Upper Valley Mall in Springfield to close its doors for good in June

The Board of Clark County Commissioners and the Clark County Land Reutilization Corporation will close the Upper Valley Mall to the public on June 16, according to a statement from the county.

The loss of anchor tenants like Sears over the last decade, along with changes in the retail economy, has caused the Clark County Land Reutilization Corp., otherwise known as the Land Bank, to explore other opportunities for the property, Land Bank Executive Director Ethan Harris said.

The Land Bank will continue to market the facility to developers for future use, Harris said.

“This area remains viable as an economic driver for the community and could be repurposed in any number of ways from light industrial to mixed-use development,” Harris said. “The property has great access and carrying capacities and I’m confident we will quickly find a new use for the property.”

Commissioner President Melanie Flax Wilt said the county does have interest from potential buyers for the property.

“It could be like a mixed-used building, like industrial, potentially a buyer could want to do something completely different. But we want to leave that up to them,” Flax Wilt said. “Our analysis tells us now that it would be a lot better contributor to the economy and provide a lot more jobs for people in our community in a different use.”

Flax Wilt said the mall has cost the county roughly $3.5 million since it was purchased by the Land Bank in 2018.

“At that time we thought we had a buyer and it fell through and here we are three years later,” Flax Wilt said. “Our hope is that as we close it, we won’t bleed any additional losses.”

All of the mall’s current 13 tenants have been notified that they will need to be out of the building by June, Flax Wilt said.

The mall’s closure will not affect the Clark County Combined Health District’s COVID-19 vaccination clinic at the former JCPenney building, the county said.

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