IE's economic engines | the shoppes at chino hills

A vision made real
...BY DEMOGRAPHICS, DETERMINATION

CHINO HILLS
By NEIL NISPEROS, PHOTOS BY THOMAS R. CORDOVA

JEFF HILL and Glenn Miller have helped bring a dream to reality with their work on The Shoppes at Chino Hills.

Following the success of Victoria Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga, The Shoppes, which opened in May, is the Inland Empire’s newest lifestyle shopping center. It features more than 60 retailers, including American Eagle Outfitters, Barnes & Noble, Banana Republic, Chico’s and Victoria’s Secret.

Hill, vice president of real estate development for the Southern California region of Opus West, led the effort to build the 450,000-square- foot outdoor retail center. For more than a decade, officials in Chino Hills held onto a vision to bring higher-end shopping to the area, said Hill, whose company came on board with the project six years ago.

"They did not want a (big box) power center," he said. "The city felt residents wanted a higher-end shopping experience." In addition to construction, Hill also worked to attract upscale retailers.

When deals with brand-name stores were made two years ago, the city moved forward with final approval on building the shopping center next to the new civic center in the heart of Chino Hills.

"Once the anchors came on board and they showed a strong interest, we purchased the land," Hill said.

Another factor in bringing The Shoppes to Chino Hills was the city’s affluent demographics. Retailers often determine which markets would be most profitable by studying demographic figures.

"It really centered on the retailers showing a strong interest in coming to Chino Hills," Hill said. "You look at the demographics and compare them to Victoria Gardens and in every category — income,house price and education — Chino Hills beat Rancho Cucamonga." But it wasn’t just retailers that Opus West brought to the project. The company also was able to secure the expertise of Miller, who had helped attract crowds to Victoria Gardens when he was its marketing director.

Now working as marketing director and property manager for The Shoppes, Miller is responsible for promoting the lifestyle center and planning its events throughout the year.

"There are three key fashion seasons when merchants introduce new fashion lines," he said. "During those periods, we’ll create an ad campaign designed to increase exposure for those merchants to generate sales." With respect to building and promoting The Shoppes, Hill and Miller come to the table with a lot of experience in their respective fields.

In addition to The Shoppes, Hill helped develop the largest office building in the Inland Empire, a Wells Fargo regional home mortgages division headquarters in San Bernardino. With Opus West, he also helped develop regional headquarters for Allstate Insurance Company in Diamond Bar.

"I think I’ve developed close to a billion dollars worth of real estate," said Hill, who earned a degree in real estate finance from Cal Poly Pomona in 1981 and has been in the real estate industry for 28 years.

Miller, who attended DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind., has been involved in shopping center marketing for 17 years. His work as a marketing director took him to Las Vegas, Cincinnati and other cities.

Miller says his career allows him the joy of being able to utilize a variety of skills. "I enjoy writing and a lot of my work is composing releases and information for merchants. I enjoy strategic planning and the financial aspects of the job." Miller says his work to help open Victoria Gardens remains a high point in his career and added, "I still consider it my baby." As for his new job, Miller said, "This is just a matter of having another one."