A new retail property under way near Phoenix acquired an anchor tenant. Phoenix Premium Outlets, which broke ground two weeks ago in Chandler, Ariz., will be home to a Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5^TH store and approximately 90 other high-end retail shops.

Image courtesy Architects Orange

The 90-store Phoenix Premium Outlets will feature nine primarily tilt-up concrete structures housing approximately 360,000 sq ft of leasable space.

Phoenix-based contractor Kitchell is building the 360,000-sq-ft project for Simon Property Group, an Indianapolis-based real estate developer with 57 similar outlet malls in the U.S. and 70 worldwide. Located on 50 acres of land owned by the Gila River Indian Community, the center will be located directly adjacent to Wild Horse Pass Casino, which was also constructed by Kitchell.

While a construction cost was not released, the nine-building project is expected to employ more than 300 construction workers and 800 permanent jobs once the stores open in spring 2013. The project could generate more than $140 million annually in retail sales.

The primarily tilt-up concrete project was designed by Orange, Calif.-based Architects Orange, with structural engineer Ken Okamoto & Associates, Costa Mesa, Calif., and Phoenix-based landscape architect Gilmore Parsons Land Design Group.