(WXYZ) — The owners of Lakeside Mall want to demolish the decades-old mall and build a massive mixed-use project, according to filings within the Sterling Heights City Council.
The news, which was first reported by Crain's Detroit Business, is the latest of plans for the mall over the past few years.
In 2019, Out of the Box Ventures, a subsidiary of Miami-based Lionheart Capital, purchased the mall in 2019 after the mall's previous owners defaulted on the $144 million mortgage.
According to the agenda statement from the Sterling Heights city attorney ahead of the Nov. 1 city council meeting, the $1 billion investment would create the Lakeside Town Center, which would include residential units, new retail space, a hotel, office space and more.
Plans call for keeping two of the anchor stores – Macy's and JC Penney – and those buildings would get a facelift.
In all, the organization said there would be more than 2,800 residential units of different styles, 120 hotel rooms, 60,000 square feet of office space, covered & heated pedestrian shopping with nearly 150,000 square feet of retail space, recreational amenities like a trail, and much more.
"The mixed-use town center concept will reposition the Lakeside area as a focal and destination point for future generations for not only Sterling Heights residents, but for the entire region," the filing reads. "The Lakeside development will once again become an economic engine and hub for the City providing much needed revenue streams to preserve the City’s financial viability for the next 50 years and beyond."
Moving forward, the council will vote on entering into a memorandum of understanding that will provide the framework for the project with a timeframe of the demolition and buildout.
A redevelopment schedule on the city's site also includes time for preparation in the first quarter of 2023, followed by public hearings held in Q2 and more public hearings in Q4. If everything goes to plan, demolition could begin after that.
The city attorney in the agenda statement suggested that the council does approve the memorandum of understanding.
