Owner of South Hills Village looking at changes
Construction is slated to begin as early as this fall on a multimillion-dollar renovation at South Hills Village that would include the transformation of the vacant Sears store into multiple spaces for retailers and restaurants, and the eventual disappearance of the mall’s cavernous food court.
Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group, the mall’s owner since 1997, received preliminary approval for the project Wednesday night from the Bethel Park planning commission. Simon previously got the conditional nod from officials in Upper St. Clair, where part of the mall also is situated.
When the Sears store closed in the summer, it presented an opportunity for Simon to rethink the space, spokesman Les Morris said.
The plan is to reconfigure the area with multiple retailers and restaurants, each with their own exterior storefronts and entrances in addition to their interior ones.
Simon also plans to redevelop the old Sears Auto Center into a state-of-the-art health club operated by the luxury brand Life Time Athletic, which will include an outdoor and two indoor pools.
During the second phase of the project in 2021, Simon plans to “consolidate” the food court, keeping a smaller number of the bestperforming restaurants, according to Scott Richardson, vice president of development for Simon.
“Having 12 [individual restaurants] is not the best use of our space,” he said. “The food court is not going away, it’s just a matter of the ones doing well will be in different spots.”
Anchor stores at the 1.1 millionsquare-foot mall — which opened in 1965 — currently include Macy’s, Target and Dick’s Sporting Goods.
The renovation project still must be approved by Bethel Park Council and Upper St. Clair’s Board of Commissioners.
Simon Property Group also owns Ross Park Mall and is planning a revamp of a vacant Sears department store there that could include a movie theater, fitness center, “small shop” space, restaurants and retail space, according to a redevelopment proposal submitted to Ross Township.