Saturday, September 8th, 2018
St. Marys shopping center gets new owner
By Ed Gebert
ST. MARYS - A local group has purchased St. Marys Square, which had housed J.C. Penney and Kmart stores, and announced that an area manufacturer will fill the former Kmart site.
Deb Borns, an agent of the new owners, St. Marys Square Business Complex LLC, said she is excited to see growth in the local market.
"As we work to improve the business complex, we hope to see many different businesses joining us, becoming more engaged in utilizing local space and creating job opportunities for the surrounding communities," said Borns, who is also an owner of Lakeshore Realty.
Borns did not provide details about the sale, which was announced on Friday.
Borns said she looks forward to bringing new business into the available retail spaces in the 29.4-acre property, which has more than 240,000 square feet of space. One new tenant has already been announced, as Borns confirmed that Celina Tent Inc. will lease the space formerly filled by Kmart. Further details on that expansion were not available at press time as paperwork was still being finalized.
"This is a great day for the city of St. Marys," mayor Patrick McGowan said."We are pleased St. Marys Square Business Complex LLC has decided to purchase the center and that Celina Tent decided to invest in St. Marys, and we look forward to a long relationship with a great company."
A city news release said officials assume the addition of Celina Tent will bring new jobs, although no information was available from the company.
"Any time you can add jobs to the city that is fantastic," said Michael Burkholder, manager of industrial and community development. "If you look at their history, Celina Tent is a first-rate company that is on the cutting edge of its industry. Having them in our community is great."
The plaza was built in the mid-1990s and had been owned by Midland Atlantic Properties of Indianapolis and Cincinnati, Borns said.
She said that having local ownership would make it easier to repair some long-neglected items and to update the center.
"Having the plaza under local control is a benefit not only to the city but the tenants as well," Burkholder said. "A local face means they will take pride in the facility, and we are thrilled with the commitment to investing in our city."
"There are a lot of positive things going on around the city of St. Marys," McGowan said. "If you look around, you can see a lot of dirt being moved and lot of expansion taking place. This is a testament to how these companies view our city, and that is great news."
