Northtown Mall in Blaine sold for $31 million

Northtown Mall in Blaine sold for $31 million to Florida-based 4th Dimension Properties in a deal that closed late last week.

Felix Reznick, principal with 4th Dimension, said the location is what drew his company to the shopping center.

"You have a pretty good mix of shoppers and demand," Reznick said.

Reznick added the mall has approximately 645,000 square feet of leasable space and is currently 87% occupied.

Northtown's largest tenant is Becker Furniture, which has two locations there, a store and an outlet. Combined, Becker Furniture leases about 183,000 square feet of space, about 28% of the overall mall.

Best Buy closed its Northtown location in March but has re-opened it as an outlet store. Other large tenants include Hobby Lobby and Burlington Coat Factory.

4th Dimension has ownership stakes in more than 25 regional malls across the U.S. Reznick said it's important to change the mix of uses inside shopping malls. He said 4th Dimension has, for example, incorporated schools inside some of its malls.

"There is a long future for malls," Reznick said. "I think the definition of what a mall is is changing."

4th Dimension also owns a "non-controlling interest" in the Burnsville Center mall, per Reznick.

The city of Blaine has developed the Northtown District Vision Plan, a "long-range framework for redevelopment" for the area. Northtown Mall is the center of the district. The Blaine City Council adopted the plan in July 2022, but the long-term plans are expected to take 25 to 30 years to reach fruition.

Elements of the plan call for adding a mix of housing options, incorporating parks and open space and re-imagining existing retail.

"We're definitely looking forward to working with the new owner," said Sheila Sellman, city planner for Blaine, adding 4th Dimension has seen the plan.

A marketing brochure for Northtown noted Home Depot and Cub Foods "shadow anchor" the shopping center, as they are close to but not part of the mall.

The brochure lists five out-lot sites for sale at the perimeter of the mall's parking lots. Those parcels of land can attract concepts like drive-thru coffee shops, restaurants and banks.

Ohio-based Washington Prime Group previously owned Northtown but filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2021 because of shutdowns in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Washington Prime also owned the Maplewood Mall, which Nashville-based Brookwood Capital Advisors acquired for $27.5 million in 2022.