Plans to redevelop the Marketplace Mall and possibly lure in a new tenant have gotten a major jump start.
Imagine Monroe has agreed with ownership group, Wilmorite, to exercise eminent domain over the property.
"They came to us and said 'look, here's where we're at, we have some ideas of what we would like to do,’” said Jeffrey Adair, executive director of Imagine Monroe. “Because they've got the Macy's building that's closed up or has been closed up and they've been looking for different ways to put businesses in there."
Wilmorite wants to consolidate 25-acres of existing parking for a new tenant. Stores who oppose would be compensated.
"When they have agreements with say, JC Penney's, Sears or anybody else that's in the mall, there's things like you can't build anything in there that goes above two stories, you have to have a certain amount of parking lots, it's all in their agreements,” he said.
The plan also gives Wilmorite to go-ahead to begin sprucing up that part of the mall, to get ready for that mystery tenant.
"It would be like if you were painting your house or a room in your house you may have to fill in a crack here, you may have to speckle here, you may have to sand here, you may have to do all that stuff just to get all of it ready,” Adair said.
It’s potentially a win-win situation for tenants and shoppers alike.
"I go to malls maybe monthly because I like to follow their seasonal sales, I like to see what the new, upcoming clothes and color and style looks like,” said shopper Barbara August.
"At least three times a week, like, other than getting myself out of the house just hanging out with friends and being able to go somewhere, spend some money and increase the amount of clothes I have in my closet,” added Chris Harden.
Wilmorite has yet to disclose who or what could be moving in, but shoppers have ideas for what they'd like to see.
"I'd like to see a better variety of clothing in terms of name brands like Adidas and Nike and Reebok and all that stuff not primarily clothes, but mostly shoes and backpacks and more athletic stuff than anything,” Harden said.
"Bloomingdales, because everybody loves Bloomingdales but it's too far for us to travel too but I think that if they brought it here it would have quite the draw,” August suggested.