Mall Proposed For Conversion To Mixed-Use 'Enfield Marketplace'

ENFIELD, CT — For a 40-year stretch beginning in the early 1970s, shopping malls like the Enfield Square were the place to hang out, get a pizza slice and a soda for 99 cents, and most importantly, purchase everything from clothing to sporting goods to home furnishings.

The advent of the internet changed the retail industry forever, prompting large-scale closures of major department stores and numerous other commercial outlets. Enfield was no exception, with the Square losing anchor tenants such as Sears, JCPenney and Macy's over the past decade. It was heavily referenced in a Wall Street Journal article last fall concerning "zombie malls."

With the 800,000 square-foot facility rapidly deteriorating, and vacancy rates reaching an all-time high of 85 percent, town officials have been searching for ways to revive the property. A solution may have been found, with a partnership developing with a Nebraska-based called Woodsonia Real Estate Inc.

At a special meeting of the Enfield Town Council Monday afternoon, firm owner Drew Snyder and partner Mitch Hohlen presented a comprehensive plan to completely redevelop the Square property into Enfield Marketplace. Snyder said Woodsonia has signed a contract to purchase the parcel from its current owner, Namdar Realty Group.

Plans call for total demolition of the entire structure save for Target, with the remaining 570,000 square feet to be a mixed use of retail, dining, two hotels and about 450 units of luxury multi-family housing.

Total cost of the project is estimated around $250 million. Snyder said hopes are to begin construction later this year or in early 2025.

Concessions being asked of the town are an extension of the Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) district through 2045; a tax freeze from 2025 to 2035, with property valuation fixed at $7,262,250; and a 10-year credit enhancement agreement beginning in 2036, with valuation set at $12,849,208.

Councilors unanimously approved a resolution authorizing the town to submit a Community Investment Fund (CIF) 2030 application to the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development. If granted, the project would receive $20 million in CIF funding and another $6 million in Brownfield remediation and development.

Snyder said the plan is realistically contingent upon the COIF funding.

"If we don't get the $20 million in state funding, we probably are not doing this project," he said.