Dick's Sporting Goods to replace Sears as lead tenant at Capital City Mall

By

Obi Anyanwu

Published
Feb 6, 2017

Dick’s Sporting Goods is set to replace Sears as lead tenant of Capital City Mall in Camp Hill, PA. The sporting goods retailer will join the mall in the fourth quarter of 2017.

 
Real estate investment trust Preit executed the lease for the mall after having reached an agreement with Sears earlier this year to recapture three stores at Capital City, Woodland and Magnolia Malls. The company has reduced the number of Sears and Kmart stores in its portfolio from 27 to 10 since 2012.
 
Dick’s Sporting Goods and retailers Field & Stream and HomeGoods, will also open at Viewmont Mall in Scranton, PA in place of a former Sears location. In addition, Whole Foods will replace a former Kmart at Exton Square in Chester County, PA.

"We are excited to have executed leases for all three Sears stores we recaptured. Capital City Mall's position as the dominant retail center in the region will be strengthened with the addition of DICK's Sporting Goods, complementing its many first-to-market and exclusive retailers and creating a retail mix that aligns with the interests of today's consumer," said Joseph F. Coradino, CEO of PREIT. "This project is another step in our plan to continue upgrading our portfolio of properties following our aggressive disposition and repositioning program which has created a quality platform that is more compelling to retailers and shoppers."
 
Sears sold its Craftsman business to Stanley Black & Decker to start 2017. A $500 million secured loan facility with ESL Investments preceded the $900 million deal, which together should provide liquidity to the company. A Fitch Ratings note projected that Sears will lose $1.8 billion in the fiscal year and that the company may file for bankruptcy. A spokesperson for Sears said to Fortune in regards to the note, "We believe that we have sufficient resources to support our operations and meet all of our financial obligations."
 
Dick’s Sporting Goods continues to perform well, having recently won auctions to acquire Sports Authority and Golfsmith for $15 million and $70 million, respectively.