The mall real estate investment trust owns the Mall at Fairfield Commons in Beavercreek and Dayton Mall in Miami Twp.
WPG has emerged from bankruptcy “as a stronger and more stable company with its debt reduced by nearly $1 billion and its overall liquidity greatly improved,” the company said in a release.
“Operating as a private holding company, majority owned by SVPGlobal, WPG will be well positioned to capitalize on opportunities to improve its portfolio and to strengthen its relationships with guests, tenants, lenders, partners, and other constituents,” the company said.
Washington Prime owns more than 100 locations across the United States. In addition to the Mall at Fairfield Commons and Dayton Mall, the company owns seven other Ohio properties: Great Lakes Mall in Mentor; Indian Mound Mall in Heath, Lima Mall in Lima, New Towne Mall in New Philadelphia, Polaris Fashion Place in Columbus and Southern Park Mall in Youngstown
“It’s business as usual...,” a WPG spokesperson said in an email to this news outlet Monday. “We see this new beginning as a time to create even more energy, dynamism and innovation for our guests, retailers and community partners. We look forward to continuing to bring people together in ways only physical spaces can — to share experiences, interact with goods and services and most importantly spend time together.”
WPG filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June, saying it had a restructuring support agreement with creditors that own about 73% of its outstanding secured corporate debt and 67% of its unsecured notes — and importantly, the company also had secured $100 million in a debtor-in-possession loan to fund daily operations during the Chapter 11 process.
A victim not only of the pandemic but of an increasingly weakened position for retail brick-and-mortar nationwide, Washington Prime has seen mall anchors and regular-size tenants sliding into bankruptcy and shuttering their stores. Elder-Beerman and Sears in 2018 closed locations at both Dayton Mall and The Mall at Fairfield Commons.
Glimcher Realty Trust — which at one time owned and operated both malls — was bought out by Washington Prime Group in 2014. In September, WPG voluntarily delisted its stocks from the New York Stock Exchange.
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