What will happen to Spring Hall Mall now that it has closed? Village officials gave a new update this week on where things stand and what's next for the once-popular suburban shopping center.
The mall shuttered last month, with all stores ending operations and leaving only a Cinemark movie theater and a Kohl's still open.
On Thursday, the village of West Dundee announced it has completed its acquisition of the mall from Kohan Retail Investment Group, which owned the property since 2021. The cost to purchase the 76-acre property was $7 million, the village said. Part of the property, estimated at around 15%, remains in neighboring Carpentersville, however.
While the Cinemark movie theater was part of the acquisition, the Kohl's location was not. Dundee said there are no plans for the mall to reopen, but Cinemark and Kohl's are "expected to maintain business operations for the foreseeable future."
“The acquisition of the mall property is essential to the long-term reformatting of what will soon be the
former Spring Hill Mall area,” West Dundee Mayor Chris Nelson said in a statement. “The complex nature of mall real
estate all but requires the village’s involvement to make the property attractive for substantial
reinvestment by the private sector.”
As of Thursday, the village said it has "no specific plans for any of the acquired properties but anticipates that none of the structures acquired will be re-used."
“The mall facilities were constructed 43 years ago and were purpose-built for a retail environment that no longer exists outside of select suburban markets,” said Nelson. “More to the point, the buildings are obsolete and will require demolition."
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Fencing is expected to go up around the mall and its parking lots in late spring, though access to Kohl's and Cinemark is slated to remain. Demolition is expected to begin this summer, with hopes of completion by fall, the village said.
Almost uniformly, each developer with whom we spoke stated that the site has too many complications— too many owners, too many covenants, too many uncertainties,” Nelson said. “The village’s aim is to bring simplicity to the process so reliable developers with established track records will be interested in partnering to reformat the area. Without municipal intervention, that simply won’t happen.”
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Spring Hill is one of two large suburban malls to close for good in a matter of weeks.
On April 21, Stratford Square Mall in Bloomingdale shuttered.
The mall announced the closure at the end of March.
"Stratford Square Mall, a product of the 1980s mall-building craze, has faced challenges while other enclosed malls adapted to changing retail landscapes," a Facebook post from the village stated. "Despite efforts by the Mayor and Village Board to collaborate with the mall’s owner, Namdar, negotiations faltered. Consequently, the Village of Bloomingdale took the initiative to acquire the mall and its anchor stores independently. After consolidating the property earlier this year, the Village is now poised to embark on a transformative mixed-use development."
