By Randy Tucker
Enquirer staff writer

Eric Moore, an electrician with Hilliard Electric, installs lights in an Aveda sign Wednesday at Deerfield Towne Center. The Enquirer/MEGGAN BOOKER

DEERFIELD TWP. - When Deerfield Towne Center officially opens its doors today as one of Greater Cincinnati's premier shopping destinations, township and county officials say another door will close.

That would be the door that until now was leading Deerfield Township shoppers and their consumer dollars out of Warren County to Tri-County Mall, Kenwood Towne Centre, Eastgate Mall and even the Dayton Mall in suburban Dayton, Ohio.

"Now people in Warren County will have something closer to them," said Karen Garrett, the county's economic development director. "That's going to mean more jobs and sales tax revenue, along with some tremendous shopping."

The 400,000-square-foot open-air shopping center at the intersection of Mason-Montgomery and Irwin Simpson roads also will provide residents with a gathering place that will enhance the community's sense of identity, said Fran Klatte, a spokeswoman for the Deerfield Township administrator's office.

"They're calling it 'Towne Center' for a reason," Klatte said, referring to the so-called "lifestyle center," that combines high-end retail, dining and entertainment in an outdoor setting. "There are going to be so many things to do there socially besides shopping. We're sure it will be a big draw."

Township, county and mall officials will kick off the socializing at 6 p.m. today with an invitation-only reception at The Polo Grille - one of 11 sit-down restaurants that are intended to help promote leisure-time visits and casual browsing.

Mark Fallon, vice president of leasing for the mall's owner and developer - Cincinnati-based Jeffrey R. Anderson Real Estate - said about 75 percent of the shops will be open for business today, including anchors Borders, Bed Bath & Beyond, Wild Oats and Dick's Sporting Goods, as well as dozens of national specialty chains, including Arhaus Furniture and New York & Co.

Anderson Real Estate opened Rookwood Commons in 2000 as Greater Cincinnati's first lifestyle center and is in the process of converting the old Crestview Hills Mall into a lifestyle center to open in 2005.

"It's just a much more pleasant alternative to the typical mall experience," Fallon said. "We've seen how successful it can be with Rookwood Commons ... and we want to duplicate that success in Deerfield."

Anderson is capitalizing on a national trend that has seen the number of lifestyle centers explode over the past decade from less than a half dozen in the early 1990s to more than 30 today, not including those under construction, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Even enclosed malls, including Kenwood Towne Centre, have been adding lifestyle wings.

"The lifestyle centers have been highly successful for a number of reasons," said Greg Andrews, an analyst at Green Street Advisors, a Newport Beach, Calif.-based research and consulting firm. "Lifestyle centers typically take up less than half the land of a traditional mall, which means they're less expensive for developers to build. And retailers such as Banana Republic, Williams-Sonoma and Ann Taylor often prefer to be in outdoor settings.

"In turn, shoppers find the centers more convenient and more of a destination."

E-mail rtucker@enquirer.com