The man who is redeveloping Burlington’s downtown mall plans to buy the adjacent building where an ailing Macy’s department store is set to close in March.
Don Sinex and his partners at Rouse Properties expect to close on the purchase of the Macy’s building at 67 Cherry Street in the next two or three weeks, Sinex said via email Tuesday. He would not disclose plans for the property, which is assessed at $11.1 million.
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger said the purchase is good news. The deal means that the site will not sit vacant for an extended period, and that a team that has already proven its commitment to Burlington with the mall makeover plan will reimagine its future, Weinberger said via email Monday.
“There is potential here, with public input, to further transform an unappealing and underutilized section of the downtown into a vibrant, mixed-use, and more accessible neighborhood,” Weinberger stated.
Macy’s is Burlington’s only downtown department store. Last week, the struggling national retailer announced that the local store would be among 100 Macy’s stores to be shut down this year.
The Macy’s building is in a downtown swath that was rezoned to increase allowable building heights from about 10 to 14 stories, or 160 feet. Voters approved the heavily debated allowance for taller buildings after Sinex insisted he could not revamp the decaying mall without building higher.
Demolition on the outdated mall began last month and will transform the property, adding 270 apartments and condos, smaller store spaces and offices. Two 14-story buildings are planned.
The construction project at the roughly five-acre mall property is the largest in downtown Burlington’s history, according to the Burlington Community & Economic Development Office.
The city has issued a request for proposals calling for a consultant who could help neighboring businesses remain viable during the construction. The deadline for responses is February 2.
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@ Arrants:
“What is the Sinex group getting? What kinds of tax breaks, etc.? Follow the money.”
Instead of making veiled accusations in the form of questions, why don’t you do the research and answer those questions so the rest of us can see if your accusations are baseless?
It’s awful for those employees who are now without a job because of the store closing. I have a few neighbors that work there. Still, Macy’s is dealing with this problem all over the country. It’s not the City’s fault that people prefer buying things online.
I hope they tear it down and build 7-8 floors of workforce housing, with first floor locally owned retail. Would be really cool if the Champlain Housing Trust and Cathedral Square were involved in the same way they are for Cambrian Rise.
It’s also a shame that no matter if the project is good for working and middle class people or not, the CLC and Rights and Democracy will try to say that this is some scheme to sell Burlington and take away our parking.
Burlington used to be a great little city if you didn’t have a lot of money… now it’s a great little city if you have a lot of money…
Meanwhile, 65-100 people are out of a job, losing on average let’s say, $18,000 per year. That’s now $1.8 MILLION taken out of the local economy. Sixty five to one hundred FAMILIES now scrambling to figure out how they will pay rent, groceries and more.