Earlier this year, on February 28th, WRS Inc. (a real estate investment firm based out of South Carolina), purchased Lakeforest Mall’s four anchor sites. The firm previously purchased the core, ponds, and forest conservation of the mall back in 2019. There is a public meeting on Thursday October 20th at 6pm, being held by WRS Inc. regarding the Sketch Plan and Rezoning application for the mall. The meeting will take place at Lakeforest Mall (701 Russell Ave, Gaithersburg, MD).
In April, Gaithersburg’s Office of Economic Development released the dollar amount the properties were acquired for, per Maryland Land Records:
- In 2019, the core/ponds/forest conservation was purchased for $22.5 million.
- On February 28th, 2022, the former Sears location was purchased for $20.5 million.
- On February 28th, 2022, the former J.C.Penney location was purchased for $6 million.
- On February 28th, 2022, the former Lord & Taylor location was purchased for $12 million.
- On February 28th, 2022, the former Macy’s location was purchased for $14 million.
A total of $75 million was paid to acquire Lakeforest Mall.
Redevelopment of the mall could not begin until all four owners of the anchor stores and the owner of the mall’s core came to an agreement, which stalled potential redevelopment of the mall for years. WRS finalized the purchase on Monday, February 28th. Additional information about future plans for Lakeforest is expected to be available following this meeting.