A number of national franchises — including Ann Taylor and Pier 1 Imports — will occupy spaces in the Sherman Plaza when construction is completed in 2006, infusing a “missing element” into the business composition of downtown Evanston, developer James Klutznick said Tuesday.

Barnes & Noble also committed Tuesday to move from their current downtown location, 1701 Sherman Ave., to a bigger store within the condominium development. The new store will be 50 percent bigger than the current location, allowing the book-selling behemoth to expand its product offerings.

“They are going to be in a 30,000 square-foot store as opposed to a 20,000 square-foot one, and that allows them to add some departments,” said Klutznick, of Thomas J. Klutznick Co. “On top of that, to be our major lead tenant in our project just reinforces the reason to move.”

Barnes & Noble will close the store at its current location after the move. Evanston Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jonathan Perman said a vacancy at the store’s current location doesn’t worry him — even though the former location of Borders Books and Music, at 1629 Orrington Ave., remains vacant a year and half after that store moved to the Church Street Plaza.

Across from a completed Sherman Plaza at the corner of Sherman Avenue and Church Street, Barnes & Noble’s current property will become “one of the hottest properties in all of Evanston,” Perman said.

The Sherman Plaza also will feature Ann Taylor, known for its upscale womenswear, and the home-furnishings franchise Pier 1 Imports. The building is slated to include a health club and a spa, Klutznick said. Up to 15 other tenants could be brought into the project in the future and retailers are expected to open late in the summer of 2006, he added.

Other Evanston business leaders said the new stores will fit well with other retailers in the area. Dick Peach, a board member on the Evanston Chamber of Commerce, said downtown Evanston is full of restaurants and smaller boutique stores, but the city “doesn’t really have an Ann Taylor.”

Peach predicts a gradual shift in businesses downtown as a result of projects like Sherman Plaza. The downtown business district will change from a heavy emphasis on restaurants to a more well-rounded selection that will include both national and local retail stores, he said.

“This is just the beginning,” Peach said. “We’re going to start seeing a change now in what is downtown, what stores are downtown, as more stores fill into that project and tie into the Ann Taylors.”

Klutznick also said Tuesday that sales for the condominiums have sped up and 54 percent of the 175 to 200 units already have been sold. Klutznick attributed the jump in sales to pre-construction activity — such as the demolition of the Sherman Avenue garage — at the site.

“If you have that high of a presale before you start building, that’s a big number,” Klutznick said. “Evanston is a strong market in and of itself for condo sales and our project has been really well received.”

That block of Sherman Avenue has seen little business activity, he said, with only a bank and a parking garage formerly on the site.

“Supplanting a bank and a parking garage and replacing it with more residential units and retail is a continuation of the strategy that has been used throughout downtown Evanston to the success of the area,” Perman said.

Reach Mike Cherney at [email protected].