Property's future scrutinized as Pittsburgh Mills mall is up for sale

News that the Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer could be for sale was met with reactions ranging from resignation to optimism, but all with a common question: What’s next for the Mills?

The news comes in the midst of legal woes, including hundreds of township-issued citations, criminal charges and a lawsuit filed by real estate trusts for Walmart and Sam’s Club.

Most regional real estate and retail giants, such as Howard Hanna Realty and Simon Properties, which owns successful malls in Ross and the South Hills, have declined to comment on the future of the Mills.

But experts say there are always possibilities.

Development options

While New York City-based Namdar Realty Group, the mall’s owner, has remained tight-lipped about the sale and denied a request for comment, there are some development options for such a mall property.

Robb Paltz, associate managing director at Moody’s Ratings, has seen a number of cases in which a buyer purchases a mall property and works with it to fit the area’s needs. One way is to utilize the anchor store spots, but not necessarily the rest of the building.

“What we see is a buyer coming in with maybe one tenant and then ‘the pads’ are very functional. And you may be able to get a fast food chain or a coffee chain at the pad site,” he said.

A pad site is a parcel that’s not attached to the mall, but on the edge of the parking lot.

“Some buyers work with the municipality where they have the community maintain (the property) or they help the community maintain it,” Paltz said.

He said this method allows a company to make money with an anchor store and pads while also maintaining a good relationship with the community.

Paltz said he’s seen buyers use former mall properties in a variety of ways with varying degrees of success.

One buyer used a majority of a mall’s space for a call center and rented out some of the other spots on the property. Another attempted to convert a mall into an industrial-style building without much luck.

“A lot of the in-line space does not have the infrastructure,” Paltz said of the many sections of storefronts in a typical mall.

Reviving a failing mall is probably a long shot, he said.

Paltz said it can be rare for any mall to have a complete resurgence to its original state. More often than not, a buyer would have to carry out a pricey capital improvement project and attract the right tenants to fill the in-line stores to boost the anchor stores.

“It doesn’t necessarily make sense for someone to come in with a couple hundred million (dollars) to try to recreate a mall,” he said.

According to Stephanie Cegielski, vice president of research and public relations for the International Council of Shopping Centers, recognizing the needs of the surrounding community and local economy is critical.

“Each mall is unique,” she said. “With any property, it’s vital to address the shifting demographics and changing needs of the surrounding community.”

Residents sound off

With the Mills’ future uncertain, residents have their own ideas about what should become of the property.

“Veterans’ housing. Make several apartments, keep a few necessity stores for groceries and clothing. The vets could work at the stores. There’s already a church they can attend,” said Linda Walker of New Kensington, referring to the Riverside Community Church location inside the malll. “They could have their own little safe village-type living.”

Walker wasn’t the only person who thought the property could become a viable site for affordable housing. Joe Kubiak, of Lower Burrell, who grew up in Frazer, said the site seems like a great place for senior citizen condos because there’s space for a necessities store and indoor walking.

Other folks are looking for some entertainment.

“Primarily, I think our community would benefit from the mall becoming a daytime destination source for family fun,” said Meggie Campbell of Harrison.

She said a children’s soft-play center like SeaBase or Discovery Zone, an indoor water park, a go-kart track or some type of family-friendly activity would attract more visitors to the area.

In addition to the entertainment, she said, local shops like bookstores and coffee shops could set up around the complex to create a shopping district people could visit.

“Personal improvement resources should come into this space, such as gyms, spas, academic tutoring and educational centers,” Campbell said. “Our community absolutely does not need and will not benefit from mass-chain restaurants, like Chik-fil-A, Red Lobster and the like, which will not put money back into our ZIP codes nor support local business owners. These do not draw visitors from other ZIP codes, at least not without sufficient entertainment options to initially bring them in, and will not be enough to sustain economic growth and benefit the locale.”

Kayla Cochran of Natrona Heights, Harrison, hopes to see more entertainment options rather than retail. She said the land could be more useful as a destination property.

“I feel something different could utilize the space like an indoor water park or race track with some more hotels,” Cochran said. “I feel like shopping in stores is on the decline with online shopping (increasing), so something different like that could bring more people to the area. It’s something different.

”Plus, with Iron City having a lot of events, the Mills is close for hotels,” she said, referring to Pittsburgh Brewing Co. close by in East Deer’s Creighton neighborhood.

Some local residents envision a different type of shopping experience.

“The Mills location can easily be transformed into a village or outlet-type mall,” said Luke Duriancik of Lower Burrell. “I’m thinking Easton (Town Center) in Columbus-type thing. It’ll be expensive, which I know is already a challenge, but with the right investors and planner, it would be a destination mall for the entire city.”

