Apr. 19—LIMA — Cars parked along the north side of the Lima Mall on Friday, their drivers watching the former Lazarus and Macy’s store disappear into the ground in an ongoing demolition project.
Others pulled alongside the west end of the parking lot so their occupants could sift through a pile of rubble for a keepsake blue-painted brick from the iconic shopping destination that closed in March 2021.
Mordy Itzkowitz, the principal and managing director of Maryland-based Rocky Company, wants everyone to see what he’s seen at the Lima Mall since its purchase in April 2023: Opportunity.
It took Itzkowitz and Jeff Gelberman, principal and chief operating officer of the company, some time to help Target see the spot at the corner of Cable and Elida Roads their way. That company bought the land where Lazarus and Macy’s once stood for $4.5 million in January, with plans to build a 128,000 square foot store.
“It did not happen overnight,” Itzkowitz said by phone. “I think from start to finish it was over a two-year process with Target. It took a lot to get them to look at the market and see it the way we saw it. … There’s a lot of hope that now that they’re there, others will follow.”
Future plans
“Acquired by The Rocky Companies in 2023, Lima Mall is poised for an exciting transformation,” according to Rocky Companies’ website. “Plans for redevelopment include the introduction of several new and highly anticipated national retailers to the area.”
Itzkowitz said beyond the Target announcement earlier this year, most plans were preliminary and not concrete. He avoided direct discussion of any particular areas of the mall, saying there were “sensitive discussions” ongoing, and there could be something to report in the summer months.
Still, a site plan attached to the leasing sheet for the mall offers properties a different vision for the property, which could become more of a mix of an indoor mall and outdoor mall.
It includes a 65,000 square foot space labeled “sporting goods” in the current “West Mall,” with its own exterior doors. The area west of the current JCPenney store is largely vacant now, aside from a Hot Topic store and The Hero Day indoor park and its Glow Golf attraction.
Officials from The Hero Day did not respond to calls, emails and texts Friday asking about future plans.
The site plan also makes big changes at the east side of the mall, where Sears was the first store to open at the mall in September 1965 until it closed in September 2018. Instead of a larger anchor store, it has three spaces of 22,000, 25,000 and 18,000 square feet.
“It’s debatable whether it’s a knockdown,” Itzkowitz said. “I will say it’s more likely to be a retrofit, but it could look like a complete remodel. With the existing structure, we think we can subdivide it.”
The Target factor
Greg Butcher, of Superior Plus Real Estate, works with the mall to help lease some of its smaller storefronts. He expected more interest in the mall once Target opens its first location between Toledo and Dayton.
“I think we will be talking about ‘before Target’ and ‘after Target,'” said Butcher, who focuses on retail spaces. “After Target opens, you’re going to see more major moves on all types of levels, both nationals and locals.”
He noted it was already a good first quarter for retail spaces. He also manages spaces at Clocktower Plaza and Northland, with Cable Road’s Clocktower at 85% occupancy. While national companies tend to slow down on growth after May as they focus on holiday sales preparation, new local retailers still pop up year-round, Butcher said.
Target is an ideal draw for a modern buyer, said Dave Stratton, president of Greater Lima Region Inc. He noted that while online shopping continues to be popular, there is a trend of people who want the experience of retail shopping, including not just baby boomers but also millennials and members of Gen Z. There’s also interest in making it an experience, including dining out and enjoying entertainment.
“There seems to be a growing desire for retail because of the desire for immediate gratification,” said Stratton, whose wife, Julie, opened the Black Lab Trading Company in Bluffton in 1998. “They want to touch and feel it. They want the ability to take it home immediately. That ability to interact and see the product firsthand is important.”
Cindy Leis, president of Allen Economic Development Group, added, “We’d like to revisit that from our past. We feel that we can be that regional shopping destination again for the Greater Lima Region.”
There are always challenges, though. Washington Prime Group, the owner of the adjacent Lima Center strip mall and a past owner of the Lima Mall as Simon Property Group, recently announced plans to sell off all its malls and shopping centers and lay off all employees at its Columbus-based headquarters.
‘Jeff and Mordy’
Past ownership groups for the Lima Mall have wanted the same things and failed. The same could be said of the former American Mall on Lima’s Elm Street, which closed in 2009 and met the wrecking ball in 2013.
One difference this time is a direct connection to the management group. Local economic development officials talk glowingly about the accessibility of “Jeff and Mordy.”
“Jeff and Mordy have got skin in the game,” Butcher said. “They want to make it better. Some of the other owners had 20 malls, and they only looked at a spreadsheet once in a while.”
It’s been beneficial helping the new mall owners understand what the community needs and wants, as evidenced by the decades-long love affair with bringing Target to town.
“You have to be able to have relationships with the leadership of that organization,” Stratton said. “We did not have that prior to the present ownership. Then with Jeff and Mordy, they’re so accessible. That’s extremely advantageous to us.”
That’s a goal for the mall’s leadership, Itzkowitz said. It benefited from those relationships in getting a state grant to help with the demolition costs through the Allen County Land Bank.
“This is what we enjoy doing. There are mall owners that come in and buy up a shopping center and hold them until they effectively can’t work anymore,” he said. “We’re forward-thinking. We’re trying to bring value and new concepts to the community. We look for opportunities like the Lima Mall that are worth investing in.”
PAST HIGHLIGHTS OF THE LIMA MALL
—Sears, September 1965-September 2018
—Lazarus/Macy’s, August 1971-March 2021
—The Leader/Elder-Beerman, September 1975-January 2016
—Lima Center Cinema, March 1978-2006
Reach David Trinko at 567-242-0467 or on Twitter/X @Lima_Trinko.
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