MANSFIELD — Ken Gold freely admits the difficulties of marketing and redeveloping facilities like the Kingsgate Shopping Center.
The advent of mega shopping malls and now online buying makes it tough for once-popular centers to succeed, even along busy streets like Park Avenue West, according to the chief growth officer for Skilken Gold.
A glance across the four-lane street at the largely vacant West Park Shopping Center, a former Skilken Gold property, is more proof the heyday of such sites is in the proverbial rearview mirror of the many cars that travel the road once dubbed the “Miracle Mile.”
“We have been in Mansfield for 70 years,” said Gold, in his 42nd year with the company that celebrates its 100th birthday in 2022.
“We built the West Park Shopping Center in 1954. We bought what was once known as the Mansfield Square Mall (now Kingsgate) from the DeBartolo family, remodeled it and turned into a great place to shop.”
The shopping center was once home to J.C. Penny, Montgomery Ward and a large food court in a bustling area for shoppers and the Kingsgate Cinema movie theater.
However, the Richland Mall arrived in Ontario in 1969 with 700,000-plus square feet and national anchor stores like Sears, Macy’s and Lazarus.
To Gold, whose company also once owned the Appleseed Shopping Center along Lexington Avenue, it marked the beginning of a difficult transition as Ontario became a retail shopping hub.
“I just wish people had been satisfied with what Mansfield had to offer,” he said. “Ontario took off and it spread the customer base a little too thin to make everyone successful.”
Online shopping took off three decades ago when retail giant Amazon created one of the first eCommerce sites. Like the mall, the ease of shopping from home took another large bite out of the limited local retail apple.
But for Gold, the next redevelopment deal is just one phone call, one email, one new contact away.
He knows the clock is ticking on 1300 Park Ave. West, the former Kingsgate Cinema, a building that has sat empty for more than two decades.
It’s a timer Skilken Gold actually started on itself when company officials came to a Richland County Land Bank meeting on April 6 to seek the organization’s help in landing state money to demolish the structure.
The Land Bank declined without an accompanying offer from Skilken Gold to donate the property. But the City of Mansfield did take the company up on its offer to inspect the property.
Mansfield building and codes officials inspected the deteriorating structure in late April and ordered it torn down, giving the company 30 days to do it.
The company has appealed that order to the city planning commission, which will review it Tuesday at 3 p.m.
Gold said there is no way for the work to be done in 30 days. Time is needed to solicit and evaluate bids from contractors, coordinate with utility providers and notify other nearby tenants, he said.
In its appeal, Skilken Gold asked for a demolition deadline of Dec. 4, while also keeping the option of improving the property back up to code by the same date.
Kingsgate Cinema demolition appeal
Richland County Commissioner Tony Vero, a member of the Land Bank, said May 9 that the organization was surprised Skilken Gold “literally created a public record” inviting Mansfield Codes and Permits to inspect the property.
“I am not sure who made the call on that, but we were stunned that they publicly shared how bad a condition their building is in,” he said. “Not only did they do that, but they also thought the Land Bank was willing to demolish the property and allow their group to retain ownership.
“It was shocking in many facets.”
Gold said his company simply did what other property developers do — seek public-private partnerships on significant projects.
He cited the City of Mansfield putting grant money into downtown residential development and the Land Bank working to obtain state funds to demolish and remediate former Westinghouse sites.
“In the 70 years we have been in Mansfield, the only money we have used has been our own,” he said.
The problem, according to Vero, is Skilken Gold wants to keep the property after it’s demolished and cleaned up. The former owners of the Westinghouse sites donated them to the Land Bank.
“I cannot imagine a scenario where the Richland County Land Bank would involve ourselves in a demolition of that property while allowing Skilken Gold to retain ownership. If they wish to do so, they should consider demolishing the property utilizing their own funds,” Vero said.
Gold, who is also an adjunct professor for graduate courses in real estate finance and development at The Ohio State University and who served as the director of the Center for Real Estate Education and Research, said the search for a tenant for the former theater space and other sites at Kingsgate continue.
“Everybody has to be looking. We have a team that looks at all of our shopping centers around the country. We are always thinking and planning about the best ways to keep these shopping centers relevant in the world that exists today,” he said.
“Our plan is to find a tenant quickly, renovate the former cinema and put them in it. If we can’t, we will demolish the building and have the land ready for a new tenant. We want to do what is the best the cities and communities in which we operate,” Gold said.
Potential tenants could come from a variety of sources, including retail, medical and residential, Gold said.
“We have a leasing team and a marketing team going to a (national convention) next week and have 26 meetings set up already to talk about all of our shopping centers and find those who are interested in Mansfield,” he said.
“We’re never about tearing things down. We want to renovate and make good with existing structures. It’s always our goal to renovate what is already there. If we have to tear down and build new, it’s more expensive.
“We will do everything we can to make this happen,” Gold said.
