Mall owners to sell company for $3.6B

STAMFORD — Taubman Centers, which coowns Stamford Town Center, announced Monday that it had agreed to be sold to retail real estate giant Simon Property Group for about $3.6 billion, but the for-sale Stamford mall will remain on the market.

The announcement comes about five months after Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based Taubman and co-owner UBS Realty Investors put the embattled downtown shopping center up for sale. The property could be redeveloped under a new owner, but the mall will remain open in the foreseeable future.

Stamford Town Center “is already for sale, and it is not anticipated that the announced transaction will affect that,” said Maria Mainville, Taubman’s director of strategic communications. “Further, Taubman, after the closing of the transaction, will remain an owner and the property manager of the shopping center.”

After the announcement, Taubman shares rocketed 53 percent Monday, closing at about $53. Simon shares saw a modest gain: They increased about 1.5 percent, to approximately $143.

Through the deal, Indianapolis-based Simon would acquire an 80 percent ownership interest in The Taubman Realty Group Limited Partnership, which owns 21 malls in the U.S., and three in Asia. Simon already owns or has an interest in 233 retail properties across North America, Europe and Asia. That list includes The Westchester mall in White Plains, N.Y., and two Connecticut sites: Clinton Crossing Premium Outlets in Clinton and Crystal Mall in Waterford.