot Circuit City location at Walter's Crossing shopping center, at the Interstate 275/Dale Mabry Highway interchange in Tampa. The store was still fairly new when the electronics giant went out of business in 2009, and Nordstrom Rack opened last October.

It's the first location for the discounter on the Gulf Coast, and it continues to draw crowds to Walter's Crossing, which itself has had a history of fits and starts.