GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – There are signs of progress for Green Bay’s redevelopment of the struggling East Town Mall, but the city might look at other options if more isn’t done soon.
The property still sits mostly vacant, with a traditional mall setup.
Realizing the lack of action, city officials told the mall’s owner it needed to secure a lease with a national tenant by the end of 2018.
The city threatened to cancel its development agreement, which calls for at least $1.5 million from taxpayers to help with construction costs.
“They were able to show evidence of that,” said Kevin Vonck, Green Bay’s Economic Development Director. “They do have some tenants in the queue. With that, those agreements, those tenants would like to have those remain confidential.”
Vonck says the tenant deals aren’t enough. The developer must provide building plans by the end of the month. Then, construction must start this spring.
He tells FOX 11 if those deadlines aren’t met, the city has another developer waiting in the wings with a similar plan to transform the property.
“I think we’re very close to the finish line, but things can happen and things can change, so it’s always important for us if something doesn’t work out, that we have another alternative ready.”
Even if the plan doesn’t work out with the current developer, and the city tries to move onto plan B, Vonck says he is confident some sort of redevelopment work will begin this year.
“There are tenants who want to be in this market,” said Vonck.
“You look at the demographics of the neighborhoods surrounding it, they’re great in terms of retail. There is also a market gap for some particular types of uses out in that area.”
If the city moves its support to another developer, the current owner still must first agree to sell the property.
Under the current plan, Hobby Lobby, Petco, and Kohl’s would remain open.
The development agreement calls for the property value to be $18 million upon the project’s completion.
