The Twin Cities currently leads the country in retail development, thanks in part to numerous student housing projects, the Star Tribune reports.

Among the 7.3 million square feet under construction in the U.S., 1.2 million are in Minneapolis and St. Paul, according to Colliers International, a Seattle-based real estate company.

The influx of retail space is due to an apartment boom in the metro area coinciding with the requirement that many of these new projects be mixed-use, Colliers Senior Associate Sara Martin told the Star Tribune.

“In the inner-ring suburbs there’s very little retail space available, so when you see that kind of pent-up demand, you’ll see more construction,” Martin said.

Examples of University of Minnesota mixed-use residences — which have retail at street level and dwellings above — include The Edge on Oak, Sydney Hall and Stadium Village Flats.

A mega-outlet mall project in Eagan scaled at 409,000 square feet and valued at $100 million is also a major culprit of the top ranking, the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal report.