Pittsburgh Mills mall's uncertain future worries shoppers, Frazer officials

It’s been nearly a year since a new owner bought the Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer, touting plans to redevelop the struggling, 14-year-old facility.

Despite the owner’s hopeful nature in May, township officials say they still haven’t met or had any communication with Long Island-based Mason Asset Management and are disappointed with the progress made over the past year.

“They’re not hands-on here except for their staff,” said Lori Ziencik, supervisor and township secretary. “It seems they’re disinterested in the property.”

Multiple messages left for Elliot Nassim, president of Mason Asset Management, were not returned. Mall management wasn’t able to comment unless approved by Nassim.

Four new tenants have moved into the mall over the past year: Himalayan Salts Co., Focus on the Arts, Chicken Connection and Allegheny Health Network’s Citizens School of Nursing.

The owner of Chicken Connection declined to comment, and a message left for Himalayan Salts Co. wasn’t returned. AHN has said the mall is a good fit for the nursing school because of its location off Route 28 and the large space left empty by ITT Tech was already set up for a school.

At the same time, several businesses have left, including Kay Jewelers, which moved across the road into the neighboring The Village at Pittsburgh Mills development.

Kitchen Collection and a locally owned arcade have closed, and the mall lost Charlotte Russe after the company announced last month it would close all stores and file for bankruptcy.

Large parts of the mall remain shuttered and uninhabited with dozens of storefronts empty.

Ziencik said she’s happy the nursing school moved in but thinks there is room for more.

“I think that the township realizes it’s got to be a mixed-type use — the retail nationwide is just not there to fill this building,” she said. “We’re hopeful the new owners will promote different types of uses that we can look into or consider.”

She has previously said a store such as Rural King or an entertainment-driven business such as Dave & Busters would likely be successful.

Shoppers want more

The lack of progress hasn’t gone unnoticed by shoppers who still come to the mall because it’s the only shopping area for many.

Madd Sabula travels more than 50 miles to shop at the mall. He lives north of Kittanning and said despite the lack of options at the mall, it’s still his best choice.

“We go to Indiana (mall), and the only thing down there is a J.C.Penney,” he said.

Sabula said he hopes the food court will be developed to offer more choices. It currently has only three restaurants.

Tarentum resident Sabrina Adams said she comes to the mall about once a week and wishes it had her favorite store, rue21. She has to travel to Monroeville Mall to shop there. The Mills location was one of several the company closed in 2017.

“They took that out, and I was pretty upset,” she said.

She also misses some of the former food options such as Auntie Anne’s Pretzels and Johnny Rockets.

Leechburg resident Lindsay Frank said she’s disappointed more stores haven’t moved into the mall.

“What’s the point in coming for one or two stores?” Frank said.

Frank said a lot of people come to the mall just to walk, and she thinks they could benefit from having more shopping options.

“I think there should be (stores) to stop at along the way,” she said.

The future of malls

While customers may see the lack of stores as a failure, that might not necessarily be true, said Manus Clancy, senior managing director of applied data and research with New York City-based Trepp LLC.

Trepp provides market research for the real estate and banking industries.

While he couldn’t speak specifically to the Pittsburgh Mills mall, Clancy said many malls across the country are transitioning into mixed-use facilities with fewer retailers.

That mold fits Pittsburgh Mills, which has added a church, a gym and several children’s sports facilities in recent years.

He said those types of businesses can still draw in families and get foot traffic to the space for the retail that remains.

He said for companies like Mason Asset Management that buy struggling properties for relatively cheap prices — about $12 million in the case of Pittsburgh Mills — their costs can remain low because they aren’t saddled with hundreds of millions of dollars in debt.

“You don’t need Neiman Marcus or Nordstrom to make this work,” he said, referring to two upscale brands. “You just need enough people coming every day so when people walk in there they aren’t spooked.”