Introduction

Established in Sterling Heights, Michigan, United States, the Lakeside Mall is a super-

regional and full-line shopping mall. The mall was established in 1976 by A. Alfred Taubman

and Homart. There were over 100 stores inside the mall that offer a diverse range of services.

The mall is owned and run by Out Of The Box Ventures. The mall had available space for 5

anchor tenants 3 of which are currently occupied by Macy’s, JCPenny, and the first H&M in

Michigan. The mall is spread across an area of 144,042 square meters and based on floor area, is

the largest mall in Michigan. The 100+ stores in the mall were spread across 2 floors. In 2019,

the previous owner General Growth Properties Inc. defaulted on the mortgage loan valued at

$144 million and the mall was sold to the current owner. The current owner, Out Of The Box

Ventures looks forward to redevelop the mall with the vision of including new utilizations of the

property other than retail. As stated by Ophir Sternger, founding partner and CEO of Lionheart

Capital, the state of Michigan, for the past couple decades, has been experiencing progressive

development. The current need, therefore, is to transform the retail spaces within Lakeside mall

into mixed and dynamic use destinations that would influence the revitalization of the encircling

communities and areas.

Current Issue

The Lakeside mall in the past was used exclusively for retail. However, the current need

of the owners and the city officials is revitalizing the mall into a mixed-utilization space that

would emphasis placemaking, walkability, and community. The redevelopment plan for

Lakeside mall envisioned by the current owner matches with that of the city officials. Whereas,

the city officials have long-term plans for the redevelopment that would include developing new
utilitary ideas of the area including the development of offices and residential apparments, the

current owner plans to revitalize the retail space with an improved range of engaging activations

and premium tenancy. There are several zoning changes that have been planned to be undertaken

at the initial stage of the redevelopment consisting of the inclusion of a skating rink to increase

the number of families visiting the mall and the inclusion of local food truck vendors to provide

couples and families visiting the mall with adventurous food choices.

The senior economic development adviser of Michigan suggested that to actualize a

redevelopment project of this callibre would required hundreds of millions of dollars for the

construction process to succeed effectively. However, before initiating the revitalization plan, it

is necessary to find the answers to several questions. To ensure that the project can achieve the

desired level of success, it is necessary for the plan to include all stakeholders and identify

suitable communication strategies that would allow the company to manage and communicate

with all concerned parties effectively. Therefore, the key stakeholders associated with the plan

must be identified. Additionally, it is also necessary for the company to assess the level of

influence and interest that the different stakeholders have in the project to ensure that the needs

of all stakeholders are attended to effectively. Finally, the identification of the key stakeholders

would also allow the company to select appropriate team members that would responsible for the

management of stakeholders.

Relevant Documents