Sears signed the lengthy lease for cheap in 1991. The retail titan was given discounted rent as a powerhouse department store chain that served as a foot traffic driver for the mall.

The mall argues the bankruptcy court overseeing the Sears restructuring erred in giving Transform control over Sears’ lease at the Mall of America for two reasons. First, the original contract ...

On Oct. 14, the Livingston Town Council passed a resolution that designates the mall as a condemnation area in need of redevelopment – and authorizes the use of eminent domain.

Of these, five have veto power over redevelopjument plans. Kroger purchased the Sears building with plans to build a large marketplace store. "At that time, the mall had bottomed out," Becker said.

OOTB indicated Lakeside Mall retained “considerable value” as a retail center. In 2022, Lakeside Circle Holdings purchased the Sears building, which had closed four years earlier.

Sears, once one of the country's most dominant retail giants throughout most of the 20th century, has greatly struggled to adapt to the rise of the Internet and e-commerce in the 21st century.