Louis Joliet Mall sale pending; final price not revealed

A tentative deal has been made to sell the Louis Joliet Mall, according to the website on which an online auction was held this week.

The buyer and price for the Joliet mall was not listed.

“Property is under contract sold subject to seller approval,” states a posting on crexi.com, a crexi.com website run by Commercial Real Estate Exchange Inc.

The online auction as of 5 p.m. Tuesday had generated five bids with the top one being at $15 million. Bidding started Monday at $5 million and continued until noon Wednesday.

Representatives from Commercial Real Estate Exchange and JLL, the real estate company that manages the Joliet mall, have not returned requests for comment.

The mall has been held since 2021 in a UBS-Barclays Commercial Mortgage Trust after foreclosure proceedings, according to a Fitch Ratings report in October.

Mall management has ignored repeated requests to clarify ownership status.

The sale involves the core of the mall and not the four anchor properties, which are under separate ownership.

Two anchor properties – former Sears and Carson Pirie Scott stores – are vacant. The Sears store and adjoining parking lot space was acquired in December by the Ghaben Auto Group, which has ignored requests for comment on its plans for the property.

A city official, however, said the Ghaben Auto Group also has a real estate development arm and was considering residential development as well as an auto dealership at the site.

The mall was built in 1978 and remains the center of the major retail and restaurant district in Joliet.

A Cinemark movie theater at the mall is the only movie theater in the city. The other two anchors – a JC Penney store and a Macy’s store – remain in business.