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Owner of Northbridge Mall excited for new direction: The Carrington Co. purchases former Shopko building

The owner of Northbridge Mall in Albert Lea is positioning the mall for growth in the coming months, not only as a retail shopping center but also as an opportunity for other users.

Chad Christensen, regional director of real estate with The Carrington Co., said the company purchased the former Shopko building right next to the mall in September, and there are multiple users exploring the building, as well as other Northbridge Mall vacancies.

According to Freeborn County Recorder Kelly Callahan, the purchase took place Sept. 3. Carrington Capital LLC purchased the property from 2610 N. Bridge Ave. LLC, which is the company the property had been deeded to following the Shopko bankruptcy.

Christensen said the company is in final stages of negotiations with two national brand retailers involving roughly 30,000 square feet of vacant space — one retailer in a portion of the former Shopko and the other in a separate space in the mall. He could not provide any other details at this time.

“We fully believe Albert Lea is headed in a positive direction and poised for future growth,” Christensen said.

The addition of MercyOne Albert Lea Family Medicine & Specialty Care and other new providers recently committing to the mall are an example of the growth taking place in Albert Lea, he said. MercyOne opened in July in the former Herberger’s on the south end of the mall, which is now owned by the Albert Lea Healthcare Coalition.

“We’re very excited to continue repositioning the center to include complimentary medical, office, educational and, of course, additional retail users,” he said.

While The Carrington Co. continues talks with national and regional users, Christensen said it wants people to know at the local level there is space to lease, and it would be happy to talk with anyone who is interested.

“We’re aggressively working to continue the upward trajectory for the center and welcome all interest from local, regional and national users,” Christensen said. “We can offer many different options regarding space location, size and terms. This is a new direction for the property which will provide many new amenities to our current offerings. We’re confident we can accommodate all interest(s) and welcome the opportunity to further discuss individually.”

Northbridge Mall was platted in 1986 under ownership of Northbridge Shopping Center Partnership. Ownership changed to Northbridge Mall Incorporated in 1987 and was sold to Francis Carrington in 1993, according to the Recorder’s Office. The owner is currently listed as Carrington Family 2000 Trust.