Developer: Carefree Quarter has several signed leases but no anchors yet; council and residents press for design, leasing details

Diversified Partners told the Carefree Town Council that the Carefree Quarter project has several leases under contract but has not yet secured anchor tenants, and town officials and residents raised questions about the project’s design, landscaping and lease mix.

Scott Hintze of Diversified Partners said the developer has signed deals with Panera Bread and Nothing Bundt Cakes and is close to signing a lease with Whataburger. He told the council that a number of other letters of intent and offers exist — he estimated 20–30 — but several anchor leases remain unsigned and macroeconomic uncertainty and volatile construction materials prices have slowed final contract execution.

"We've been working on getting our site plan approved. Our elevations are on the website. We're looking to be discussed and potentially approved through the design, development review board on Monday," Hintze said. He added that construction documents typically take two to three months to complete,…