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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Columbia Colonnade
Columbia Colonnade (formerly Columbia Mall) was a shopping mall located just outside Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. It was anchored by EFO Furniture, Planet Fitness, Dunham's Sports, MVP Clubhouse, and a VA Clinic. The mall was next to Interstate 80 and PA 42. It also served the Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, as well as several surrounding communities, such as Bloomsburg and Buckhorn, Pennsylvania.

History

Columbia Colonnade's construction was estimated to cost more than $30 million. The mall opened in 1988 with anchors Sears, J. C. Penney, The Bon-Ton, and Hills Department Stores. Sears and J. C. Penney moved from downtown Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, to become anchor stores when the mall opened. The mall was sold early in its existence for $36 million to Heitman Advisory Corp. In 1995, Columbia Mall was sold for $27.6 million. The only anchor change during this time was when Hills converted to Ames in 1999. After the closure of Ames in 2002, the vacant store was used occasionally for the Animal Resource Center Yard Sale, Eagle Arms Gun Show, and WNEP Outdoor Expo. Cedar Shopping Centers (Cedar Bloomsburg LLC) bought the mall in 2005 for $14 million from Bay View Columbia Mall, with reconstruction plans existing in 2008. WP Realty joined as a 25% owner of the mall in 2008.

Non-retail office space leases at the mall started in the early 2010s and included Geisinger Health Plan. Dunham's Sports opened in 2011 occupying most of the empty Ames store. Cedar sold the mall in April 2013 for $2.8 million to Empire Columbia LP and management was replaced. Sears closed in January 2015. EFO Furniture opened in February 2017, occupying a portion of the former Sears. Planet Fitness opened in spring 2017, occupying half of the former Sears. J. C. Penney closed at the mall on July 31, 2017. Bon-Ton closed in 2018 due to the chain's liquidation. MVP Clubhouse opened in Summer 2018, occupying the remaining former Ames.

Columbia Mall was renamed to Columbia Colonnade on November 1, 2018. Greenwood Farm Market, a farmers market, opened at the Colonnade in April 2019. Columbia Colonnade was sold by Empire Columbia LP (Empire Realty Investments) to Foust Holdings LLC for $7 million in July 2019. The mall lost several stores due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Partial reconstruction plans were announced in July 2020, with a Veterans Affairs office opening planned for August. Three stores remained in the mall's interior during January 2021. Columbia Colonnade during 2021 suffered from drinking water issues, heating/cooling problems, lack of staff including security, and roof leaks. Communication with ownership was complicated, due to them not responding.

The last inline tenant, Outback Roos, closed on March 31, 2022, along with the mall's interior. The malls deteriorating condition was one of the causes of Outback Roos closure. Columbia Colonnade was originally scheduled to be auctioned in July 2022 with a starting bid of $3.4 million, but that was later delayed until August. Kohan Retail Investment Group made an offer prior to the auction, but it was not accepted. Under Foust's ownership, the mall received $1.4 million in changes. Columbia Colonnade did not sell in August, as the auction failed to meet the reserve price of $20 million.

  • One of the entrances to the mall's concourse on May 8, 2021
    One of the entrances to the mall's concourse on May 8, 2021
  • A sign thanking visitors to the mall on May 8, 2021
    A sign thanking visitors to the mall on May 8, 2021
  • The mall's concourse at night on May 7, 2021, looking towards the JCPenney court and Furniture Outlet (Former Sears)
    The mall's concourse at night on May 7, 2021, looking towards the JCPenney court and Furniture Outlet (Former Sears)

Planned Revival

After multiple failed attempts to auction off the property, the owner, Foust Development, decided to try and revive the mall. On March 12, Foust announced that some retailers had signed leases. The two retailers were Ollie's Bargain Outlet that would move into the old J.C. Penney store and Michael's Crafts that would move into the now-former EFO Furniture store. The EFO Furniture Outlet had moved to the former Bon-Ton location. There is also interest in the mall from popular retailers such as TJ Maxx, Five Below, and more. Foust plans to have the stores renovated and retailers moved in by July 2024. In addition to the Arby's being built on one of the mall's lots, Foust hopes to attract interest from Jersey Mike's Subs or Primanti Bros.

