Year-long wait is over -- Tanger Outlet 1 opens Thursday

The shopping public will get its first glimpse of the new Tanger Outlet Center 1 in greater Bluffton this morning.

The center -- and 32 of its 40-plus shops and restaurants -- will open at 10 a.m. after a year-long, $50 million redevelopment on Fording Island Road.

Tanger officials say more than 30 -- including adidas, Kenneth Cole, Under Armour, DKNY Donna Karan New York, and Vince Camuto -- are new to the local market.

The center, which held an exclusive event for ticketholders Wednesday night, will host a ribbon cutting at 11 a.m. today. Tanger Factory Outlet Centers president and CEO Steven Tanger and S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley will be joined by local officials and co-hosts Jenifer Andrews of TV station WJCL and Derek Hough of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."

Additional parking will be available near the center, and the company will provide shuttle service from Tanger Outlet Center 2.

ECONOMIC OPTIMISM

Tanger officials are opening their latest center in South Carolina as the nation is recovering from the recession.

"We love the state of South Carolina and have absolute confidence in the economic future of the state and the United States," public relations director Mike Buescher said.

Ninety-three percent of the 22-acre center's 177,000 square feet of retail space is leased, Buescher said.

Haley is attending the grand reopening to salute Tanger, her spokesman said. The company is based in Greensboro, N.C., and has three other centers in South Carolina: two in Myrtle Beach and one in Charleston.

"Retail is a huge part of our economy, for our own citizens and the many tourists that come to our great state," Haley spokesman Rob Godfrey wrote in an email. "We appreciate the Tanger Outlet's investment in South Carolina and look forward (to) its great success."

OLD VS. NEW

The new center replaces one opened by other developers in 1987 and bought by Tanger in 2003.

Tanger has planned to rebuild it since 2005.

Tanger officials said it lacked fire sprinklers in many buildings, could not accommodate tenants' request for larger spaces and developed deep puddles in its parking lot during heavy rains. Store employees said it suffered from mold, leaky ceilings and rotting wood.

Tanger officials say the new center will be a vast improvement.

They expect it to be the first in Beaufort County certified by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards, and they have trumpeted their efforts to be environmentally friendly throughout the buildup to today's "Gloriously Green, Fresh and Fabulous Grand Re-Opening."

Including four outparcels slated for restaurants, the new center will have about 200,000 square feet of retail space, Tanger officials have said.

The old center had about 50 stores and 186,000 square feet, Buescher said.

The number of parking spots will increase by about 140 to 1,000, he said.

This story was originally published March 30, 2011 at 7:02 PM with the headline "Year-long wait is over -- Tanger Outlet 1 opens Thursday."