It’s been seven years since the owners of Westfield Montgomery mall announced ambitious plans for a makeover. The multi-stage project — which was to include an outdoor shopping/dining area, apartments and a fitness center — was initially stalled by the county and then by the pandemic. In 2021, a rep for mall owner Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield told us the project was back on and “things were about to start happening” at Westfield Montgomery. Here are some “things” that have happened since then:
- The mall’s valuation took a huge hit, dropping from $680 million in 2014 to $353 million in 2024.
- URW announced plans to sell off all its U.S. properties, then changed its mind about Westfield Montgomery and had to get an extension on its $350 million loan.
- An alarming number of longtime tenants exited the mall in the past 14 months, including Express, Aldo, The Children’s Place, The Icing, Bonobos, Banana Republic, Talbots, Ann Taylor, Soma, Free People, Aéropostale and Forever 21.
In a call with investors last week, URW doubled down on its commitment to Westfield Montgomery and mentioned upcoming plans for a “re-tenanting” and “densification.” What exactly does that mean? Is the makeover over? URW declined to comment beyond what was discussed in the investor call. But the mall recently launched a new website, and we’ve noticed that it has quietly dropped the section about “future development.”
Mary Ruddell
It’s clear they don’t have the funding. As an avid shopper at Talbots they raised the rent and wouldn’t negotiate. So it closed at the same time as many other shops.
Store Reporter
That is what we heard from many of the other tenants who left as well. A number of store managers told us that their rent had been raised dramatically, or that the mall’s owners simply didn’t want them there.