Kotarides Holdings acquires Chesapeake Square Mall for $12.9 million

Chesapeake Square Mall just got a new lease on life. Virginia Beach-based Kotarides Holdings purchased the 29-year-old mall for $12.9 million earlier this month and wants to revive its reputation as a destination regional mall.

The 613,809-square-foot enclosed mall is anchored by J.C. Penney, Burlington Coat Factory and Target stores and Cinemark Chesapeake Square. Target and Cinemark own their spaces.  With a current occupancy rate of 58 percent, the mall has about 100 stores and kiosks.

“This is a very exciting opportunity for Kotarides,” says Charles Einwick, director of finance for Kotarides Holdings.  With its strong set of anchor tenants, “We believe there’s a lot of potential,” he added, during an interview with Virginia Business.

Kotarides is considering ramping up events at the mall as a way to drive more traffic.  “The retail landscape is evolving, and you’ve got to be thoughtful. If you have a good location, things will work out. You just have to adapt to what’s going on today,” Einwick says.

The mall, built in 1989, went on the market last summer.  It was turned over to a special servicing company in 2015 and sold back to the lender following a foreclosure sale in April 2016.

Kotarides Developers, a real estate development firm that specializes in multi-family, single family, and mixed-use acquisition and development, is familiar with the Western Branch area — where the mall is located — because the company has two other projects there.

It developed the Clairmont at Jolliff Landing, a 304-unit luxury apartment community now in the leasing stage. The other project is the Townhomes at Jolliff Landing, a community of 180 townhomes that will be priced in the mid $200,000 range. The first phase of construction is complete, and site work has started on a second phase. Both projects are located off Portsmouth Boulevard west of I-664, on the other side of the interstate from the mall.

Proximity to I-664 makes the mall accessible to many areas of Hampton Road.  “We feel there’s a good future for this location,” says Einwick. Plus, he says Kotarides was happy with the mall’s price tag.  According to Einwick, the mall’s assessed value was about $49 million. 

Asked if Kotarides plans renovations, Einwick says the company is evaluating its options. “We want to make it a destination for Chesapeake and Hampton Roads residents and have it be a fun destination for families. Over the next six months we plan to really engage with the community and tenants and get a sense for what everyone thinks would be best for this property.”