Sprouts Farmers Market and discount staple TJ Maxx are lined up as the headline tenants for a new shopping plaza on the State Road 44 corridor in New Smyrna Beach, adding more fuel to the area's retail boom. The grocery-anchored project is expected to come in at roughly 55,000 square feet, with space pitched to restaurants, fitness concepts, and soft-goods shops along the busy commercial stretch between I-95 and the beach. Developers are targeting a construction start next summer and are eyeing a full opening in summer 2027.
Project details and timeline
Developer GBT Realty Corp. has rolled out plans for the Shops at New Smyrna, a 55,273-square-foot neighborhood center anchored by a 23,273-square-foot Sprouts and about 35,000 square feet of junior-anchor and inline retail, according to REBusinessOnline. Trade coverage also notes that the plan includes two one-acre outparcels and pegs construction to start in summer 2026 with completion in summer 2027, as reported by ShoppingCenterBusiness.
Anchors and leasing
The Orlando Business Journal reports that TJ Maxx is listed as a potential junior anchor at the center, which would bring a national discount soft-goods name into the mix alongside Sprouts. According to the same report, the balance of the project is being marketed to restaurants, fitness operators, and service retailers, leaving room for local and regional players to grab space next to the big boxes.
Site, ownership and approvals
The Shops at New Smyrna are planned for an 11.37-acre parcel at the southeast corner of State Road 44 and South Myrtle Avenue. Volusia County records show the larger tract is owned by Houston-based Silvestri Investments, which is doing business as NSB 103 Development LLC, and that the roughly 11-acre portion is under contract to the developer, according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal. Local brokers told the paper that both the land sale and permitting must be finalized before site work can kick off.
Local context
Developers say the timing lines up with what is happening across Volusia County, where a wave of new grocery openings and planned stores has stirred up demand for specialty and discount concepts. Observer Local News recently covered a Sprouts opening in nearby Daytona Beach and a flurry of broader grocery activity that has retailers circling the region.
GBT Realty is actively marketing the remaining spaces and plans to move ahead with site work once city approvals are in place and the property closing is complete. If the current schedule holds, the developer is aiming to break ground in summer 2026 and wrap construction by summer 2027, according to trade reporting. Leasing details and exact opening dates could still shift as permits are processed and tenant deals are nailed down.
