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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 15 A U G U S T 2 4 , 2 0 2 6 F O C U S G R E AT E R B A N G O R / N O R T H E R N M A I N E "e question is, how to trans- late something that works with the demographics and economy of a place like Chapel Hill, N.C., to a city like Bangor with its particular strengths and weaknesses," he says. O'Brien, who has no involvement in the Bangor project but is familiar with the property from his former role as head of the Maine Redevelopment Land Bank Authority, is optimis- tic the mall will be able to turn the corner with new investment and ownership. "e transformation will take someone with a long-term vision and patience," he says. Portfolio shift When the Bangor Mall opened in October 1978, the "Halloween" slasher flick and "e Wiz" musical featuring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson were playing in cinemas, the Bee Gees and Foreigner were all the rage and Hershey's Reese's Pieces were brand new. Built on a former dairy farm north of Bangor's central business district close to Interstate 95, the Bangor Mall opened with Sears and JCPenney as anchor tenants – fixtures of American shopping malls well through their hey- day in the 1980s. Over the next couple of decades malls began to lose their luster, with the rise of online shopping leading to store closures and bankrupt- cies. By the time the pandemic hit in 2020, when ecommerce really took off, the Bangor Sears had already been closed for a couple of years. Namdar Realty Group teamed with two other companies in 2019 to buy the Bangor Mall at auction for $12.6 million from Simon Property Group, the Indiana-based owner of Kittery Premium Outlets. Today, the Bangor Mall is one of 377 Namdar properties in 37 states but no longer of interest as the group focuses on larger markets with critical mass. "eir plan all along was to hold it for a couple of years to try to reposi- tion it," says T.C. Haffenreffer IV, a broker and partner with the Dunham Group, a Portland-based commer- cial real estate agency, representing Namdar in the pending sale. "ey wanted to make sure that it transitioned to somebody who could complete the project, and feel that Michael Cole and his team have the right vision for the prop- erty," he adds. Getting an approach from local buyers also came at the right time, he notes. Representatives of Namdar declined to comment for this article. Cole declined to say whether the group has agreed to buy the mall for more or less than what Namdar paid in 2019. Negotiations began last fall, leading to an agree- ment signed in April. Following an extended period of due diligence, the transaction is expected to close in September. Conversion wave As the traditional retail model loses its luster, up to 87% of large shop- ping malls could close over the next decade, according to a June report by Capital One Shopping Research using publicly available data. Of the estimated 1,200 malls of all sizes operating nationwide in 2023, as few as 900 could remain by 2028, the report predicted. e trend is already reflected in store closures, with a net 14,610 mall stores shutting their doors between 2016 and 2025. Shopping malls are also twice as likely to be vacant as other retail space, with closed malls remaining empty for nearly four years on aver- age. In the first quarter of 2026, the average nationwide mall vacancy rate was nearly double the overall retail vacancy rate. C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » Forward Thinking • Innovative • Consistency You Can Count On D'arcy Main-Boyington Economic Development Director ecdev@brewermaine.gov 207-989-7500 W W W . B R E W E R M A I N E . G O V " The City of Brewer has welcomed my small family business with open arms by providing us with resources to facilitate growth within the community." Daniel Finnemore President, Box of Maine Building Maine's Most Complex Projects Consigli Construction Co., Inc. Construction Managers & General Contractors | consigli.com GO BEHIND THE BUILD University of Maine GEM Factory of the Future You don't want to build a place for people to live before you build the things they want to live around. — Michael Cole Bangor Marketplaces and Residences LLC

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