Town East Mall in Mesquite is getting a second lease on life.
Brookfield Properties pulled Town East Mall off the foreclosure auction block after resolving distress tied to a $160.3 million loan, the Dallas Business Journal reported.
The 1.2 million-square-foot mall at 2063 Town East Mall was scheduled for foreclosure auction next week, according to county deed records.
The loan, which amounts to $134 per square foot, was underwritten in 2012 by UBS Real Estate Securities and Barclays Bank and now held by U.S. Bank NA. Its maturity was extended in 2020 to help Brookfield avoid foreclosure during the pandemic.
The company worked out the loan and plans to own and operate the mall “for the foreseeable future,” a company spokesperson told the outlet.
Brookfield acquired Town East Mall in 2018. It manages more than 1,100 properties globally and has nearly 40 million square feet under active development.
The mall is anchored by tenants including Dillard’s, JCPenney, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Macy’s. In March, the Mesquite City Council approved an incentives agreement to keep Macy’s as an anchor tenant for at least five years, with an option to extend to 10 years. Macy’s must maintain at least $15 million in annual sales to qualify for a 1 percent tax rebate under the deal.
Brookfield’s near-term plans for the property include a major entertainment-focused repositioning.
A Main Event entertainment center, featuring bowling, arcade games and escape rooms will replace the 58,000-square-foot former Sears space.
The Town East Mall turnaround comes as North Texas malls navigate an era of reinvention.
Aging properties like Valley View Center and Red Bird Mall in Dallas, and Collin Creek Mall in Plano are being repurposed into mixed-use developments as brick-and-mortar retail grapples with rising online competition.
— Judah Duke