Eastland mall owners found in contempt of court order, judge allows city to make repairs

Monroe Trombly, The Columbus Dispatch
·2 min read
1

A Franklin County judge has found owners of Eastland Mall in contempt of a June order that required them to fix outstanding code violations.

The contempt order allows the city to enter the property and make repairs at Eastland Mall Holdings' expense. Outstanding code violations include potholes; litter and waste; high weeds and grass; graffiti; and broken lighting and concrete.

Pete Shipley, a spokesperson for Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein, said the city has no plans at this time to abate the nuisances since Eastland Mall Holdings is making progress to bring the property into compliance.

A Franklin County judge has found the owner of Eastland Mall in contempt of a June order that required it to fix outstanding code violations.
A Franklin County judge has found the owner of Eastland Mall in contempt of a June order that required it to fix outstanding code violations.

"But that could be revisited if progress stops," he said.

Environmental Court Judge Stephanie Mingo on Sept. 22 also imposed a fine of $3,500, in addition to fines of $250 for each day the property remains in noncompliance.

The contempt order comes after Mingo in June declared Eastland Mall a public nuisance and gave Eastland Mall Holdings until July 13 to make improvements and until Aug. 13 to fix the parking lot.

The June court order from Judge Stephanie Mingo had required Eastland Mall Holdings to fix outstanding code violations, including potholes; litter and waste; high weeds and grass; graffiti; and broken lighting and concrete.
The June court order from Judge Stephanie Mingo had required Eastland Mall Holdings to fix outstanding code violations, including potholes; litter and waste; high weeds and grass; graffiti; and broken lighting and concrete.

But the company has failed to comply with a number of court-ordered fixes, according to Klein's office.

“Small business owners, patrons and East Side residents deserve better than what they’re getting at Eastland as property owners failed to meet reasonable benchmarks to comply with the Court’s order to improve safety and security,” Klein said in a statement. “The City will continue to pursue every legal option to hold owners accountable and ensure this property is brought into compliance so that it can once again drive economic opportunity on the East Side of Columbus.”

Klein said compliance will be re-evaluated and next steps for the property will be determined during a status conference on Jan. 10. His office previously filed a number of health and safety violations against Eastland Mall Holdings.

Adam Beane, a Columbus lawyer who represents the company, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Originally built in 1968, Eastland Mall started to decline after Columbus City Center Mall and Easton Town Center opened.
Originally built in 1968, Eastland Mall started to decline after Columbus City Center Mall and Easton Town Center opened.

Originally built in 1968 by the Jacobs Group — the development firm that also built Westland and Northland malls — Eastland Mall was originally anchored by JCPenney, Sears and Lazarus but started to decline after Columbus City Center Mall and Easton Town Center opened.

The JCPenney store closed in 2015, followed by Sears and Lazarus in 2017. While some stores remain, the mall is largely empty.

While the city has no plans to develop Eastland, it is seeking to develop a 78-acre park immediately west of the mall, which was bought by Eastland Mall Holdings in 2015 for $9.7 million. (Separate companies own the former Macy's and Sears stores and the parking lots adjacent to those stores.)

Monroe Trombly covers breaking and trending news.

mtrombly@dispatch.com

@monroetrombly

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Judge finds Eastland Mall owner in contempt of court order