Center is keeping it small

Most retailers would want to make their signs as big as humanly possible -- or at least as big as the city would let them. And neon.

That's not the case at the new Lafayette Village shopping center in North Raleigh, where the signs will actually be smaller than what the city allows.

Developer Paul Bronson said it's all about fitting in with the center's European look.

Indeed, that seems to be the No. 1 goal for the center, at the corner of Falls of Neuse and Honeycutt roads. And it will probably make it one of the most unusual additions around here in some time.

When it's completed next year, Lafayette Village will be a cozy little place to hang out, with grassy areas for live entertainment or a game of checkers in addition to shops and restaurants.

Bronson is purposely shying away from big national stores in favor of small local shops.

The tenant roster will include Cary favorite Henry's Gelato, a coffee shop that specializes in African blends called Jubala Village Coffee, and a restaurant called Bistro Jaunty.

The center is also in talks with a gourmet market, a tea room, a kitchenware store, a linens store, apparel shops, a day spa, a nail salon and a few other restaurants.

Those that have signed on so far are buying into the vision of a place where folks will come to hang out.

"We don't want to be like Starbucks. We don't want people to come in, get coffee and get pushed out," said Jeff Cash, who is opening Jubala Village Coffee with brother Andrew.

But we'll just have to wait. For now, the most visible signs of the center are a concrete retaining wall (which was made with recycled pieces of the torn-up sidewalk) and a big dirt hole in the ground. Steel should start rising early next year, and tenants should start opening in late 2008.

Other items: At Raleigh's Crabtree Valley Mall, Shi opens Monday, selling shoes for women in their 20s and 30s; Best Buy Mobile opens Dec. 7; and Forever XXI opens Dec. 22. ... Gecko's Corner, a gift and home-decor store, is now open at 7416 Creedmoor Road in Raleigh. The shop is owned by Darlene Johns, president of Raleigh IT Networking company Alphanumeric Systems. This doesn't signal a change of careers for Johns. ... And in Cary, Travel Experts of Cary will move Monday from the Waterford Center to 120 Kilmayne Drive near Big Lots.

From my blog this week:

* Local toy store Tookie's Toys is introducing a "Tookie's To Go" program that allows shoppers to buy online, have their items gift-wrapped (which is free) and then pick them up at either of its two locations. Owners John and Katherine Hodges said they wanted to make it easier for people to spend their money locally.

* Kerr Drug opened its second Community Health Care Center in Sanford this week, at 1050 S. Horner Blvd. Unlike a traditional store, the centers are more focused on care and long-term management.