The new owner and property manager at Cornwall Square is expecting the mall will have a new and fresh look very soon— one that won’t include apartments, for now.

Melissa Boyer, executive director of Montreal-based property development and management company Groupe Quint, confirmed that Urban Planet will be moving into the second floor of the space formerly occupied by the Sears Outlet store, and that it’s just the start of more shopping options in the building.

“It’s a priority for us to fill the empty space,” Boyer said. “We own a lot of malls in Quebec, we have a lot of connections and we’re good at what we do. . . the intention is to fill the space quickly. It’s a great mall, big (and) well located.”

Early last fall Partners Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) announced it had sold Cornwall Square for $8.4 million, and Groupe Quint officially acquired the property early in December. The purchase price was lower than the $13.3-million mortgage Partners REIT took out on the property in 2017. It also came after the former owners replaced a frequently broken escalator and had made several necessary repairs to the parking structure.

Urban Planet, which has had a standalone store in Cornwall at Eastcourt Mall for five years, will move to Cornwall Square and possibly as soon as next month, and Boyer said it will occupy the entire second floor of the old Sears store.

“(Urban Planet is) preparing the space this month, to fit it to their needs, and we’re doing a few things to help them out,” Boyer said.

Boyer added Groupe Quint is talking to several potential tenants to fill up the first-floor space at the old Sears, and to occupy other available areas of the mall.

Last March, the previous mall owner, Partners REIT, announced that retail space vacated by the Sears Outlet in 2017 would be converted into residential accommodations, primarily one-bedroom and two-bedroom luxury apartments.

But that’s not the direction Groupe Quinte is going in.

Keep reading in the Cornwall Standard Freeholder

 

---

Watch the video and learn more about the benefits of joining Construction Links Network – the peer-to-peer network sharing platform for the construction, building and design community.

Ideal for YOUR Press Releases | Project Updates | New Appointments | Awards & Milestones | Company News | New Products/Services | Brochures | Videos | Infographics | Blog Sharing | Events and More