Bath & Body Works is expected to open within weeks in Southside Commons, north of Regency Square Mall where the personal care, fragrance and candle store fully shuttered as of October.
The sign is up, the windows are covered and work is taking place in the space, where shelving is being installed.
An online directory of stores shows the opening will be Feb. 2.
The city issued a permit Dec. 1 for temporary retail space for Bath & Body Works in a 3,200-square-foot store at 651 Commerce Center Drive, No. 515, at an estimated cost of $58,000.
The space at one time was Payless Shoes.
A temporary space could mean the store will lease there until another location is identified and built-out.
Southside Commons, anchored by Michaels and The Church of Eleven22, is a strip shopping center north of Regency Square and near Lowe’s.
The Bath & Body Works store is between Sally Beauty Supply and Old School Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
Plans show Pinnacle Construction Inc. of Glenwood, Iowa, is the contractor. Architectural Group International of Covington, Kentucky, is the architect.
Sleiman Enterprises is the landlord.
Bath & Body Works has at least seven locations in Northeast Florida, including St. Johns Town Center, The Avenues mall and Riverplace Shopping Center in Mandarin. There are two in St. Augustine and one in Orange Park.
For months, Bath & Body Works inside Regency Square Mall posted on its security gate says: “We are temporarily closed due to the temperature in the mall.”
As of Oct. 4, people at Bath & Body Works were packing up inventory and the location closed.
Owners of Regency Square say they have finalized a contract to sell the 56-year-old Arlington shopping center at 9501 Arlington Expressway.
The struggling mall has lost most of its national retailers while just a few tenants remain as elected leaders call for ownership to repair damage to the large mall.
