Courtesy Wilton Mall Development LLC
By Paul Post
Wilton Mall’s new owner plans to give businesses direct access to hundreds of new shoppers with a large new residential complex that connects to the 35-year-old shopping center.
Faraz Khan recently purchased the mall and surrounding 100-acre property from California-based Macerich for $25 million.
Traffic at Clifton Park Center Mall has jumped from 4.8 million to 5.6 million visitors annually since he acquired it two years ago, and he anticipates even greater results in Wilton.
“I think we can get to six million visitors at Wilton Mall,” Khan said. “It’s going to take us about two-and-a-half years, but I think we’re going to hit it.”
First, however, the aging facility needs a major makeover to make it more welcoming to consumers and business tenants alike. A multi-million-dollar renovation will get under way soon and at least seven new firms, such as clothing outlet-type stores, will open in the next eight months, said Khan, during a presentation to Wilton Town Board.
“Although we do plan on developing apartments, it’s more important for us to first revive the mall,” he said. “We really think we can bring people back into it. Occupancy now is about 75 percent, but I’m confident we can fill it up.”
The Town Board allowed for a residential component at the mall with a previously-approved Planned Unit Development. A different firm, Paramount Development Group, had proposed razing a vacant, 72,000-square-foot Bon-Ton store and putting housing there, but such plans never materialized and the deal didn’t go through.
Khan said no part of the existing mall will be demolished including the former Bon-Ton. “From our perspective that’s valuable real estate,” he said. “I’m confident we can fill it with new tenants. It’s important to keep it what it’s meant to be, a mall, by adding additional amenities. You need to be dynamic. People’s needs and wants change over time.”
Work on 300 apartments and 80 townhomes won’t begin until third quarter 2027 at the earliest, after the mall has been refurbished and new tenants brought in. The complex will take up part of the parking lot and a portion of unused mall property.
A connector to the mall will make it easy for residents to visit stores and a variety of new eateries planned for the Food Court including coffee and pizza shops, a Mediterranean restaurant and other cuisines.
Khan said units will primarily be marketed to “empty-nesters” who want to stay in the Saratoga area, without having to own a house. “Some units will be ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant so people can age in place,” he said. “When they sell their home, it gives younger families a chance to move in because there’s not a lot of (single-family) inventory left in town.”
Khan purchased Clifton Park Center from DCG Development for $55 million. Hosting special events and activities has been a key to its rejuvenation, a strategy he plans to employ at Wilton Mall, too.
“At Clifton Park Center we’ve had 48 events such as craft fairs, flea markets, wedding shows and things for non-profits the past two years,” Khan said. “Wilton Mall is so much bigger. We can do a lot more with it. If you need space for a community event, we plan on working hand-in-hand with you to use it.”
Khan said his family has been active in Capital Region development for more than 50 years, and he personally for 25 years. He’s an ardent believer in the future of shopping malls, and their place in America’s retail industry, despite their rapid decline.
From a peak of about 25,000 malls throughout America several decades ago, fewer than 930 remain. Northway, Latham Circle and Mohawk malls are among those that have closed in the Capital Region. But those sites are still home to some type of shopping venue, Khan said.
“It’s not just because online retailers have killed the brick-and-mortars,” he said. “It’s because the brick-and-mortars didn’t always provide the products, services and brands that people are looking for. It’s important to be relevant. Life is ever-changing and you need to keep up. It takes work.”
In Queensbury, Aviation Mall is gearing up for a second half-century of business with a new go-kart racing attraction for local families, summer vacationers and serious competitors alike.
Scheduled to open Nov. 1, ADK Karting Experience is the latest in a series of sports, fitness and entertainment-type tenants, as the 50-year-old mall reinvents itself in the face of 21st-century consumer demands.
“When you have a very large facility to maintain with costly utilities, insurance and the like, you have to take on opportunities that might not be traditional,” said James Griffith, mall general manager. “We’ve always looked at different uses for getting people in the shopping center because that’s how we’re measured by our tenants. They want to know, ‘What is your foot traffic?’”
“We welcome anything whenever we can justify that it brings more traffic,” he said.
ADK Karting will occupy the 80,000-square-foot former Sears space at the east end of the mall, near the Food Court.
Aviation Mall was a major, region-wide retail shopping destination when it opened in October 1975 with JC Penney, still there, and Denby’s as anchors. Caldor and Sears joined not long afterward but later closed in addition to The Bon-Ton, which replaced Caldor.
Target, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Ollie’s Bargain Outlet are anchors now, too, along with JC Penney, but filling smaller spaces with retail tenants has been a challenge for malls across America, including this one.
“You can’t run away from it, online buying is how people make their purchases now,” Griffith said.
In response, the mall is now home to tenants such as Planet Fitness, The GYM, Adirondack Axe (for axe-throwers), The Body Barre: Dance & Fitness Studio and 518 Grapplers, a school for young wrestlers that occupies a former shoe store right outside the old Sears.
And in winter, Glens Falls Farmer’s Market occupies the Food Court on Saturday mornings, bringing hundreds of people the mall that gives business to full-time tenants as well.
ADK Karting Experience is expected to do the same.
“Our responsibility is getting people here,” Griffith said. “Anything we can do to increase foot traffic has always been a priority for us. That’s when shopping happens because shopping is impulse. That’s when tenants have their opportunity.”
Two arcades, Insane Games and Trading Card Hub are other tenants where people come looking for fun rather than jeans or a new dress. On May 1, Jak in the Box Comics is scheduled to open, too.
But a large 50,000-square-foot vacancy still remains between Ollie’s and the Atrium near Regal Cinemas. Ollie’s took less than half of the former Bon-Ton. A large portion of the former Bon-Ton where it connected to the mall Atrium is empty.
Griffith said at least two parties have expressed interest in opening pickleball courts at Aviation Mall. One limitation is that ceilings aren’t quite high enough.
“But what it really comes down to is investment dollars,” Griffith said. “Can they justify that it will make enough revenue to cover the build-out expense one of those facilities.”
Aviation Mall (630,000-square-foot) was originally developed and owned by The Pyramid Companies, which borrowed $20 million in 2011 for capital improvements and leasing opportunities.
The Woodmont Company has managed the mall on behalf of Deutsche Bank since last year when Pyramid Companies was unable to make payments on its loan.
“The whole focus is to lease out property and get it in shape for a potential sale,” Griffith said.