Real estate management company PREIT today announced that a lease has been executed that will bring DICK’S Sporting Goods and Field & Stream to Viewmont Mall in Scranton, Penn. The dual store format concept will replace the existing Sears at the property in 90,000 square feet of space. Sears will close this July, with DICK’s Sporting Goods and Field & Stream scheduled to open for business for Holiday 2017.
During the past several years, Viewmont Mall has been a main focus in PREIT’s strategy to upgrade the quality of its tenant mix within its portfolio. Viewmont’s remerchandising, which include the recent addition of national tenants Ulta, Buffalo Wild Wings, Forever 21 and Yankee Candle, set the stage for a second phase of redevelopment to join DICK’s Sporting Goods and Field & Stream in the near future.
The addition of DICK’S Sporting Goods and Field & Stream as a replacement for Sears also underscores PREIT’s ability to proactively replace vacant anchors. As the Company recasts its anchor mix, it continues to add value to its repositioned portfolio, expanding its dialog with key tenants and adding dynamic retail concepts to its roster.
“We are pleased to continue the trend of improving our portfolio quality and mitigating our anchor risk,” said PREIT CEO Joseph F. Coradino. “As we strengthen the core of our portfolio, as we’ve done at Viewmont, we can see the path to achieving sales of $500 per square foot is well within our reach.”
Viewmont Mall features over 90 specialty shops and stores. As of December 31, 2015, the center’s sales per square foot were $445 and its total occupancy rate was over 99%, classifying it in the top segment of PREIT’s core growth malls.
