Washington Crown Center closing to mall walkers
While it was chilly outside Tuesday morning, Marge Prall was able to get her exercise with a walk around Washington Crown Center.
That will soon not be an option, as the North Franklin Township indoor shopping mall will soon be closed to walkers while it is being transformed into Franklin Crossroads Park.
The mall’s Facebook page recently announced the building would close to walkers on March 30, but that there will be an entrance to the mall’s common area next to Ollie’s.
Prall, 97, was walking at the mall Tuesday with her daughter, Lisa Levato.
“I’ve been taking her out here when the weather is bad. At her age, this is the only exercise she gets,” Levato said.
Last year, the mall was sold from Kohan Retail Investment Group to the Cleveland-based PREP Funds and Los Angeles-based Industry Realty Group LLC for more than $5.2 million.
They are currently in the process of demolishing large portions of the mall, including the former Hollywood Theater and Bon-Ton.
The eastern side of the complex will be a 100,000-square-foot retail center. The western side will be a 350,000-square-foot business park for various corporate uses.
“Our first retail tenants will open in May/June,” said Chris Salata, a partner with PREP Funds.
According to Salata, new ownership expects to make an announcement in the next month or so about the new tenants and when they will open.
“The business park will take a little longer,” Salata said.
When the work is done, gone will be the days of an indoor mall in Washington County. The former Washington Mall in South Strabane Township has been razed in preparation for a Costco warehouse club.
Levato says she and her mother have been coming to the mall for the last couple of years. When it closes, she is not sure where she will take her mother when the weather outside is too poor for walking.
“I can’t think of another place that has this space,” Levato says.
The closest indoor mall would be South Hills Village in Bethel Park, which would be a trek for the South Strabane Township residents.
“I had been looking into a fitness center. There is only one that has an indoor walking trail, and that’s expensive just for her walking,” Levato says.
During the construction, a handful of businesses continue to operate inside Washington Crown Center. Those include Kandy Nails, The Toffee House, King’s Jewelry and Cheer Haven All Stars.