Soon, You’ll Be Able to Live at the Granite Run Mall

via BET Investments

Kids don’t hang out at the mall anymore. Neither do adults. The rise of online shopping and other non-mall retail has driven many malls to close. One of those was Media’s Granite Run Mall, which ceased operations in 2015 after 39 years.

But as the Inquirer detailed yesterday, the mall is moving forward with its transformation. As shopping malls fall out of favor, city-like downtown retail destinations are in. And the owners of the former Granite Run Mall have now revealed renderings for the site that include a movie theater, restaurant, bowling alley and — yes — 400 apartments. People don’t hang out at the mall anymore, but they might soon live at it.

Granite Run was purchased by Simon Property Group in 1998, but by 2015 the mall was in such bad shape Simon returned it to the lender. BET Investments, a group led by Bruce Toll, bought the mall for about $24 million three years ago.

The mall has since been demolished, except for the former anchors: Boscov’s at one end and Sears at the other. Those stores remain open as construction continues.

The new complex, to be called the Promenade at Granite Run, will include 400 apartments averaging around $1,700 a month, 350,000 square feet of retail and a trail around the perimeter. BET Investments already owns around 4,000 apartments, mostly in the suburbs. The new Granite Run should be open by 2018.

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