May 1 Target Day For Reopening Old World Mall

May 1 Target Day For Reopening Old World Mall

By Jim Norman

BUSINESS-LABOR REPORTER

A meeting of prospective small bus-

enants for a revived Old World
Village Mi" ^ the WestgateShoppmg
Center v eld Tuesday night.

Local architect Donald E. Van Curl-
er, who purchased the 20-acre shop-
ping center Friday for $2.5 million,
says he hopes to have a smaller ver-
sion of the defunct m'p-mall operat-
ing by May 1.

Ji%YMAR 51377

Small businesses interested In one
of the 40 to 50 booths to be available
can attend a meeting set by Van Curl-
er for 7 p.n- ^"sday at the Hidden
Valley club f State Road.

Van Curler and his partner. Ray
r^llain of St. flair, have formed
, Inc., to own'
un; aiiiJppuig i^ciiwi di ihe intersection
of Jackson Road and W. Stadium

Boulevard.

'<•
It will be managed by their proper- '

ty n business. Flying
Dutch cement, Inc.

Westgate of Ann Arbor will also
own a new True Value Hardware store
to be opened May 1 in the former Old
World Mall building. ^W"" 22,000
square feet of space.

Ano^ier 10,000-square-ioot section of
that building will remain open for
lease — possibly to the Washtenaw
County Deoartment of Social Services,
VanCu/U

The rest of the 70,000 square foot

Old World building, formerly an Ar-
lan's store and then a Rink's Bargain
City, will be available for small retail
booths of 200 to 400 square feet, he
says.

Rents will run about $1.50 per
square foot per month including utili-
ties or about the same rates charged
by former Old World promotoer Alan
Ginsburg of Lansing.

Ginsburg closed Old World last ;

after one year's operation.

The Westgate Shopping Center was
sold by a group of 22 investors,
predominantly local, represented by
Ann Arbor Trust Co., for about the
same price they paid for it in 1971.

Major tenants in the 155,000'
square-foot center are a Kroger store
S. Kresge outlet which have re-
extended their leases, and a
Cunningham Drug Store.

Kroger is planning to add 10 "°n
square feet to its 30,000-square fool

supermarket.

Another 6,600-square foot addition is
planned between Kresge's and the Old
World building, says Van Curler, and
negotiations are under way with "a
couple of parties" for construction of

free-standing restaurant near the
Old World building.

Free-standing buildings already
pa - ' ng center include a
S tation. Bill Knapp's
restuarant and a National Bank and
Trust Co. of Ann Arhoi branch; '

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