Pier 1 Imports to Open in Montecito Shopping Center

Marinites will soon be able to fill their shopping bags with items from specialty home furnishings chain Pier 1 Imports, expected to open early November in the Montecito Shopping Center.

Pier 1 Imports recently put up signs at the 5,632-square-foot location, which has been vacant since the beginning of the year when Silver Screen Video moved out. The deal has been in the works for over 6 months, according to Wick Polite, a representative from the shopping center's owner Seagate Properties.

"It's a location that a national tenant would be attracted to due to the parking lot," he said. "It's a natural fit for their consumers."

Pier 1 Imports will be close to other national chains, including Trader Joe's and Petco. The new tenant will bring the retail occupancy rate for the shopping center to 100 percent, with a few office spaces vacant on the second floor, according to Polite.

In 2009, Pier 1 Imports closed its doors at its Terra Linda location at 155 Northgate One after problems with a lease. At the time, Corte Madera Town Center and Vintage Oaks in Novato both housed to the retail giant. Now, the only other Pier 1 is in Vintage Oaks.

Pier 1 Imports opened its first store in San Mateo in 1962, and now operates more than 1,000 stores nationwide.

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