OWENSBORO, Ky. (WEHT) — The Towne Square Mall has been anticipating the introduction of an extension that incorporates Ellis Park. However, the project will no longer be moving forward and the Owensboro mall’s interior will be shutting down.
The interior portion of Towne Square Mall is currently set to close on September 5. The mall houses 10 vendors, and officials at Gulf Stream Enterprises – the company that owns the facility — say a full service real estate team can help store owners with relocation needs.
“Those brick and mortar experiences, which are really important here, are going to continue to evolve as we look at redeveloping here, downtown and redeveloping on the Eastside,” said Ed Ray, the Chief Operating Officer at Gulf Stream Enterprises.
The City Commission’s decision to not amend the indoor smoking ordinance may have resulted in the withdrawal of Ellis Park’s initial plans to expand to Owensboro. Amending the ordinance would have allowed for a segregated and ventilated indoor smoking area for patrons.
Officials say the front view on Frederica Street is the first phase of the infrastructure’s renewal and openings for the development plans — A Planet Fitness and Halloween Havoc –will be coming soon.
Sheila Wilson, an Owensboro Resident of 44 years, says she visits the shopping area once a week to meet up with a friend and talk news and family.
“Usually for about an hour at the mall. My friend lives out of town, and so it’s a good place to meet up and exercise and catch up,” said Wilson.
Ray says while repurposing the entire campus is a priority – there are diverse ideas about the space’s potential future use.
“You know maybe the senior center goes here; I know that they’re having some issues with finding adequate space. We have a number of open shop areas that can be in the front of the mall. So, there’s a lot of miscellaneous ideas out there,” said Ray.
He says no specific timeline is set for the infrastructure, but the closing of the interior makes room for the start of redevelopment and the revitalization of the area.
“We have a clean slate, have the entire space open, and we can then work with larger users, and more specific users to go ahead and do something to help revitalize South Frederica,” said the Chief Operating Officer.
