Northridge Mall Raze Order Delayed

The City of Milwaukee’s push to demolish the long-vacant Northridge Mall complex remains stuck in the court system. It’s slated to head back to Milwaukee County Circuit Court, but could eventually end up with the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

In April 2019, city officials gathered outside the mall to announce a plan to issue a raze order on the property, a potential precursor to acquiring the property. The mall has been closed since 2003.

But the mall’s owner, the China-based U.S. Black Spruce Enterprise Group, challenged the condemnation decision in court.

Circuit Court Judge William Pocan ruled in the city’s favor in a 2020 trial, but Black Spruce appealed the ruling.

Now the appeals court has kicked the case back down to the circuit court. In a written decision, it said Pocan improperly ruled that the cost to repair the buildings should be based on what was needed  to open them to the public, instead of more limited repairs to maintain the buildings as vacant.

State law allows a raze order to be issued when repair costs exceed 50% of the building’s value. The Department of Neighborhood Services estimates repairs would cost $6 million and the attached buildings are only assessed for $81,000.

Black Spruce acquired the approximately 900,000-square-foot complex for $6 million in 2008 and announced a plan to develop an Asian marketplace, but city officials have argued those plans have never progressed in any substantial fashion. DNS officials say the roof is failing, scrappers have illegally stripped many of the mechanical systems and the masonry is in disrepair.

“The former Northridge Mall is an underused property with no clear plans for its future use. The City of Milwaukee and the local neighbors continue to have safety concerns. This Court of Appeals decision presents the next challenge for the future of Northridge,” said DNS in a statement. “We will continue working with the courts and the current owners to resolve the issues with the property in creating a positive future use for Northridge that the Granville community deserves.”

A maintenance worker was killed by a high-voltage transformer in an electrical box at the mall in July 2019. The electrical box was previously damaged by scrappers said the Milwaukee Police Department. Area Alderwoman Chantia Lewis, in 2019, said a legally-filmed, 2017 video inspired a wave of vandalism and trespassing.

Court of Appeals Judges Timothy Dugan and Maxine White ruled in favor of Black Spruce. Judge Joe Donald dissented.

Should the city acquire the mall, it could merge the land from the mall with land freed up from demolishing the attached former Boston Store building.

Bill Penzey, owner of Penzey’s Spices, bought the former Boston Store building in 2013 and attempted to acquire the rest of the mall, with the support of the city, for a corporate headquarters and warehouse for his company. He wasn’t able to reach a deal on acquiring the mall and donated the Boston Store property to the city in 2018. The city has also acquired the ring road that surrounds the mall.

The mall opened in 1972. Northridge failed for a number of reasons, including a lack of direct freeway access, chain bankruptcies, the cyclical nature of malls and a negative perception created following Jesse Anderson‘s murder of his wife in a mall parking lot and subsequent false claim that the couple was attacked by two Black males. The mall’s competitors, including Mayfair, Brookfield Square, Southridge and Bayshore, have all received substantial public subsidies to help finance updates in the years since Northridge closed.

Menards and Pick ‘n Save were brought in as new retail anchors after the mall closed, but Pick ‘n Save closed in 2015. Those buildings are not included in the Black Spruce property, nor are the outlet buildings.

Black Spruce is represented by the firm of von Briesen & Roper, s.c.

Northridge Mall – April 2019