Coach, Coldwater Creek coming to Modesto's mall

Two stores announced Tuesday they'll be moving into prime real estate at Vintage Faire Mall.

Coach and Coldwater Creek will flank the entrance to the mall's Village at Vintage Faire project, which consists of 10 stores and two restaurants scheduled to open in November, said Janice Curtain, the mall's marketing manager.

Coach is a high-end handbag, footwear and accessory label that will be toward the front of a new patio area, complete with planters, a 14-jet fountain and outdoor cafe seating.

Women's clothing and accessory label Coldwater Creek will be across from Coach in one of the mall addition's largest retail spaces.

The shell of what mall officials promise to be a space like no other in the Northern San Joaquin Valley has taken shape on the south side of Vintage Faire Mall near Sweet River Grill & Bar and Rejuv Aveda spa, which will be open throughout the construction.

The stone- and brick-finished addition is meant to evoke the feeling of a quaint village. For now, it's a dusty construction site filled with stakes and other markers to indicate where fountain water will be filtered and where plants will soften pathways.

BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse will open across from the village. The family-style restaurant, which has begun hiring, will feature its own brews.

The addition is expected to create 300 jobs, said Maria Halstead, a mall property manager.

Another full-service restaurant will go across from BJ's. Together they will create a second new and landscaped plaza.

Mall officials would not disclose the names of the other restaurant or stores with which they are working.

The addition is said to be unique in that it will be filled with high-end stores new to the Northern San Joaquin Valley.

"A lot of retail is going up in the surrounding community, and we want to maintain our place in the market. This will help us do that," Halstead said. "People won't have to go to Pleasanton to buy Coach anymore."

Construction on the addition began in January and should be done by fall. The addition will be christened with a Christmas-tree lighting, which also will kick-start the holiday shopping season.

The mall is adding three new bus shelters at Sisk and Dale roads and outside an upstairs food court.

Two traffic signals will be installed soon as well, near Johnny Carino's restaurant and the carpool parking lot.

Bee staff writer Eve Hightower can be reached at ehightower@modbee.com or 578-2382.

This story was originally published June 25, 2008 at 5:21 AM with the headline "Coach, Coldwater Creek coming to Modesto's mall."