CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Northlake Mall in north Charlotte could soon be placed on the market for sale.
A status report filed Monday in the North Carolina Business Court's branch in Charlotte shows that Spinoso Real Estate, the New York-based group that operates the mall, wants to place it on the market either later in September or in early October. It's asked Chicago-based commercial real estate group Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) to act as a broker for Northlake Mall, which indicated the late September/early October timeline for bringing the mall to market.
The report comes about a week before Spinoso's next status hearing, slated for Sept. 24, 2024. Both Spinoso and Wilmington Trust, the trustee for the mall, have asked the court to hold the case open for a further update in December 2024.
Spinoso's status update shows Northlake Mall's occupancy rate is about 84% as of July 31, 2024, including temporary tenants. Since the beginning of the year, Spinoso notes three new leases were signed for gross rents of $552,000 and nine renewals for gross rents of $953,000. Northlake is still being marketed to try and bring in new businesses as well.
The possibility of a sale comes after Northlake Mall faced violence inside the property. In 2021, a teen fired a shot inside the mall, prompting a youth supervision policy to be installed months later. Another shooting unfolded there in December 2022, which saw two people hurt and a trio of suspects arrested.
In March 2023, the Apple store located at Northlake Mall closed to open a new store elsewhere in 2024. The store's closing, however, was announced about a day after shots were fired outside of the mall. Mall leaders vowed to implement new security measures after the incident, including boosting the number of off-duty police officers and upgrading security cameras. Another incident in May 2023 saw someone arrested for assaulting a 15-year-old girl and an on-duty Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officer.
Spinoso also sued American Eagle Outfitters in 2023, claiming the clothing retailer broke its lease at Northlake Mall too soon. American Eagle, however, said the mall was unsafe for them to do business in, likening it to "an atmosphere reminiscent of a warzone". Spinoso said it lost about $75,000 from non-payment of monthly rent after the store abruptly closed. American Eagle's counterclaim said the shootings and violent incidents caused the business to lose sales and customers, still paid bills with Spinoso, and claimed lease requirements about occupying and operating in the mall were ambiguous.
The real estate market has been harsh recently for malls in the Charlotte area. In 2023, Northlake Mall's assessed property value was $274 million, down by $150 million from 2019. The violence wasn't the only factor; malls across the United States have been on a steady decline that was only hastened by the rise of online shopping and the negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Attorney Larry Shaheen, who handles property valuation appeals, said in a 2023 interview with WCNC Charlotte that malls need to start reinventing themselves.
“Those who are actually owning them, they need to reposition the product to be more applicable to what we're seeing the Gen Z’s and those ongoing generations want, you’re going to need more bars, more breweries,” Shaheen said.
However, Northlake Mall has seen a resurgence of Black-owned businesses recently. Juicy Body Goddess, a plus-size clothing boutique, expanded its space in the mall in 2023 amid recent success online thanks to viral recognition on social media platforms like TikTok. The mall embraced this, with Black-owned businesses now making up about 17% of all storefronts there as of March 2024. It follows a larger nationwide trend of malls seeing an opportunity to bring in more locally-owned businesses.
Danyell Butler, the co-owner of Modified Kicks, told WCNC Charlotte in March that the boost in local Black-owned businesses at Northlake Mall has been a positive movement.
“A lot of the negative that you have heard or known has been silenced," he said.