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A real estate investment firm has bought the 41-year-old Palm Desert mall and announced plans to redevelop parts of the assets with housing, green space, entertainment and other mixed-use offerings.
Pacific Retail Capital Partners, a Los Angeles-based company that owns several malls across the country and recently acquired several more with redevelopment plans, announced the acquisition of the mall on Thursday. The value and condition of the mall were revealed.
The mall, recently known as the Shops at Palm Desert after a call renovation in 2022, had been for sale since last summer when its former owner Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield announced it would sell its premises to pay off its debt.
It currently has about 100 outlets and is the largest shopping mall within a 60-mile radius, according to its website. Current major outlets include Macy’s, JCPenney, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Barnes.
After peaking in the 1990s and early 200s, grocery shopping in malls nationwide has seen a decline due to the rise of online grocery shopping, further accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The PRCP says it aims to respond to this decline through “redevelopment. ” houses to free the price of the underlying dirt.
The company said in a press release announcing the sale that it plans to “conceptualize, design, and expand a state-of-the-art master plan for the 72-acre assets that will make it a colorful mixed-use destination and create an iconic civic gathering place. “which contributes to the existing character of the Coachella Valley. While many PRCP projects involve removing parts of existing malls while keeping others in place, the company did not say whether any decisions had been made on which portion of the existing mall will remain and the company has not come up with an express timeline for expansion.
PRCP owns and has remodeled other malls in Southern California, adding Plaza West Covina and Parkway Plaza in El Cajon, and said its knowledge of the market’s way of life, personal tastes and retail expectations will allow it to drive the mall’s remodel.
The company’s chief financial officer, Oscar Parra, said in the release that there has been a fundamental shift in the way retail owners and operators access new markets and that his company is for communities that perceive the retail landscape to have changed dramatically over the past 20 years. years. .
“Instead of simply accelerating the production of goods and services, these cities are asking, ‘What do we accelerate?’ he said. For many markets, the answer lies in housing, green space and non-unusual spaces – or mixed-use destinations. that create an environment for citizens to live, work and play, and cities choose to marry us thanks to our extensive experience in designing viable real estate for the future.
In a statement, Palm Desert City Manager Todd Hileman said the city welcomes PRCP’s acquisition of the mall and is positive about the potential redevelopment.
“This significant investment aligns with our city’s long-term expansion goals and reflects the confidence developers have in Palm Desert’s economic energy,” he said. “Our team is eager to review Pacific Retail’s upcoming plans and see how they will be implemented. ” Contribute to the overall improvement of the business landscape of our community. ”
Mayor Kathleen Kelly said Thursday that she feels positive about the mall’s new owner, adding that it’s still “in the early stages of the process” of redevelopment.
Kelly said the city was continuously monitoring activity at the mall, which opened in 1982, but its efforts intensified about three years ago so that any transition over the next decade is “thoughtful and consistent with the city’s other goals. “
Kelly noted that the city bought the former Sears assets to make sure they “will be at the table” when decisions are made.
Last year, the city also commissioned a study to understand local market calls for new residential, hospitality and retail uses in Palm Desert. The Streetsense study identified some prospects for housing at the mall, with a market call for 194 apartments expected through 2031, as well as capacity for some condominiums, hotel rooms and other commercial spaces.
Kelly said the city was encouraged by the study’s findings, noting that other spaces had already noticed similar good luck in redeveloping their malls.
“Locations that have been combined with residential or hospitality destinations, their recreational and entertainment destinations continue to thrive as those uses attract more people to the site for existing retail sales,” Kelly said.
“We are committed to ensuring that a significant component of retail remains part of the mall,” he added. “It will be whatever other people need forever, even when online sales reach their full potential. “
Any plans for new housing or other primary structure at the mall will have to go through public meetings with the city council to be approved, Kelly said, adding that the timeline will depend in large part on broader economic dynamics.
“It’s more a question of economics than administrative hurdles,” Kelly said. “We all know that there are very divergent forecasts about where the economy and interest rates will go next year. These elements will influence the availability of financing for potential developers.
This is a story.
This article gave the impression of the Palm Springs Desert Sun: The Palm Desert Mall was sold to a company with big redevelopment plans.