General Growth restructuring approved, as mall owner nears bankruptcy escape

Eighteen months after filing the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history, mall owner General Growth Properties, which owns Mizner Park mall in Boca Raton, has received approval on the final stage of its restructuring plan, according to Bloomberg News. The plan, which was approved today, will inject $7 billion into the company, the second-largest mall owner in the nation, and will split off a section of General Growth’s holdings into a new company called Howard Hughes Corp. William Ackman, manager of the Pershing Square Capital Management hedge fund, is a lead investor in Howard Hughes and will serve as the group’s chairman. A General Growth spokesperson said that the company expects to exit bankruptcy protection by Nov. 8. [Bloomberg via Crain’s]