Connecticut malls take steps toward opening doors again

Most area sites have no announced date, but Trumbull mall eyes May 20

Despite Gov. Ned Lamont setting May 20 as the date malls can reopen in Connecticut, several major operators have yet to commit to doing so on that date, despite malls getting crash courses in other locales on how to reduce the odds they become hot spots for coronavirus infections.

On Monday afternoon, Westfield committed to opening its malls in Trumbull and Meriden on May 20 with daily hours running from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., closing an hour earlier on Sunday.

On Saturday, the Lamont administration released its “Reopen Connecticut” rules for an initial phase of “non-essential” businesses that had been forced to close after his March 10 emergency declaration to stem the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak of coronavirus. Malls will be in the vanguard of the reopening, ahead of other entertainment venues such as movie theaters and the casinos in eastern Connecticut.

Lamont said Monday that the state will have heightened vigilance for any “flare ups” in his words as Connecticut commences the broader reopening.

“I want to make sure customers feel safe going back to the store,” Lamont said. “It’s not until people feel safe that the economy will come back.”

The operators of The SoNo Collection and Stamford Town Center said they are not yet ready to disclose opening dates for the malls, with no immediate word from the companies running the Connecticut Post and Danbury Fair malls.

“Our teams are diligently working on our plans to safely reopen to our communities on May 20. However, the well-being of our guests, tenants and employees is our priority and we will not open until we are ready,” said Lindsey Kahn, a spokesperson for Brookfield Properties, the developer of The SoNo Collection mall. “There will be many measures in place to help ensure safety including plentiful hand sanitizing stations, social distancing direction and reduced hours to allow for frequent, intense cleanings. We are working with our tenants to determine potential opening dates.”

Stamford Town Center’s general manager Dan Stolzenbach noted that Taubman in many locales is adhering to hours of 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., the window set by Westfield Trumbull and Westfield Meriden

Taubman Centers also runs the Westfarms mall outside Hartford, with the company in the process of being acquired by Simon Property Group, the largest mall operator in the country including the Clinton Crossing Premium Outlets outside New Haven and the Crystal Mall near New London.

Simon’s precautions include closing some mall entrances; ample signage to steer foot traffic and remind shoppers of safeguards; limiting some food courts to takeout only; and separating seating, also cordoning off some restroom stalls, sinks, and other fixed elements to help visitors maintain distances.

Brookfield Properties CEO Brian Kingston said Friday that his company appears to be through the worst of the cash crunch from tenants begging for delays or abatements in the rents they owe, with Brookfield collecting just 20 cents on every dollar in April rent it was owed. Brookfield also operates Brass Mill Center in Waterbury and the Shoppes at Buckland Hills in Manchester.

“Conversations range from those tenants who are saying, ‘I have an ability to pay, it’s a shortterm liquidity issue and I just need time’ ... to some tenants whose businesses are struggling and they are looking for more of an abatement,” Kingston said. “It’s really going to be literally 2,400 individual negotiations with all of these tenants . ... It’s going to take three to four months probably to work through all of those negotiations, but we are optimistic that the vast majority of those rents that were not paid in April and May will ultimately be collected. It may just take a longer period of time.”

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman