December 20, 2019
Developer buys Rock Hill mall, plans for improvements
The Rock Hill Galleria is returning to a development company that once owned it in a deal that could bring about big changes for the enclosed mall.
Warren Norman Co. of Rock Hill has bought the mall from Bank OZK. York County records show that the Rock Hill Galleria sold for $11 million on Dec. 13.
The mall still has anchors Belk and JCPenney, along with restaurants and shops such as Showmars and Hibbett Sports, among others. Sears closed in late 2018 as national big-box retailers and enclosed malls continue to struggle with competition from online shopping.
The Walmart Supercenter and outparcels along Dave Lyle Boulevard weren’t included in the sale.
Warren Norman, development director and broker in charge of the family-owned firm, didn’t give specifics about its plans for redeveloping the property.
“Formulating our redevelopment plan will take some time, and we intend to carefully assess a wide variety of possibilities, all of which will be aimed at revitalizing and improving the mall itself and the surrounding area,” Norman says in a statement issued Thursday morning.
The mall, at more than 700,000 square feet, is the ninth-largest shopping center, according to Charlotte Business Journal research.
The 28-year-old Rock Hill Galleria has changed hands several times in its history before being acquired by BankOZK.
The Norman family owned the land at Exit 79 of Interstate 77, including the mall site before it opened there in 1991. In 2013, Belk spent $5.5 million to update and expand its anchor store there.
In a 2013 interview, Norman says his family has sold or developed 450 acres along the Dave Lyle Boulevard corridor, which includes the mall.
The Normans continue to develop land around the mall, including a Fairfield Inn & Suites Marriott that opened in early 2017.
Collett of Charlotte represented BankOZK in the sale of Rock Hill Galleria.
Article By: Ken Elkins - Senior Staff Writer, Charlotte Business
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