Metrocenter Mall has entered its last ten days of business, according to a letter posted outside the shopping center and shared widely on social media.
The letter, signed by general manager Kim Ramirez, thanked the community and the dozens of vendors who "have really become like a family," but said management would close the mall on June 30, citing a drop-off in shoppers since the spread of the new coronavirus.
Metrocenter closed earlier this spring over public health concerns, but reopened on May 9 with limited entry and round-the-clock cleaning, according to the mall's website. The shopping center also held a donation drive in early May to send masks, gloves and other supplies to impacted communities on tribal lands.
"Despite our best efforts to bring value back to the mall ... the drop in our occupancy levels due to the COVID-19 pandemic can no longer sustain the operation of this large property," the letter stated.
Phoenix City Councilwoman Thelda Williams said she received a call from Metrocenter management on Friday with news that the mall would soon close.
She represents the northwest district of Phoenix where the mall is located, and said the shopping center had been facing hard times for a few years. Many storefronts were empty, and management told Williams they were having trouble collecting rent.
Some Metrocenter vendors were scrambling to figure out what the closing meant for their businesses.
"We are really shocked," said Mizanur Rahman, owner of Zaman Jewelers. Rahman said he still had plenty of inventory to sell and didn't want to close.
Another vendor, Phoenix Sofa Factory, posted a note to customers on Facebook saying it was finalizing a lease in another location. The organizers of a popular Halloween fair held at Metrocenter also posted about the closing, saying volunteers were looking into other venues for the event.
Metrocenter opened in October 1973 near Peoria Avenue and Interstate 17, and over the years has been home to a video arcade, an ice skating rink and a movie theater. Williams remembers when Metrocenter was "the place to go" for entertainment in the Valley. Her children grew up ice skating at the mall, she said.
The mall also hosts a bustling bike workshop each fall called Recycle Your Bicycle that refurbishes old bicycles and donates them to kids in foster care.
Volunteer coordinator Diane Low said she didn't know if the nonprofit would be able to find a new location. Recycle Your Bicycle moved most of its bikes to a nearby church when Metrocenter closed temporarily this spring, but Low said the workshop still houses plenty of equipment and at least 100 unfinished bikes.
According to the posted letter, Metrocenter will stay open to vendors through July 15 to allow staff to remove their property.
Williams hopes the mall's valuable real estate will find another purpose.
"I think it's got a lot of potential, and I think we have some people who are interested in totally redesigning it," she said.
Reach the reporter at Helen.Wieffering@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter @helenwieffering.
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June 22, 2020 at 07:01AM
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Metrocenter Mall will close after 46 years of business due to fewer shoppers, COVID-19 - AZCentral
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