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Lacking the Sears branding it was once known for, the segment of Lakeside Mall owned by Lakeside Circle Holdings sits empty. Lakeside Circle Holdings reached an agreement with the mall’s owners to end a lawsuit that alleged plans to demolish the mall deterred potential tenants from renting the former Sears space.
Photo by Dean Vaglia
STERLING HEIGHTS — Plans to demolish Lakeside Mall remain set to continue as a lawsuit from a property owner was dismissed in mid-February.
Lakeside Circle Holdings, owner of the former Sears at Lakeside Mall, reached an agreement with mall owners Out of the Box Ventures and the city of Sterling Heights on Feb. 12 to dismiss its lawsuit alleging plans to demolish the mall deterred tenants from doing business in the ex-Sears building.
Per the dismissal order issued by Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Richard Caretti, Lakeside Circle and Out of the Box Ventures are to agree on a final site plan and form an agreement “defining their respective rights, which is expected to include an agreed upon construction schedule … an agreement related to demolition, access, utility, drainage, and parking assurances and easements, and common area obligations, all with a desire to create an attractive mixed-use community … or unless a court of competent jurisdiction otherwise directs or allows.”
In light of the agreement, representatives for Out of the Box Ventures have been positive about the future of the Lakeside Town Center project. Lakeside Town Center aims to be a mixed-use development featuring 2,359 multifamily residential units, over 700,000 square feet of retail space, 70,000 square feet of offices, a 20,000-square-foot community center and a hotel with 80-100 rooms.
“We believe our client is able to move forward with the project just as it was before the lawsuit was filed,” Bernard Fuhs, director of law firm Butzel Attorneys and Counselors and counsel for Out of the Box Ventures, said via email. “To the extent there are any future issues or disputes that touch upon Lakeside Circle’s specific property rights, the parties can either work it out themselves or our client still retains the right to go to Court to address an issue. Importantly, our client is looking forward to continuing the work on this transformative redevelopment project and continuing to work with the city staff, community leaders, state officials and others to make it all happen.”
The optimism toward continuing the project expressed by Fuhs is shared by the city of Sterling Heights.
“The City is pleased that the parties were able to reach a swift resolution of this matter,” a spokesperson for Sterling Heights said via email. “The dismissal of the lawsuit allows everyone to work together towards the common goal of developing Lakeside City Center into what promises to be a transformative mixed-use development, as envisioned by the approved Master Development Plan Agreement.”
Lakeside Circle Holdings filed its lawsuit on Jan. 7. Representatives for the company were unable to be reached by press time.
