Listen to this articleFederal Realty Investment Trust, the owners of Huntington Shopping Center, will host an open house next week to celebrate the completion of the property’s $75 million redevelopment.
The celebration on Friday, Nov. 8, will feature a 150-drone light show and beer, wine and food from Burger Village and other tenants from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the retail complex at 350 Walt Whitman Road. The drone light show is set to take flight over Whole Foods Market between 6:45 p.m. and 7 p.m.
“We’re looking forward to welcoming our neighbors to Huntington Shopping Center so they can see first-hand how the center has transformed over the past few years,” Chris Fleming, vice president of Asset Management for Federal Realty. “The drone show is designed to not only highlight this compelling new destination, but also bring awareness to a collection of businesses that have recently opened their doors here.”
Guests at the event will be able to explore the center’s improvements and additions, with some stores and restaurants offering giveaways and discounts. Attendees can watch the show from their vehicles or from a pedestrian viewing area in the parking field adjacent to Just Salad. The viewing area will include a live DJ, beer and wine and food vendors.
The redevelopment project, which began in Jan. 2022, included updated facades, reconstructed parking lots, new landscaping and walkways, and outdoor seating areas. It also added two new 8,000-square-foot pad-site buildings that were constructed on parts of the center’s parking lot, with each accommodating three tenants.
The reboot of the 21-acre Huntington Shopping Center was named Top Retail Redevelopment in Suffolk County in the 2024 LIBN Real Estate, Architecture and Engineering Awards. Firms responsible for the project, piloted by Federal Realty, included SBLM Architects, E.W. Howell, R&M Engineering, TDM Consulting Engineer, MG Engineering, RLA, and Halvorson | Tighe & Bond Studio.
Since the redevelopment began, Huntington Shopping Center has opened 12 new tenants, including The Container Store, REI, J.Crew Factory, Just Salad, Burger Village, Paris Baguette, Whole Foods Market, and more. It is currently 94 percent leased.
Founded in 1962, publicly traded Federal Realty owns and operates 102 properties across the U.S., which include some 3,300 tenants in 26 million commercial square feet and about 3,100 residential units. On Long Island, Federal Realty owns the 103,000-square-foot Greenlawn Plaza; the 134,000-square-foot Hauppauge Shopping Center; the 210,000-square-foot Huntington Shopping Center; the 244,000-square-foot Huntington Square shopping center; and the 253,000-square-foot Melville Mall.