Don’t count retail out

Cegielski said there’s still a healthy demand for physical retail in today’s market.

“Underlying metrics show that demand for physical retail real estate continues to outpace available supply, with occupancy above 95%,” Cegielski said. “Store openings also continue to exceed store closings in 2025 year-to-date, reflecting retailers’ confidence in and value of physical retail.”

Allegheny County Economic Development staff are meeting with developers interested in the Mills property, said county spokeswoman Abigail Gardner.

“This site presents incredible opportunity but has also created myriad challenges for the township, tenants, local residents and others,” Gardner said. “At this stage, we can’t offer any further specifics about what kind of grants or incentives could be possible as it would depend on what kind of development, if any, were to happen on the site.”

But where does that leave the mall and its remaining tenants?

What’s left?

Dick’s Sporting Goods hosted a closing sale at its Mills location this month, leaving Macy’s as the mall’s only anchor tenant. But Macy’s could be on its way out, too, as its two-story, nearly 173,000-square-foot store was put up for sale this year.

Macy’s owns its spot at the Mills instead of paying rent to Namdar.

“As we continue to execute our Bold New Chapter strategy, we are always looking for opportunities to better serve our customers,” Macy’s said in a statement to TribLive. “While there is an evaluation currently underway, a final decision has yet to be made. We look forward to continuing to serve our customers in the community.”

In the current age of shopping, the exit of an anchor store isn’t necessarily fatal to any mall, Paltz said. With the rise of online shopping, consumers have become less reliant on large anchor department stores and more attracted to specialty shops that malls house in their in-line spaces.

“The script was flipped,” Paltz said.

However, the loss of anchor stores can hinder a mall’s ability to attract the in-line stores consumers want.

While industry analysts put the Mills’ occupancy rate at 25%, that can be deceiving. According to industry standards, that percentage refers to how much of a mall’s total square footage is occupied, not the number of storefronts that house a business.

According to a map posted inside the mall, there are 162 storefronts available, not including kiosks.

Twenty-three tenants remained in those available storefronts.

Only 18 of them are for-profit businesses.

Reptiroots, a reptile enthusiasts group, hosts reptile expos at the mall each month. Nonbusiness tenants include Frazer Township police and borough offices, AHN Citizens School of Nursing and the Riverside Community Church branc”.

“AHN is aware of the potential sale of the Pittsburgh Mills mall in (Frazer), which is home to the AHN Citizens School of Nursing,” Bill Toland, director of public relations for AHN, said in an email. “We will continue to closely monitor this situation as we remain focused on educating and training the next generation of nurses.

”Our current lease at the mall runs through 2029, and we do not anticipate any immediate or near-term changes to our nursing school operations at this location.”

Frazer’s police department and township offices — both of which are housed within the mall — have no plans for relocating.

“Officials have an agreement with the mall owners for free space for the township until 2033,” said Frazer Supervisor/Secretary Lori Ziencik.

She said the agreement would continue even if there is a change in ownership. There hasn’t been any discussion among township officials about a possible move before 2033.

“That’s a long ways off,” Ziencik said. “The board, I’m sure, will discuss it at that point.”

She said the township wouldn’t be putting in a bid for the complex or any of the roads.

“We’re not in the real estate business,” she said.

The complex was valued at $190 million when it opened in 2005.

In 2018, the mall was purchased by Namdar for about $11 million. The property includes surrounding roads, which have deteriorated to the point that about $5 million would be needed to repair them completely.

“We don’t have that kind of budget,” Ziencik said. “The vacancy rate has to be quite high at this point.”

Riverside Church did not respond to a request for comment as to its plans.

Regardless of whether the property is sold, Namdar remains on the hook for a criminal charge from the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office in April.

The subsidiary of Namdar that operates the mall was charged with creating a public nuisance because of what prosecutors say are the dangerous conditions of the development’s roads.

“Our office will continue with the prosecution, regardless of any interest in the sale of the property. The alleged crimes have already been committed and the harm has occurred,” Laurie Delaney, executive assistant to District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., said in an email.

Still, Cegielski said, closure is not the destination for all malls. Since malls are each unique in the sense of financial status, tenants and demographics, they use different strategies to remain profitable.

Cegielski said the industry is seeing creative innovation as many malls transform into dynamic community destinations.

“Some are focusing on their tenant mixes to better serve customers, like adding entertainment and food-and-beverage concepts to enable customers to spend time together, or medical and wellness facilities to help customers meet everyday needs,” she said. “Others are exploring mixed-use conversions, combining residential and commercial uses like offices, retail, hospitality and apartments to better address community needs and create new economic opportunities.”