References

  1. ^ "WP Realty — Columbia Mall Joint Venture - Bloomsburg, PA". WP Realty. 2008-01-03. Archived from the original on February 24, 2017. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
  2. ^ "225 Columbia Mall Drive 2018" (PDF). LoopNet. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  3. ^ "Outback Roos, Bloomsburg is now closed". Facebook. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  4. ^ Wawrzaszek, Michelle (December 8, 1988). "New Mall Gives Bloomsburg Merchants Holiday Blues". The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader. The Morning Call. Archived from the original on November 24, 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  5. ^ Deklinski, Larry (July 12, 2019). "Columbia Mall sold for $7 million". The News-Item. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  6. ^ "Columbia Mall" (PDF). MSC Retail. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 28, 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  7. ^ "Fameco Listings Portfolio" (PDF). Fameco. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  8. ^ "Columbia Mall" (PDF). Cedar Realty Trust. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 25, 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  9. ^ Prichett, Abigail (March 27, 2021). "The Future of the Columbia Colonnade". The Voice. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  10. ^ Merkel, James C. (24 April 1988). "NORTHEAST NOTEBOOK: Bloomsburg, Pa.; Dissipating a Mall's Shadow". The New York Times. Section 10; p. 29. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
  11. ^ Koslosky, John-Erik (2 July 2017). "Ailing malls think outside box". Press Enterprise.
  12. ^ Malina, Brian (November 13, 1998). "Ames Buying Hills Stores". Times Leader. Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  13. ^ Young, Brian (July 22, 1999). "New Ames Stores Opens Doors Today". Times Leader. Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  14. ^ Pang, Gary (May 4, 2011). "Sporting-goods store needs 50 workers, mall official says". Press Enterprise.
  15. ^ Allabaugh, Denise (September 27, 2010). "Despite recession, malls boast high occupancy rates". Standard Speaker. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  16. ^ Milongo, Corinne (November 4, 2005). "Cedar Shopping Centers Buys Columbia Mall for $14M". CoStar. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  17. ^ Pardy, Sasha M (January 30, 2008). "GOOD MATCH? Investors Think Inland-Cedar Merger is Intriguing". CoStar. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  18. ^ Moore, Marcia (January 6, 2017). "Columbia Mall finds success in reinventing itself". The Daily Item. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  19. ^ "GHP rents office space in Columbia Mall". Press Enterprise. 23 May 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  20. ^ Ianieri, Brian (October 11, 2013). "Shore Mall becomes Harbor Square in Egg Harbor Township". The Press of Atlantic City. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  21. ^ "Hometown Columbia Mall has new outlook". Press Enterprise. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  22. ^ Krize, Nikki (October 17, 2014). "Sears to Close at the Columbia Mall". WNEP. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  23. ^ "Sears at Schuylkill, Columbia malls to close". News Item. October 17, 2014. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  24. ^ Stevens, Ali (October 17, 2014). "Sears will close at Columbia Mall". WKOK. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  25. ^ Ratchford, Dan (January 31, 2017). "New Store Planned for Columbia Mall". WNEP. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
  26. ^ Krize, Nikki (January 12, 2017). "Planet Fitness Coming to Columbia Mall". WNEP. Retrieved 12 January 2017.
  27. ^ Gaffney, Fred (26 April 2017). "Welcome Planet Fitness". The Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  28. ^ Krize, Nikki (March 17, 2017). "Shoppers React to JCPenney Closing Stores in Our Area". WNEP. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  29. ^ Reuther, Mike (March 18, 2017). "Department store leaving region's malls". Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  30. ^ "Department stores delay shutdowns". Williamsport Sun-Gazette. April 16, 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  31. ^ Jarvis, Jade (August 1, 2017). "Three local JCPenney stores closing their doors for good Monday". WOLF. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  32. ^ Bomey, Nathan (April 18, 2018). "Bon-Ton Stores closing: See list of Boston Store, Carson's, Younkers, Herberger's stores". USA Today. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
  33. ^ Lester, Michael (8 June 2018). "Dads build for athletes to come". Press Enterprise.
  34. ^ "New Sports Training Facility Opens". WNEP. July 28, 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  35. ^ "Columbia Mall Renamed". Facebook. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  36. ^ Wood, Scott (3 December 2018). "Call mall Columbia Colonnade". Press Enterprise. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  37. ^ Crossley, Pat (May 3, 2019). "Farmers market's new home means shopping doesn't end". Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  38. ^ "Empire Realty Investments Building Value & Growth Through Turnarounds, Long-Term Strategy for Value-Add Properties". Business Wire. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  39. ^ Lester, Michael (11 July 2019). "Developer buys mall for $7M". Press Enterprise. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  40. ^ Gibbons, Geri (26 July 2020). "Owner to demolish part of mall". Press Enterprise. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  41. ^ Gibbons, Geri (5 January 2021). "Mall shops: We're open". Press Enterprise. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  42. ^ Mahon, M.J. (20 March 2022). "Bloom Bounce in mall to close". Press Enterprise Online. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  43. ^ Bogdan, Leon; Gibbons, Geri (21 June 2022). "Auction set for mall property". Press Enterprise Online. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  44. ^ Wemple, Julye (September 4, 2022). "Developer in talks to bring in national chain restaurants and store". NorthcentralPA.com. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  45. ^ Mahon, M.J. (March 12, 2024). "Ollie's is slated for Buckhorn". Press Enterprise. p. 1.
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