City nears deal for Staten Island outlet mall

BFC Partners is in talks with the Bloomberg administration to build a 500,000-square-foot outlet mall on Staten Island near the ferry terminal, the Wall Street Journal reported. The mall would join a proposed 600-foot Ferris wheel in St. George, on the northern tip of the island, on parking lots flanking the baseball stadium the Staten Island Yankees call home.

City officials hope to reach a deal on both fronts soon and give ferry riders, including its two million annual tourists, a reason to stay in the area, known as “downtown” Staten Island. The city also hopes that an outlet mall would help appeal to shoppers that otherwise spend their money at Simon Property Group’s Woodbury Common outlets, located 50 miles north of Manhattan.

The Journal noted that a big obstacle to the popularity of such a mall could come from restrictions put in place by Woodbury Commons. Malls usually prohibit brands from opening a second store within a certain radius to protect from competition.

As previously reported, another outlet mall is being planned for the Whitestone Cinemas site in the Bronx by the Lightstone Group. [WSJ] — Adam Fusfeld