Henrietta, N.Y. (WHAM) — It’s no secret that malls are on a steady downward trend, with research showing 87% of large shopping centers may close over the next 10 years.
Once the biggest and most bustling mall in the Rochester area, Marketplace Mall is now hanging by a thread.
The mall opened with 140 stores to great fanfare in 1982, including a gala with a guest appearance from singer Tony Bennett.
Nearly 43 years later, the 1.1 million-square-foot facility now sits mostly empty.
“It was prime. It was beautiful,” said Teresa Kelly of Henrietta. “It’s not so beautiful now.”
Henrietta Town Supervisor Stephen Schultz said the mall it some 70-80% vacant now.
“I think they’ve reached that critical mass of vacancy where they’re going to have trouble getting anybody to come in because there just isn’t the capacity there,” he said.
A recent walk-through of the mall found roughly 24 out of 85 storefronts are being used in some form.
Mall owner Wilmorite said vacancy rates don’t apply since it’s in the process of transitioning Marketplace to a mixed-use property.
“Seeing that that was the trend when I first took office that first year, we did an update to the comprehensive land use plan, and one of the things we looked at were these mixed-use overlay districts,” Schultz said.
Kate Ashford, small business finance expert at NerdWallet, said in a statement that malls need to get creative if they went to stay alive.
Consequently, malls are closing. My favorite mall from when I was a kid is now a hotel and casino. The ones that are surviving seem to be adapting — adding more mixed-use space and responding to what their communities want. That might mean adding experiential retail like indoor golf and skydiving, or converting unused square footage to office space or luxury apartments. Malls that want to stay open are going to have to think creatively about what they can offer people beyond just shopping.
In 2023, the UR Medicine Orthopaedics and Physical Performance Center opened at the former Sears property, and senior apartments opened on the mall property in 2024.
“The thing is, once everybody leaves, nobody wants to go back,” said Terry Kelly of Henrietta. “That’s why all of these stores are empty because there’s no drawing card for people to come shop there.”
Terry and his wife, Teresa, used to shop at Marketplace Mall but now use the space for exercise.
“We enjoy Marketplace Mall still because we are walkers and sometimes during the wintertime or a hot day, that’s our destination,” Terry said. “It’s really kind of sad because the draw isn’t there even for the walkers.”
BACKGROUND: What does the future hold for shopping, retailers at Rochester-area malls? | UR Medicine’s proposed move into Marketplace echoes growing nationwide trend
Wilmorite is aiming to reinvigorate the property by transforming it into a mixed-use site to include sports and restaurants, not just retail.
“I would love to see something done with it that revitalize the area and bring business in but also helps the people of Henrietta as well,” said James Taylor of Henrietta.
“I would love to see more family-friendly activities, birthday parties, places for kiddoes who may have sensory needs, special needs,” said Nykki Matthews of Henrietta. “It would be really nice to see more family engagement over there.”
Years ago, many commercial properties in the town were reclassified as mixed-use overlay districts.
“The idea is that, in addition to just retail being allowed there, we would look at, can there be other uses — medical, housing, things like that,” Schultz said.
The mall complex has made some progress in that direction, but not to the liking of the town supervisor.
“It’s not going the way I wanted to at all,” Schultz said. “For one, it does not appear (Wilmorite) invested any of the roughly $18 million that the Sears facility sold for. It doesn’t look like any of that was reinvested in the mall itself.”
Schultz also said he wanted UR Medicine to do more when it opened in the complex.
“When we talked about this, and they were in on those conversations, we talked about the idea that inside the mall you could potentially have doctors offices and let’s say Monroe Wheelchair and, you know, drug store businesses that cater to the fact that there’s this large orthopedic center in there,” Schultz said. “Well, when they wrote their contract with the mall, they excluded the mall from being able to have any of those things.”
In a statement, UR Medicine said it has “delivered exceptional patient volumes.”
The University of Rochester’s Saunders Center for Orthopaedics & Physical Performance has delivered exceptional patient volumes to Henrietta as well as very high patient satisfaction, providing more than 493,000 orthopaedic surgeries, office visits, and imaging since its opening in May 2023. We chose Marketplace largely because RTS bus routes and nearby interstate highways make it convenient and accessible to patients in Rochester and throughout the region. We appreciate the support and collaboration the project has received from Wilmorite and the Town of Henrietta, and we remain focused on our mission to deliver the most advanced care to patients in our region for decades to come.
Wilmorite, in a statement, said redeveloping the property will take time.
After the opening of the impressive new UR orthopaedic center two years ago, Wilmorite has continued to work with the UR on possible additional space within The Marketplace Mall. Redeveloping a property takes time and there are often hurdles along the way for both the developer and prospective tenants.
The Marketplace Mall’s central location near NYS Thruway 90 and I-390 make it some of the most desirable real estate in the market. While the UR is still considering their needs, Wilmorite has aggressively pursued alternative options. Currently we are in negotiations with several large tenants including retail, entertainment, restaurants, and a hotel. We will hopefully be able to make announcements in the very near future.
Over the past two years, Floor & Décor, Marketplace Apartments, and LensCrafters have opened. Dave & Busters also completed a full remodel. Wilmorite has maintained the property, made improvements, and is actively trying to lease the property. Our taxes of $1.1M on this property are paid and up to date. The Marketplace is a top priority for us – as evidenced by our significant financial commitment to this property and the community.
We appreciate the town and community’s patience as we work to transform this property.
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Residents and town leaders hope Marketplace redevelopment becomes a reality.
“You want to go somewhere that looks safe, appealing, multi-use, so that is a big factor on when you go, where you go and what time you go, too,” Matthews said.
“Obviously, the larger your tax base, the lower your tax rate,” Schultz said. “And so it would definitely help if we could see that revitalized in some way.”
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