Wauwatosa Purchases Former Boston Store Plot At Mayfair Mall

WAUWATOSA, WI — The Wauwatosa Community Development Authority recently purchased the former site of Boston Store at Mayfair Mall with plans to redevelop the site, the city announced Monday.

The city's community development authority successfully bid $3,950,000 for the approximately 15-acre plot as the city seeks to ensure the mall remains a regional destination. The city said it is taking a proactive approach through a private-public partnership to ensure redevelopment is the "highest and best use."

The move in Wauwatosa is somewhat similar to re-development efforts happening at the former site of the Boston Store at Southridge Mall in Greendale. Village officials authorized the purchase of the plot in May of 2021. By December, the village had announced plans to bring hundreds of apartments and new retail space to the former department store plot.

As for Wauwatosa's Boston Store site, city staff are still looking into "innovative uses" for the space and crafting a development agreement to be presented to the common council down the road, according to a news release from the city.

The site has been vacant since 2019, and two previous auctions did not attract a buyer, the city said. The building itself is about 216,000 square feet and is positioned on the south end of the mall.

“Maintaining Mayfair Mall as the premier mall in Wisconsin is critical to our local economy,” said Wauwatosa Mayor Dennis McBride in the news release. “We’re excited about the redevelopment of this property and finding the right mix of uses that drive visitors, provide jobs, and increase our tax base.”