Country Club Mall under new ownership

Greg Larry, Cumberland Times-News, Md.
·2 min read

Apr. 9—CUMBERLAND — A new ownership group has acquired the Country Club Mall in LaVale.

News of the transaction was disclosed Thursday by the New York-based public relations firm UpSpring PR.

The new owners, who purchased the mall at auction, are the Namdar Realty Group and Mason Asset Management, both of Great Neck, New York. Namdar Realty will operate the mall while Mason Asset Management will oversee all leasing efforts.

"We are working closely with a number of national big-box retailers to fill the current anchor spaces, and we look forward to further bolstering the available offering at the mall through an aggressive leasing strategy," says Igal Nassim, Mason Asset Management.

According to Maryland Real Property online search records, the sale of the mall took place on March 11 with Country Club Nassim LLC, Great Neck, New York, listed as the owner.

The partners have shared in the management of malls and shopping centers across the U.S. Among Namdar Realty's holdings is the Logan Valley Mall in Altoona and the Uniontown Mall, both in Pennsylvania.

Opened in 1981, the Country Club Mall, 1262 Vocke Road, was owned by Gumberg Asset Management Corp. of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Payments on the mall's commercial note have fallen into arrears with none made since May 2020. According to the online auction house Ten-X, a balance of $21.9 million remained on an original note of $26.2 million.

The minimum starting bid for the mall was $1.3 million, however the Maryland Department of Taxation and Assessment did not list the final sale amount. The sale of the Country Club Mall did not include property occupied by Walmart.

"As the leasing team gets to work on plans (for the Country Club Mall), we'll be in touch to share news of lease signings, store openings, and other activities on-property," said Adelaide Godwin, senior communication director, UpSpring PR.

Statistics from the auction house Ten-X showed the mall is currently 52.3% rented.

The Country Club Mall had joined the list of struggling ventures as the brick-and-mortar retail industry faced challenges as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Sears and Bon-Ton were among the previous tenants who closed their doors. Another, JCPenney, which has been at the mall since it opened, closed in July 2020.

Greg Larry is a reporter at Cumberland Times-News. To reach him, call 304-639-4951, email glarry@times-news.com and follow him on Twitter.