Q: Do you have the opening date for the relocated Barnes & Noble store in Naples? Before the original store closed, they were predicting the new store would open in September. Thanks. —Adam Christopher, Naples 

Q: What’s going in the vacant Barnes & Noble site at Waterside? —Kathy Pope, Naples 

A: When relocation of the Barnes & Noble bookstore in Naples was initially reported, the new store in Park Shore Plaza was expected to open a week after the old one closed in Waterside Shops. Then, just before the Waterside location closed July 23, the bookstore announced its reopening date in Park Shore would be in early September. Unforeseen issues have delayed the opening until early next year, said Janine Flanigan, senior director of store planning and design for the Barnes & Noble chain. 

“Unfortunately, we’ve had some delays due to some roof issues. The new target opening date is Jan. 29, 2025,” Flanigan said. “With some of the weather conditions, we experienced some severe roof leaks. Getting those addressed has set us back a bit and, of course, we want to be sure they are addressed completely before bringing books into the building.” 

Brixmor, the New York-based property group that owns Park Shore Plaza, fixed the weather-related structural damage in late August and early September, city permits show. “Storms in June damaged the roof, which we repaired, but it impacted Barnes & Noble’s schedule,” said Kristen Moore, chief marketing officer for Brixmor. 

Nothing else has changed in Barnes & Noble’s plans for the new store, Flanigan said.  

“This will be a beautiful 35,000-square-foot store,” she said. “In the meantime, we do have our Coconut Point store not too far away and hope customers will visit us there as they await the Naples store opening.” 

The move about a mile south to the former Big Lots store at 4149 Tamiami Trail N. in the Burlington-anchored retail center will increase the square footage for the national bookseller rather than downsize its space, as the chain recently did when relocating its store within Coconut Point in Estero. Of course, the larger ground-level store in Naples will replace the highly visible two-story bookstore Barnes & Noble has occupied for more than 30 years on the northwest corner of U.S. 41 and Seagate Drive in North Naples. 

With e-commerce changing consumer habits, Barnes & Noble is the last national bookstore chain in Collier County. Borders closed its North Naples store in 2011 where Trader Joe’s is today. Books-A-Million closed its store in Naples Plaza in 2012 and was replaced by Nordstrom Rack at Mercato in 2013. Coastland Center mall in Naples used to have locations for both Waldenbooks and B. Dalton Bookseller before they became defunct in 2011 and 2013, respectively. Family Christian Stores closed all of its locations, including stores in Park Shore Plaza and Carillon Place, in 2017. 

Detroit-based Sachse Construction is demolishing Barnes & Noble’s vacated interior space at 5377 Tamiami Trail N. in Waterside Shops to create a shell for home furnishing retailers Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma, which eventually will relocate from longtime units inside the upscale open-air mall to the 24,000-square-foot, two-story building. Nearly every corner of the local shopping and dining destination will be affected by redevelopment projects through at least 2025. 

Sachse also has Collier County permits for the demolition of the two-story commercial building of more than 40,000 square feet—that formerly was home to Nordstrom department store for 12 years before it permanently closed in 2020—at 5489 Tamiami Trail N. in Waterside Shops. California-based Restoration Hardware, a trendy home furnishings store known simply as RH, is conceptualizing plans to build one of its stylish galleries with a rooftop restaurant on that site. 

Meanwhile, plans approved this month show that Sachse also is the contractor for the interior demolition of a freestanding former bank office at 765 Seagate Drive to create space for Eddie V’s Prime Seafood, an American seafood and steak restaurant chain operated by Orlando-based Darden Restaurants. The upscale, full-service restaurant is proposed for the former Bank of America/U.S. Trust building on the southwest corner of Waterside Shops. 

These projects are occurring on the edges of the mall, while interior changes with new retailers are happening as usual during the start of the season.  

Alice + Olivia launched Sept. 14 at Waterside Shops in the former space of the St. John boutique. The contemporary New York-based fashion brand by Stacey Bendet offers women’s clothing where whimsy meets sophistication. St. John recently reopened after relocating to the former Trina Turk suite. 

Alo Yoga is scheduled to launch a shop for workout accessories this fall in a suite near the former Nordstrom store. Vince, a high-end chain for stylish yet timeless clothing and accessories for men, women and children, reopened Sept. 6 after a remodeling project. Panerai boutique and 120% Lino linen clothing store will be relocating to newly designed spaces, but guests can continue to shop at their existing stores in Waterside until then. 

Burger file 

Q: I went to the North Naples BurgerFi last week to find it closed. I believe the closest location that is still open is near Whole Foods off of Daniels in Fort Myers. —Stephany Carr, Naples 

A: When BurgerFi International Inc. announced Sept. 11 that it filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, the company reported that all 144 locations of the company’s two casual dining chains—BurgerFi and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza & Wings —will continue normal, uninterrupted operations. But, in September, BurgerFi closed its corporate-owned location in North Naples. 

That Creekside Corners endcap was the last of the company’s “better burger” dining concepts in Collier County. It opened in August 2016 on the corner of Goodlette-Frank and Immokalee roads. BurgerFi’s only other location in Collier County permanently closed in mid-June at the Shops at Eagle Creek in East Naples.  

Both Collier locations were temporarily shuttered during the first quarter of 2019 while their ownership was transferred from a Naples-based franchisee to the Fort Lauderdale-based BurgerFi International. Both restaurants closed that January and reopened four months later as corporate stores. 

The only remaining BurgerFi restaurant in Collier or Lee counties is at 6881 Daniels Parkway, Suite 110, in Daniels Marketplace, the retail center anchored by Whole Foods Market in south Fort Myers.  

The “Tim Aten Knows” weekly column answers local questions from readers. Email Tim at tim.aten@naplespress.com.