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URW lands big Zara, Arhaus leases at Skokie mall

Deals will help refill 115K sf former Lord & Taylor store

URW Lands Big Zara, Arhaus Leases at Old Orchard Mall
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield's Stephen Fluhr with Old Orchard mall (LinkedIn, Google Maps, Getty)

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield is making strides in its revitalization of the Old Orchard Mall, with two big leases for new tenants set to help refill a vacant storefront at the asset in the northern Chicago suburb of Skokie.

Home furnishings company Arhaus and fashion brand Zara will lease a combined 64,000 square feet in the 115,000-square-foot former Lord & Taylor space, with plans to open their new stores next year, Crain’s reported. For Zara, the lease marks a 17,000-square-foot expansion from its current occupancy at the mall.

The former Lord & Taylor store, which closed five years ago, is also set to include Puttshack, a tech-infused mini-golf company that will open a 30,000-square-foot location at the site next year.

Along with filling empty storefronts, France-based landlord URW has a $100 million vision to revamp the shopping center by adding hundreds of apartments, 200,000 square feet of medical office space, a town square and more restaurants. These developments are expected to begin next year, with the first phases opening in 2026.

Other Chicago-area malls are undergoing similar transformations, largely because the pandemic has sparked an increase of e-commerce and wreaked havoc on the area’s retail sector. 

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While the pandemic negatively impacted Old Orchard’s overall sales, causing a 36 percent decline from 2019 to 2022, the mall remains one of the area’s better-performing shopping centers. Tenants such as Apple, Tiffany and Crate & Barrel continue to draw shoppers.

To support the mall’s transformation, the Skokie Village Board approved a redevelopment agreement, which includes an additional 1 percent sales tax on mall transactions to fund $84 million in improvements.

“The transformational redevelopment now underway at Westfield Old Orchard will enhance experiences for Skokie residents and visitors, supporting the center as an economic engine for our community,” Skokie Mayor George Van Dusen told the outlet.

— Quinn Donoghue 

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Unibail-Rodamco-WestfieldGeorge Van Dusen
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Mallsregional mallsRetail MarketSuburban Chicago