🔒Plans to remake portions of Waterbury’s Brass Mill Center mall stalled by easement restrictions, weak tenant demand

A little more than two years after buying the former Macy’s building at Waterbury’s Brass Mill Center mall, West Hartford entrepreneurs Sami and Dr. Nazeeh Abunasra are still struggling to bring their redevelopment plans to life. The brothers — owners of Ashley Homestores in Newington and Manchester — acquired the 161,744-square-foot vacant anchor space on the mall’s eastern edge for $3.3 million in July 2023. They don’t own the rest of Brass Mill Center, which is controlled by a different investment group, Summit Properties. When the deal closed, the Abunasras had ambitious plans. They quickly opened an Ashley Outlet in about 30,000 square feet of the building, while marketing the remaining space to prospective tenants. They also envisioned adding about 10,000 square feet of new retail and restaurant space across three freestanding buildings in the surrounding parking lot, aiming to attract national and regional brands. The goal, Abunasra said, was to transform the site’s 11.45 acres into a more vibrant plaza with improved traffic flow and landscaping — something resembling the open-air Brass Mill Commons retail center just west of the struggling mall. But two years later, the concept remains largely on paper. Abunasra said he hasn’t been able to find tenants for the remaining space, or move forward with new construction because of long-standing easement agreements tied to the property, which require consent from the mall’s separate owner before any new structures can be built. “In the beginning, when we spoke to them before our purchase, they were very welcoming to having the property developed,” Abunasra said of the investment group that owns the majority of the mall. “But after we closed, it turned out to be silence.” More recently, he said, a representative of Summit Properties told him the company would not support his improvement plans.

Changing hands

The mall’s ownership has changed several times in recent years. In 2022, Chicago-based Brookfield Properties sold the 907,612-square-foot Brass Mill Center at 475 and 525 Union St. — just off Interstate 84 near downtown Waterbury — for $18.9 million. At the same time, Brookfield sold the adjacent Brass Mill Commons, a 196,496-square-foot open-air shopping plaza at 235 Union St., for $26 million. Although smaller, the open-air plaza is far more vibrant, with almost no vacancies. Both properties were purchased by a partnership between New York investor Mehran Kohansieh and London-based Summit Properties, a multibillion-dollar real estate investment firm with roots in Israel. Summit later bought out Kohansieh’s stake and now owns both properties outright. Summit officials say they were drawn to the Waterbury properties by their central location, relatively low purchase price and redevelopment potential — particularly given growing national interest in mixed-use projects combining residential, retail and entertainment uses. “We believe these are properties that present a very good future and good opportunities for us and for shoppers,” said Denis Nejaz, Summit’s chief operating officer. Nejaz said the open-air Brass Mill Commons plaza is now largely full, and Summit is investing in new landscaping, building repairs, and upgrades to sidewalks and parking areas. He did not disclose an exact figure for the work, but said the investment “could very well be in the millions.” Next, the company plans to focus on improvements inside the enclosed mall, said Nejaz, who declined to discuss Summit’s interactions with Abunasra. He also didn’t disclose the mall’s occupancy rate.

On a recent Monday afternoon visit, at least half of the storefronts at the Brass Mill Center appeared shuttered — either vacant behind glass doors or closed off with metal security screens. Escalators at both ends of the mall were out of service, forcing shoppers to use them as stairs. Still, Nejaz said Summit sees potential to fill those empty spaces with food, entertainment, coworking and lifestyle tenants that could help restore foot traffic. The company has hired a new marketing professional who will be based at the Waterbury mall to help attract new tenants. “We have some good plans in the works and will have that box filled up in the upcoming months,” Nejaz said, adding that Summit is prepared to make investments and offer lease incentives to bring the property “back to better days.” Nejaz said he could not comment on any specific plans to add housing to the site, though he called residential “an opportunity.” Summit has incorporated apartments into several of its mixed-use properties elsewhere.

Retail uncertainty

Nationally, retail real estate demand has softened in recent quarters. Retailers gave back about 6.5 million square feet of leased space in the second quarter of this year, following 7.1 million square feet returned in the first quarter — the worst two-quarter stretch since 2020, according to a market report from Cushman & Wakefield. The firm said shifting federal trade and tariff policies under President Trump have added uncertainty, prompting many retailers to delay expansion plans or reduce costs amid rising rents and build-out expenses. Cushman’s report also found that store closures outpaced openings in the second half of 2024. Even so, the firm said the sector remains relatively stable, with national market conditions expected to see only modest changes barring an unexpected recession. The national retail vacancy rate stood at 5.8% in the second quarter, up half-a-percentage point from a year earlier, but still below the 6.4% average between 2017 and 2019. Local trends mirror the national slowdown. In the Hartford market, the retail vacancy rate held at 7.3% in the second quarter, little changed from earlier in the year, while asking rents averaged $18.90 per square foot, Cushman & Wakefield data shows. Net absorption turned slightly negative at -31,600 square feet, reflecting softer tenant demand after several quarters of growth. In New Haven, the retail vacancy rate was even higher at 10.1%, down modestly from 10.3% in the first quarter. Average asking rents edged up to $18.79 per square foot, and net absorption rebounded into positive territory at 16,800 square feet, suggesting a small pickup in leasing after a sluggish 2024.

Waiting for a turnaround

Tim McNamara, a senior director with Cushman & Wakefield who specializes in retail, said struggling malls face an uphill battle to reverse their trajectory. The same market forces that drove their decline — shifting consumer habits and retailer consolidation — have only intensified in recent years. He noted that retail demand is increasingly concentrating around a smaller number of successful malls and properties. Waterbury’s Brass Mill Center illustrates the challenge. The mall lost its two end-cap anchors, Macy’s and Sears, years ago. More recently, Burlington relocated from the mall to the nearby Brass Mill Commons, leaving JCPenney as the only large retail anchor. Such conditions often lead to short-term leases, temporary tenants and hesitation among national retailers to make long-term commitments. “While it’s an attractive property, I think the change in peoples’ buying habits has resulted in a point of no return for anchors at some of these properties,” McNamara said. Reviving properties like Brass Mill Center, McNamara added, typically requires a mix of creativity and significant new investment. In some cases, struggling malls have been successfully repositioned by targeting niche markets — such as a Texas property that reinvented itself as an indoor bazaar serving a large Mexican population. In Waterbury, city officials are watching closely to see how Summit’s ownership will shape the Brass Mill Center’s future. Economic Development Director Joseph McGrath said Summit executives told the city about four months ago the mall can be revitalized, citing its prime location off Interstate 84 and nearby busy local roads. McGrath said the company has been cooperative, allowing the city to use portions of the mall’s parking lot for parades and community events. Still, the city wants to see tangible progress toward the turnaround Summit has promised, he said. “I don’t think they have accomplished what they promised they would do, but it’s early in the game,” McGrath said.