As Mall Demolition Looms, Tenants Search For Answers

Even as plans to redevelop Laurel Mall , tenants inside the mall said they are out of the loop in getting information from managers and developers, and they have yet to be officially told that they will have to vacate.

This fall, Greenberg Gibbons Commercial, the site's developer, announced that demolition of the mall's parking lot would be under way in weeks. But mall tenants said they were never told about the demolition by mall managers.

Grace Ampunsah has owned a bridal and tuxedo shop in the mall for a year. She said she can never get answers from managers at the mall on when redevelopment is set to begin or if she will have to leave once it starts.

“When I go to ask questions about the demolition, they tell me what I want to hear,” she said.

Still, she said her contract states that tenants must be given at least 90 days to vacate. She said she is ready to move when demolition of the mall begins.

 “They want to renew my lease,” she said. “…Anything can happen.”

But other mall tenants are less optimistic about a potential move. Since it was announced in the fall that demolition was set to begin by the close of the year, tenants said slow business has gotten slower.

“Ever since they said they were going to tear down the parking lots, business has been bad… When they start the demolition, no customer is going to want to come in,” said one tenant who identified himself as Suydan The Man, owner of a photo business. “I have no idea what’s going on.”

Their comments come as Mayor Craig Moe announced last week that he has asked the site’s developer to delay demolition of the mall’s parking lot until after the holiday season.  That’s when city officials said the developer would submit  detailed demolition plans for the mall.

The plan would mean the demolition of the mall and its restructuring as the Laurel Town Centre, similar to Bowie Town Center, with a Main Street-style entrance, a movie theater and mixed-use buildings that would include residential units.  Officials from Greenberg Gibbons Commercial said most tenants would not be invited back to the new development.

Bridget Heikka is a manager at a health store inside the mall. She said the owner was scouting other locations but tenants had no time table.

“They don’t tell you much,” she said.