Village Getting A New Look

The Village is changing its look in Corte Madera.

The Corte Madera Planning Commission voted Tuesday night to approve a plan from the shopping center's owner, the Macerich company, to give The Village a facelift that will make it more visible from Highway 101.

Josh Kalkhorst, senior property manager at The Village, said he's looking forward to the new changes.

The design would increase parking on the back side of The Village and decrease the size of the landscaped strip between the shopping center and the northbound highway. It also calls for more prominent signage on the buildings and a monument sign, all of which would be clearly visible to northbound traffic.

Nordstrom, one of the anchor stores at the shopping center that features several national chain stores, is finally going full steam ahead with its plans that would expand the store to 127,350 square feet.

The company tries to remodel its stores every 10-12 years, but the 26-year-old Corte Madera store is far behind that schedule, according to store officials.

The Planning Commission on Jan. 10, 2012, approved new designs for the 17,400 square foot expansion, but only after asking Nordstrom and its architect to consider more environmentally-friendly elements to the design.

Nordstrom had hoped to complete the project before the end of 2012, but the permitting process was stalled in December 2011, when Corte Madera Planning Commission members voted 3-2 not to approve any part of the plans at the time.

Commission members said wanted to see the project include more solar paneling and plans to collect and reuse rainwater and to mitigate storm water runoff.

The plan also called for 80 new parking spaces at The Village.

Macy's at the opposite end of the shopping center is also anticipating a redesign and expansion in the near future.

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