Providence’s Downtown Mall Faces Uncertain Future

The Providence Place mall is a child of the 1990s, part of an effort to revitalize the downtown of Rhode Island’s capital. And for a while, it worked.

But now, the the three-level shopping destination is struggling, The Boston Globe reports, losing such high-profile tenants as Nordstrom, Ann Taylor and Loft, Talbots, Michael Kors, Godiva, Vera Bradley, Crate & Barrel, and most recently, Tiffany & Co., Banana Republic and Swarovski Crystal. The newspaper noted that at least part of the central city mall’s problems stemmed from many of its tenants relocating to the Garden City Center, a suburban open-air shopping center less than 10 miles away.

“It’s a portrait of a mall in limbo,” the Globe reports. “After the owners defaulted on $259 million in debt, the mall is in receivership and headed for sale. Nearly three decades after it opened as a bet on downtown, luxury brands are retreating and vacancies are mounting. The question is not which store will close next, but whether Providence’s signature shopping center that once drew New Englanders to the city still makes economic sense, or instead must reinvent itself to survive.”

Providence officials say the idea for the mall in their town was inspired by the 1980s-era Copley Place complex in Boston’s Back Bay. These days, the Globe notes, that destination “remains stable,” thanks to its luxury offerings and ongoing tourist traffic. (Copley Place has been in the news recently because Neiman Marcus — whose parent company Saks Global is restructuring under Chapter 11 bankruptcy — said it will close its store there. However, mall owner Simon said it has already lined up several high-profile retail and restaurant tenants to fill that space.)

So, what’s the next best-use scenario for Providence Place? One possible path was suggested to the paper by Joe Paolino – a one-time mayor of Providence who helped lure Nordstrom to the mall – who’s now a real estate developer. He’d like to see a “game-changer” like IKEA or Costco move into the complex.