The Florence Mall has officially changed hands, but the new owners have not announced any intentions of altering the city’s retail epicenter.
The new owners, New York-based Mason Asset Management and Namdar Realty Group, announced the sale of the mall via a press release to city officials. Months ago, the Florence Mall and its debt were returned to Key Bank, which posted the two-story, 940,000 square-foot shopping center for sale through Capital Markets, a brokerage firm in New York. The mall is currently listed under Jones Lang LaSalle, a group based in Cincinnati.
Prior to the sale, Mayor Diane Whalen told LINK nky about her desire to see the mall modernized into a mixed-use property of high-end apartments and outdoor shopping spaces, but she said the city was left in the dark about potential buyers and their plans until now.
“No one has contacted us,” Whalen said. “All we can do is give our opinion, but no one has asked us for that yet.”
She added that the city doesn’t have any power in deciding which businesses come to Florence and where, unless they request a zoning change.
Joshua Hunt, director of business and community development, confirmed that the city has a meeting with Namdar Realty this week, “to discuss their transition strategy and future plans for the mall.”
The Florence Mall was built in the 1970s, and Whalen said as the city has grown, the mall has been the focal point of Florence’s retail district. Because of that, she believes the property is ripe for a makeover.
This isn’t the first time the mall, or at least parts of it, have been up for sale, though. Whalen said in previous sales, the mixed ownership of the mall and its onsite properties have made closing on a deal challenging.
“What we have always known about the mall property is that it is challenging from the perspective that it is not one owner. (JCPenney) owns the Penney’s building, Sears owns the Sears building, and Macy’s owns the other two boxes,” the mayor said. “So because of that, when you say the mall is for sale, the only thing that is for sale is the centerpiece and any of the out-lots that they own … So selling the mall is not as easy as selling what sits there.”
Whalen said if any big changes come to the mall property as a whole, all of the owners have to “sign off on it.”
Mason Asset Management currently owns more than 120 shopping centers, including 45 shopping malls. In its press release, Mason Asset Management said it “will oversee all leasing efforts, while Namdar Realty Group will continue to operate the mall as usual.”
“We are looking forward to the future of Florence Mall,” said Igal Nassim, Mason Asset Management. “We are currently exploring a number of leasing options for current vacancies, and we look forward to further bolstering the available offering at the mall through an aggressive leasing strategy”