Steeplegate Mall

Steeplegate Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Concord, New Hampshire, United States. Opened in 1990, it has struggled with high vacancy rates throughout its existence.[1] Its largest retailer is JCPenney, the only traditional anchor store left. It also features a charter school and a trampoline park that both opened in 2018,[2][3] and a health club that opened in 2019.[4]

Steeplegate Mall
Steeplegate Mall's clock tower and main entrance leading to the food court.
LocationConcord, New Hampshire, United States
Address270 Loudon Road
Opening dateAugust 1, 1990 (1990-08-01Tmdy)
DeveloperHomart Development Company
ManagementColliers Properties
OwnerNamdar Realty Group
No. of anchor tenants1
Total retail floor area480,000 square feet (45,000 m2)
No. of floors1
Websitewww.steeplegatemall.com

History

The 480,000-square-foot mall opened August 1, 1990, with Sears, JCPenney, Sage-Allen and Steinbach as its anchors. It was built by Homart Development Company.[5] It also included a food court with a 630-square-foot (59 m2) mosaic.[6]

Steinbach closed its store by 1999 as part of the company's bankruptcy. Sage-Allen became The Bon-Ton in 1999,[7] with a second Bon-Ton and Circuit City splitting the former Steinbach. Circuit City closed in 2009.

In 2011, General Growth Properties, the successor company to Homart, transferred ownership of the mall, along with 29 other underperforming malls, to its Rouse Properties subsidiary.[8] In August 2014, Rouse Properties announced that it had defaulted on its loan for Steeplegate Mall and was in the process of turning over the property to its lenders.[9] By April 2015 the property was owned by a consortium of lenders including Wells Fargo Bank and Midland Loan Servicing. The mall is currently managed by Colliers International.[10]

In January 2015, Old Navy, one of four main anchors at the mall, closed its doors.[11]

In May 2016, Steeplegate Mall was bought by the New York-based Namdar Realty Group for $10.4 million.[12]

As part of an attempt to diversify from traditional retail and food stores, Hatbox Theater, a live theater venue located in the former Coldwater Creek, opened in 2016. Similarly, VIP Bounce Houses and Laser Tag opened in the former Old Navy location that year.[13]

In April 2018, Bon-Ton closed both of its stores as part of a plan to close 42 stores nationwide.[14] Later that same year, a charter school called Capital City Charter School moved into the former Bon-Ton men's clothing and houseware store and opened on September 5,[2][15] while an Altitude Trampoline Park franchise opened within the former Circuit City space in November.[3][16]

In 2019, a health club called The Zoo opened a franchise in the former Bon-Ton women's and children's store, marking the first time since Circuit City's closure that all five anchors in the mall had an active permanent tenant.[4] In 2019, one of the mall's oldest tenants, a confectionery called True Confections Candies & Gifts, moved out of the mall, citing declining foot traffic and the mall owners' unwillingness to lower rent rates.[17]

On February 6, 2020, Sears closed the Steeplegate store as part of closing 96 stores nationwide.[18]

  • Steeplegate JCPenney exterior
  • Steeplegate Sears exterior as it appeared in July 2017
  • The mall's previous logo
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References
  1. Townsend, Matt (November 21, 2014). "A Dying Mall in Concord, New Hampshire". Bloomberg.
  2. Willingham, Leah (September 5, 2018). "In a former department store, Capital City Charter School opens to students". Concord Monitor.
  3. Andrews, Caitlin (November 22, 2018). "In Concord, a changing mall heads into holiday shopping season". Concord Monitor. Retrieved December 3, 2018.
  4. Andrews, Caitlin (March 27, 2019). "The Zoo gym coming to Concord's Steeplegate Mall". Concord Monitor. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  5. "CONCORD HEIGHTS TO GET MALL AUG. 1". The Boston Globe. 1990-07-08. Archived from the original on 2016-10-18.
  6. "IN CONCORD, A NEW MALL AND HIGH HOPES". The Boston Globe. 1990-08-05. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04.
  7. http://retailtrafficmag.com/mag/retail_new_england_region/
  8. Doyle, Megan (August 20, 2014). "Hopeful for a new owner, local businesses stick to Steeplegate Mall". Concord Monitor.
  9. Doyle, Megan (August 4, 2014). "Owner defaults on loan for Steeplegate Mall". Concord Monitor.
  10. Steeplegate Mall transfer is now official Megan Doyle, Concord Monitor, April 7, 2015
  11. Palermo, Sarah (January 9, 2015). "Old Navy at the Steeplegate Mall closing at the end of January". Concord Monitor.
  12. Brooks, David (June 6, 2016). "Steeplegate Mall sold for $10.3 million". Concord Monitor. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  13. Brooks, David (March 28, 2016). "Live Theater Opens at Mall". Concord Monitor.
  14. Brooks, David (February 1, 2018). "Bon-Ton to close its stores in Steeplegate Mall". Concord Monitor.
  15. Willingham, Leah (July 29, 2018). "Charter School in old Bon Ton store to pen this fall". Concord Monitor. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  16. Andrews, Caitlin (May 24, 2018). "Update: New life for Steeplegate with addition of trampoline park, possibly new charter school". Concord Monitor. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  17. Andrews, Caitlin (May 3, 2019). "Mall loyalist True Confections to depart by month's end". Concord Monitor. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  18. Brooks, David (November 7, 2019). "Sears in Concord to shut as the company closes yet more stores nationwide". Concord Monitor. Retrieved February 17, 2020.

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