Milwaukee County Judge grants deadline extension for Southridge Mall as foreclosure looms

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By Ethan Duran

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A Milwaukee County judge on Monday extended the deadline to sell Southridge Mall in Greendale, Wis. at the request of trustee Wells Fargo Bank and owner Southridge Limited Partnership, according to court documents.

The mall has faced foreclosure since 2021 and must be marketed to possible buyers or auctioned through the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office.

Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge William Sosnay granted an extension until Dec. 16, 2024, according to court records. If the mall isn’t sold by the deadline, Wells Fargo will either take title to the property through a deed-in-lie agreement or contact the Sheriff’s Office to start a sheriff’s sale following state law.

Macy’s, the former Boston Store, Sears and J.C. Penney’s are in the same parcel but are owned by separate entities, according to the village.

Part of Greendale’s comprehensive plan includes promoting redevelopment for the Southridge Mall and 76th Street corridor to make it into a “regional destination and an attractive place to locate businesses.” Not many residents gave detailed input for the mall but those that did “called for revitalization,” according to the comprehensive plan.

The Daily Reporter reached out to attorneys for Wells Fargo, Southridge Limited Partnership and the Village of Greendale for comment. The Daily Reporter reached out to Spinoso Real Estate Group, which lists Southridge Mall in its portfolio.

Sosnay also presides over the City of Milwaukee case to raze Northridge Mall. Chinese ownership group U.S. Black Spruce Enterprises has appealed a city order to demolish the property since 2019, and Milwaukee-based Phoenix Investors LLC offered to buy the former mall.

Veteran industry retail industry consultant Nick Egalanian told USA Today Milwaukee may be left with one regional shopping mall as Southridge faces foreclosure, Brookfield Square’s operator filed for bankruptcy and Bayshore shed more than a third of its retail space in Glendale.

Because these properties are near freeway interchanges, they are likely candidates for redevelopment, Egalanian added.

The wave of closing malls isn’t contained solely to the Milwaukee area: several American malls sought foreclosure or were up for sale after foreclosing, including in New York, Memphis, Tenn. and San Francisco, Calif.