New Butler Town Center businesses to open in 2018

Gainesville residents will have to wait until Fall 2018 to satisfy their cravings for lettuce wraps from P.F. Chang’s China Bistro.

Several new stores in Butler Town Center at Stengel Field are set to open in 2018, Mary Reichardt, director of marketing for Butler Enterprises, wrote in an email.

Whole Foods Market will be the first to open in the town center with a planned opening date in Spring 2018, Reichardt wrote. Following the grocery store, surrounding retail and restaurants including P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, Irish 31 and Grub Burger Bar will open in late Summer or early Fall 2018.

The 350,000-square-foot site will also include The Residences at Butler Town Center and The Terraces at Butler Town Center, which will be luxury apartments that include a pet grooming station, pool, hot tub and open floor plans. The apartments are set to open in 2019, she said.

Also slated to open its doors in 2019 is the Stengel Field Food Hall. Butler Enterprises has partnered with local chef, Bert Gill, to create a food hall to offer local foods and create an area for Gainesville residents to shop, dine and relax, Reichardt said.

Kelsie Baumlin, a UF marketing sophomore, said she’s been eagerly awaiting the arrival of P.F. Chang’s China Bistro and Whole Foods. Although she’s looking forward to eating more orange sesame chicken, she’s a little concerned about side effects new development may have.

“I’m a little nervous to see the traffic and the parking issues,” the 19-year-old said.

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