Richland County approves tax credits for redevelopment of Richland Mall

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Plans are underway to redevelop the property that currently houses the hulking, mostly empty Richland Mall at the intersection of Forest Drive and Beltline Boulevard.

Richland County Council on Oct. 18 approved up to $23 million in tax credits for redevelopment of the mall property, a project estimated to cost up to $100 million. Southeastern Development of Augusta, Ga. has been named as the company handling the project.

On the same day, Forest Acres City Council also passed a $3 million tax credit package for the mall property’s redevelopment with Southeastern Development.

No specific plans or timeline for the property have been announced yet and no designs or mockups have been created, but initial discussions indicate the development would be a mixed-use property including housing and retail.

Attempts by SC Biz News to reach officials from Southeastern Development were unsuccessful Wednesday afternoon.

The Forest Acres council also approved an agreement to purchase a piece of land at the site to develop into a park.

“This is a historic day for Forest Acres,” Mayor Frank Brunson said in a statement. “Ultimately, we want to rid our community of this concrete dinosaur. Redeveloping the mall has remained a top priority for city council. We are partnering with a developer with a well-known track record for integrating public space with these types of redevelopment projects.”

Development at the site would serve both the nearby community and the county as a whole, said Richland County Councilman Paul Livingston.

“I’m excited about the possibility of revitalizing this location because it offers a great opportunity for economic benefit for a lot of people,” Livingston told SC Biz News. “There will be a tremendous number of construction jobs available as well as long-term jobs for the businesses that will locate on the site.”

Richland Mall first opened in the 1960s as an open-air shopping mall, then was converted to Richland Fashion Mall, an indoor venue with a food court and large parking garage in the 1980s. Occupancy has dwindled over the past 10 to 15 years, and the mall is currently home to only two retail anchors, Barnes and Noble and Belk. A call center also has office space there.

Brunson said the new park would offer space for the city to host live music and other outdoor performance events similar to popular events such as “Rhythm on the Rooftop” and “Jamming on Forest” the city has held in previous years.

The new park would be the sixth park in the Forest Acres city limits. City officials recently announced plans for another park to be built along Gills Creek behind Forest Lake Fabrics.

Redevelopment of the mall property will open up a range of new opportunities for the surrounding community, according to Tom Andrews, a member of Forest Acres City Council and Mayor Pro Tem.

“I see the key word as opportunity,” Andrews told SC Biz News. “It has been abandoned for so long that this is the opportunity to replace it with new retail, restaurants, residents and an opportunity to build on our city park system. As you would expect in a project this size, there are a lot of details to finish up, but we are excited about the opportunities to come.”
 

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