HAMBURG, N.Y. (WKBW) — An aging mall in the Southtowns is heading to the auction block. McKinley Mall is up for auction, with the starting bid set for $3 million.
About two years ago, Kohan Retail Investment, a Long Island development company, paid $8.5 million for the mall in June 2021.
Now, this sale announcement comes at a time when the mall community is growing and its newest business owner said the news blindsided them.
Weldon Jones is the owner of Food Court Skate Park. His empty space that sits near Bed Bath and Beyond will soon be transformed into a skate park for kids, adults and families to gather.
"We have deadlines that we're hitting to get the park open on time," Jones said.
Jones said he wants to bring more life to a mall with a vacancy rate hovering around 50 percent.
"Our goal was to get in and help revitalize the mall by bringing in something that's you know, entertaining," Jones said.
Jones is worried about what the future holds with the recent news that the mall is up for sale.
"This news was a complete shock," he said, "If someone were to purchase the mall and just basically flatten it or turn it into something else that would completely ruin not only just me but a lot of people here."
The recent news also comes as a surprise for Hamburg Town Supervisor, Randy Hoak.
"It was just as a surprise to me as it was to the rest of the community," Hoak said.
When he got word of the news, he reached out to a representative from to the development group, but he never heard back. The last time he spoke with them was about a year ago.
"They shared some of their ideas for potential retailers and other operations that they would like to attract to the mall property, but since that time we really haven't had much communication," he added.
Still, this comes as welcome news for Hoak. He hopes that new ownership means new opportunities.
"I think a fresh approach would be helpful in this situation," Hoak said.
Jones said his skate park is set to open in mid to late April. The mall will be up for auction around that time on April 17th. The bidding closes on April 19th.
"If someone were to purchase the mall and not continue this dream, I think that's not a good, not a good decision," Jones said.
7 News did reach out to the development group that owns this mall but never heard back.
The Town of Hamburg announced Thursday that the development group owes $176,069.14 in taxes. According to the town, taxes were due on February 15.
