By Ken Alltucker
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Despite slow progress in landing retail stores, the majority owner of Newport on the Levee said Wednesday it has no plans to sell the retail-entertainment complex on the Northern Kentucky riverfront.

Officials of San Diego-based Price Legacy acknowledge that they are disappointed with the slow leasing progress of the riverfront project. But the company is confident that its partner, Columbus-based Steiner + Associates, will add a good mix of high-end shops to the 400,000-square-foot center's nightlife and entertainment offerings, such as Bar Louie and the 20-screen AMC Newport Theaters.

"Naturally, we are concerned when a property doesn't perform to our expectations," said Sharon Filbig, an investor relations representative for Price Legacy. "We haven't expressed any intention to sell it. We still feel optimistic about the property, and we have some good leasing that is going on."

Last month, Price Legacy announced the removal of its chief executive and other top officers. The company also said it would explore selling some properties as part of a reorganization that could include a reverse stock split or other financial maneuvers.

Even though the Levee's 18 percent vacancy rate exceeds other Price Legacy retail properties, the company doesn't intend to dump the Levee. The company's "noncore assets" being shopped to potential buyers include a corporate park in Orlando, Fla., and a couple of office properties, Filbig said.

The Levee's double-digit vacancy rate is partly due to Steiner's insistence that it create a good retail mix, according to general manager Ellen Prows.

The development's timeline - it opened two years ago just after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks jolted the nation's economy - hasn't helped, either.

Newport City Manager Phil Ciafardini is satisfied with the project's success.

"I don't know what (Price Legacy's) intentions are," he said. "Whatever they decide to do will be purely a business decision. It doesn't reflect on the project, which, obviously, has been very successful."

E-mail kalltucker@enquirer.com