From the memo sent to the remaining tenants.

Official announcement

http://www.journal-news.com/news/news/burlington-coat-factory-to-open-at-towne-mall/ngXJf/

Nice to have some good news for once. I think this is a good fit for Middletown.

This is good news.  I would think there should be some ripple effect and we may see other stores opening up.

itsamee wrote: Best part is, it will probably help revamp part of the exterior and make the mall a little more modern looking.

One can only hope there are improvements to the exterior as shown in the renderings. 

In other retail-related news, the former Target store is listed for sale at $3m

http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/18699091/6775-Roosevelt-Ave-Middletown-OH/

What happened to the wine shop that they were talking about going in at Target space? Is that not going to happen?

Went to Rogers Jewelry last week and the girl there said there would also be a DSW Shoe, and BW3's in an outlot.

katiebell wrote: Went to Rogers Jewelry last week and the girl there said there would also be a DSW Shoe, and BW3's in an outlot.

Hey, they need shoes too.

Bill wrote: BW3 for Fricker's is a good tradeoff, if it came to that.  Fricker's is god awful.

And the inside is just nasty.

More progress at the TMG?  This item is on this week's planning commission agenda


II.
Towne Mall Preliminary Development Plan

Minor Amendment
Petitioner: George Y. Ragheb representing Bless Properties, LLC
Location: Towne Mall bounded by Towne Blvd.and Pendleton Cr.

Proposal:Construction of seven new outlot parcel buildings in areas currently used for parking

Decision on Towne Mall Development Plan

From MJ

Mattress Firm to open near Middletown’s Towne Mall
MIDDLETOWN —
Bedding retailer Mattress Firm is planning to open in 2015 a Middletown store next to Towne Mall Galleria, further bolstering the mall’s redevelopment efforts.

A former Cincinnati Bell store at 3363 Towne Blvd. will be demolished, and a new Mattress Firm will be built in its place, according to city records. Kim Hardcastle, a spokeswoman for the Texas-based mattress company, confirmed the news.

This comes on the heels of a July announcement that Burlington Coat Factory plans to open this fall an anchor store at Towne Mall. Burlington will lease space formerly occupied by Dillard’s at 3455 Towne Blvd., said George Ragheb, one of the investors behind the California group, SA Mary Ohio LLC, that bought the mall in October 2012. Dillard’s department store closed in 2008.

SA Mary Ohio does not own the Cincinnati Bell property where Mattress Firm will be constructed, but Ragheb said the deal is “very important because it brings traffic into the project.”

“It’s an adjacent parcel of land under the same development agreement,” Ragheb said.

“Cincinnati Bell was closed long ago and I applaud Anchor Retail for buying that parcel and bringing Mattress Firm into it and turning that into a viable retail outlet rather than another closed store,” he said.

Plans for the new Mattress Firm are still in early stages, so more information about the store’s size, opening date or hiring are not yet available, Hardcastle said.

The current building sitting at the 3363 Towne Blvd. site does not suit Mattress Firm’s use. They’re proposing to demolish it and replace it with a larger building with more parking, according to the minutes of a July planning commission meeting of the city.

Also, Ragheb was scheduled to speak at Wednesday’s planning commission meeting about the construction of seven new out lot parcel buildings in areas currently used for parking at Towne Mall.

Currently Towne Mall, located near the city’s Ohio 122 interchange with Interstate 75, sits half empty. A group of California investors including Ragheb bought the property for $850,000 in 2012, and later bought the adjoining Elder-Beerman and former Dillard’s properties.

“This area is a strong regional area and it will be successful,” Ragheb said.

Mattress Firm is a good fit for Towne Mall, whose tenants include Elder-Beerman, Sears and Rogers Jewelers, said Denise Hamet, Middletown economic development director. Other adjacent out parcels to the mall are PNC Bank and Kentucky Fried Chicken.

“I have driven the area to look at various Mattress Firm sites, and they are nicely constructed and seem to fit in well and drive foot traffic to the other tenants where they locate,” Hamet said.

Lots of opinions, few facts in this thread.... and posting full articles goes against TOS of Cox News and other news agencies, just as an FYI. Found that out recently. Ask www.urbanohio.com/forum2 if you really want proof. They had to clip every article in their database.