With pending sale, could Carson's store at Stratford mall be redeveloped?
A prospective buyer has made an offer to purchase a vacant department store at Stratford Square Mall in Bloomingdale after the anchor property was put on the auction block amid retail turmoil at the regional shopping center.
The former Carson Pirie Scott building went under contract with a buyer. The deal has not been finalized, and village officials say they haven't been contacted by the entity that plans to purchase the 147,000-square-foot space.
The pending sale comes as the 1980s-era indoor mall faces an uncertain future. Stratford struggled to fill vacancies and reinvent itself long before the pandemic fueled an online shopping boom.
Carson was one of four anchor stores to close shop within six years. Sears, Macy's and other once-mighty national chains also left huge empty storefronts.
Stratford ownership changed hands in October 2019. More than a year later, Namdar Realty Group has yet to unveil a plan for a resurgence, Bloomingdale Village Administrator Pietro Scalera said.
"We are not at odds with each other," Scalera said. "We have had a discussion, and I think the village and Namdar both realize that we have to work collaboratively in order to make improvements to the property and bring it back to life."
Still, Bloomingdale has continued to withhold funds from a 1% sales tax on all purchases at the shopping center until Namdar, a New York-based commercial real estate firm, presents a plan or a strategy for a mall turnaround.
"The mall itself has been struggling, and we're hopeful that they will come to the village with a plan that will either revitalize or repurpose the space to meet new consumer demands or expectations," Scalera said.
Stratford's previous owner, StreetMac LLC, was planning to invest more than $42 million to attract new retail, entertainment and restaurants.
To recoup some of its investment, StreetMac received payments from the Stratford Business District, an area where the village collected the extra 1% sales tax.
Namdar asked the village to transfer the monthly payments to its company, but officials have refused to do so without some sort of plan of action. That pot of money has now grown to about $444,000 as of Monday.
Namdar has a "clear understanding of the village's expectations," Scalera said.
The mall's ownership group was not immediately available for comment. Anchor spots, meanwhile, are owned separately.
"It does kind of require coordination with a number of property owners to really do anything here," Scalera said. "So our hope is that Namdar has that relationship with the other national boxes, and we can move forward with an overall plan that works for everyone."
The mall's J.C. Penney store closed in 2014. Carson's two-story department store closed more than two years ago because of the bankruptcy sale of the chain's parent company.
But there are signs of new life. A Woodman's Food Market is under construction near the intersection of Schick Road and Gary Avenue. To make room for the 243,000-square-foot, stand-alone grocery store, the former Macy's and part of the mall were demolished.
Woodman's is aiming for an early fall opening, Scalera said. The exterior is almost complete, and crews are working to complete interior improvements.
The grocery store development was touted in the online auction listing for the Carson's site. Matthew Tarshis, a principal with Frontline Real Estate Partners, has marketed the property. He did not return messages for comment Thursday.
The list of larger remaining retailers at Stratford includes Kohl's and Burlington.