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99 Ranch Market (Samanea New York, iStock)
A Long Island mall is looking to shed its high vacancy rate, bringing in a popular Asian grocery store chain for its first New York location.
California-based 99 Ranch Market is opening a 45,000-square-foot location at the Samanea New York mall in Westbury. It is just the second anchor tenant to come to the mall in more than two decades.
The store signed a 15-year lease in April 2020, but wasn’t able to begin construction at the former Circuit City space until January 2021; the financial terms of the lease were not disclosed. The grocery store is scheduled to open its doors on April 9.
Bloomingdale’s Furniture Outlet is the other recent addition to the mall, opening in September 2020. The new 99 Ranch location will be the second-largest anchor tenant at the mall, behind the Dave & Buster’s.
The company was founded in 1984 and has 56 stores in the United States. It sells dry groceries, produce, meats, seafood, deli items, baked goods and items centered around Chinese cuisine. A food court is also planned for the market.
The company aims to position itself as a “home away from home” for Asian Americans and a “link…to experience and learn about Asian cultures” for other ethnic groups.
The property at 1500 Country Road recently underwent a $30 million renovation, creating two new main exterior entrances. The mall owners presumably hope the latest opening is a sign the mall’s fortunes are turning around.
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Samanea previously had Long Island’s highest vacancy rate at 35 percent, or one-third of the mall’s 750,000 square feet, Newsday reported in November. According to the outlet, the shopping center’s vacancy rate has since dropped to 33 percent.
Negotiations were reportedly underway in November for 22 percent of the mall’s unleased space, while indoor golf franchise X-Golf and Empire Adventure Park were preparing to move in. Empire Adventure Park signed a 10-year lease for 35,000 square feet last year, part of the mall’s ambitions to pivot to a destination for lifestyle brands.
Correction: This article has been revised to say that 99 Ranch Market is the second anchor tenant, not the second tenant, to come to the mall in more than two decades.
