The new owner of Leigh Mall has already begun improvements at the property, most recently filling in major potholes in the parking lot.
Representatives from Hull Property Group, which purchased the property in an online auction in October, hired Columbus-based Falcon Contracting to pave the more “hazardous” of the potholes in the parking lot, Falcon project manager Tony Gray confirmed to The Dispatch.
The project, which cost less than $10,000 and required pouring 75 tons of asphalt into holes in both the front and back of the parking lot, was primarily to “keep people from losing tires and cars” while shopping at the mall during the holiday season, Gray said.
“It was just some crisis patching just to eliminate hazards, is the only phase that we’ve gotten involved in at this point,” Gray said. “They intend … to completely renovate the parking lot, but they’ll have to do it in phases.”
Falcon workers began Friday and had finished by Tuesday, Gray said. He said his understanding is that Hull plans to commission further parking projects for more longterm repairs next year. Falcon has bid on that project but the contract has not been awarded.
“There’s plenty more to do and they’re aware of it,” he said. “They’re just taking things in phases.”
Mall manager Laura Harrison declined to comment for this report and referred The Dispatch to Hull’s corporate office to learn more about any future projects. Representatives from Hull have not returned multiple messages or emails from The Dispatch since they were confirmed as the owners in late November.
The mall was auctioned online for $3.5 million on Oct. 17. The mall’s previous owner, Colony Financial, took ownership of the mall from Security National Properties in 2018 after SNP defaulted on a $34.7 million loan for which the mall was one of dozens of properties put up as collateral.
Built in 1973, Leigh Mall is only 57-percent occupied, with original anchors JCPenney and Sears both vacated. The mall has also been steadily losing smaller tenants such as Reed’s Jewelry and Kirkland’s over the past several years. Maintenance issues from leaks in the roof to potholes throughout the parking lot have also plagued the property.
Ward 6 Councilman Bill Gavin, who was a vocal critic of the mall’s upkeep during Security National’s ownership and in whose ward the mall is located, said he is encouraged by the most recent work to the parking lot, particularly since it has only been about two months since Hull bought the property.
“I think that’s a step in the right direction and something that needed to have been done for quite a while,” Gavin said. “Of course I worked with the previous owners trying to get that done and it seemed like it took them forever to get them to do something on it.”
He added it only makes sense for Hull to complete further renovation projects.
“You just don’t buy something without a plan for it,” he said.
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