Amarillo Mesquite Grill Inc. (316-685-8281) will expand its operations during fiscal 2002 by leasing existing buildings that are suitable for conversion to the group’s concept. The restaurant chain operates 14 units in AR KS MO and OK.

Flight Centre (877-967-5347) plans to add 150 locations during the coming year. The travel retailer operates 712 units worldwide including 10 locations in CA.

The Gap Inc. (949-719-0829) may not be able to proceed with its plans to expand its square footage by 10% in 2002 and 2003 considering the retailer’s current sales slump. The company suffered a 17% comparative sales drop last year. The apparel retailer operates over 2 000 stores nationwide under the brands The Gap Baby Gap The Gap Outlet Gap Body and Gap Kids.

Maggie Moo International LLC care of the Blue Wolf Company (215-836-5220) will open a Maggie Moo’s Ice Cream and Treatery location at the intersection of 156th and Q Streets in Omaha NE. The unit will be the first of six stores planned by franchisee Mike Simmonds for the Omaha NE market. The building will also be tenanted by Taco John’s. Maggie Moo’s operates 55 units in the eastern and midstates.

Home Depot (770-433-8211) may build a 107 000 sq.ft. store near the intersection of Stonehill Drive and Camino Capistrano in San Juan Capistrano CA. The home improvement retailer has proposed a $9 million transaction price for the city-owned property. The site is near San Juan Creek. The project would include a 23 638 sq.ft. garden center and a 26 000 sq.ft. auxiliary store space. The company will also open a 135 300 sq.ft. store at Capital Center in Albany NY. The company will demolish the existing 120 000 sq.ft. structure to build the store. The company is also rumored to be pursuing building a 119 323 sq.ft. store situated on 20 acres located on South Elm and Eugene Streets near the Interstate 40/85 interchange in Greensboro NC. The site is across the street from the Interstate Industrial Park and would be the home improvement retailers’ third store in the Greensboro market.

Steve & Barry’s University Sportswear (516-829-4730) will open a 30 000 sq.ft. store at Forest Fair Mall in Cincinnati OH. The sportswear retailer specializing in logo and officially licensed merchandise from collegiate and professional sports teams plans to open four stores before the end of 2001. The company operates 15 stores primarily in the midstates.

Mothers Work Inc. (215-873-2214) opened a 2 000 sq.ft. A Pea in the Pod flagship store located on North Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills CA. The apparel retailer specializing in high fashion maternity clothes will renovate its 41 locations across the nation over the coming 24 months. The company also plans to open five stores during that period. The company operates 770 stores nationwide under the brands Mothers Work Maternity Works and A Pea in the Pod.

Darden Restaurants (407-245-4000) will open five Bahama Breeze restaurants and five Smoky Bones BBQ Sports Bar locations before the end of the year. The Smoky Bones openings are conversions of closed Olive Garden or Red Lobster units in Chicago Ridge IL; Springfield IL; Orlando FL; Warwick RI and Tyngsborough MA. The casual dining restaurant chain operates 1 173 units across the four concepts.

Worldwide Restaurant Concepts (858-695-8500) opened a Pat & Oscar’s Restaurant in Carmel Valley CA. The casual-dining chain has opened four units in the previous 12 months and plans to add three to four more units in the coming six months. The company formerly known as Sizzler International operates 12 Pat & Oscar Restaurants 344 Sizzler units and 105 KFC locations worldwide.

Walgreens (847-914-2680) will open a store in Brighton MI. The drugstore chain plans four additional stores in the market. The company plans to open up to 600 stores annually with a goal of 6 000 stores by 2010. The chain operates over 2 600 locations nationwide.

The China Star Buffet (941-390-0633) may open in the 6 400 sq.ft. site of the former Durango Steak House at The Prado at Spring Creek in Bonita Springs FL. The 147 000 sq.ft. center is anchored by Regal Cinemas and located near the intersection of U.S. Route 41 and Old Route 41. Phase II of the center including a 28 000 sq.ft. Stein Mart a Floral Supply Mart and a Crispers soup and salad restaurant is under construction.

Atlanta Bread Company (770-432-0933) will open a location at the Morris Plains Shopping Center in Morris Plains NJ. The center is anchored by Kohl’s Department Store and Shop Rite Foods and is located on Route 10. The store is scheduled to open in January and will be the company’s second unit in NJ. The company plans to open more locations in northern NJ. The quick-serve restaurant chain specializing in breads soups and salads operates 90 units nationwide.

The Krystal Company (423-757-1562) may open a 2 000 sq.ft. Krystal unit near the intersection of Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard and Nebraska Avenue in Tampa Heights FL. The parcel is adjacent to a Kash n’ Karry. The quick-serve restaurant chain operates 398 locations in the southern states.

Panera Bread Company (314-633-7100) plans three openings for the Denver CO area before the end of the year. The restaurant chain specializing in bread and salads plans units at the Denver Tech Center Southwest Plaza and Aspen Grove shopping centers. Franchisee Ken Rosenthal hopes to open 35 locations over the next five years. The company operates 311 locations nationwide.

Buca di Beppo (612-288-2382) will expand into NC. The restaurant chain specializing in Italian food served family-style plans three to five openings in Charlotte two each in Raleigh and Greensboro and single locations in Winston-Salem Durham and Cary. The company plans to open up to 400 locations over the next several years and has grown from 13 units to 65 over the past three years.

Charlotte Russe Holding Inc. (310-214-3301) plans to open 55 stores during fiscal 2002. The apparel retailer specializing in clothes and accessories for young women operates 190 stores in 26 states and Puerto Rico under three brands Charlotte’s Room Charlotte Russe and Rampage.

H-E-B Markets Inc. (210-938-8000) will open a 78 000 sq.ft. Central Market store in Fort Worth TX. The location is the first of three stores planned for the Metroplex in the coming 12 months. The supermarket chain will open at the intersection of Coit and Interstate 190 in Plano and at Lovers Lane and Greenville Avenue in Dallas. The company plans three additional Central Markets and multiple H-E-B Supermarkets for the area. The company had previously planned to open 25 to 30 H-E-B Supermarkets in the Metroplex but plans have been scaled back. The Central Market utilizes a serpentine layout and offers cooking classes. The company operates four Central Market locations throughout TX along with over 275 H-E-B Markets throughout TX.