The Summit’s end offers opportunity for 'reinvention'
By Samantha Maziarz-Christmann
News Business Reporter
Hearts were heavy at The Summit this week as customers and merchants prepared to say a final goodbye to the 36-year-old Wheatfield mall officially closing today.
But while the long-struggling, bankrupt mall comes to what is considered a sad but inevitable end, its displaced stores are not only getting a fresh start, but breathing new life into nearby retail sectors.
Iconic local pizzeria Leon’s has been in the mall’s food court since 1974. This week, it saw lines of customers rivaling its busiest years in the mall’s hey-day, with nostalgic customers lining up for one last slice and buying bulk orders to freeze for later.
But while employees of the family-run business are sad to go, they’re hopeful about a new chapter for Leon’s. They are looking for space to relocate in Wheatfield, which would take their business from a popular takeout counter to a full-service restaurant.
“We’d like to find a nice place that is a little bigger where we can serve dinners, where kids and families can come in and eat, where we can have take-out and delivery,” said Lorenzo Randazzo, the owner’s nephew.
In fact, most of the mall’s retailers are choosing to relocate rather than using their lease termination as a convenient time to throw in the towel. It is an encouraging indication of the area’s retail health in these gloomy economic times, especially considering many retailers will be forced to pay higher rents than they did at the bargain-priced Summit.
“I’m going to be paying four times what I pay here,” said Chris Gould, owner of Avon Beauty Center, as she cleared her store’s shelves and tucked slim bottles of lotion into cardboard boxes.
The new location she’s negotiating for in the Williamsville/Clarence area is roughly twice the size of the current location, accounting for some of the price increase. But many retailers in the mall said their new rent costs would double or even triple for similarly sized retail space. In addition, many Summit rents included utility costs — a rare break.
Indeed, most Summit shops were doing well and would have stayed if the mall had lasted.
Generations Music recently ranked number two in volume for all Gibson guitar sellers in the Northeast. Owner David Augustyniak recently opened a second location at the Eastern Hills Mall and is in talks to relocate his Summit store to a spot near Military Road and Pine Plaza in Niagara Falls.
“We’ve grown quite a bit,” he said.
“We’ve had customers coming in begging us not to leave Niagara Falls.”
The Eastern Hills mall has been a popular destination for Summit expatriates. Van Winkle’s gift store, Niagara Emporium furniture store, Phase ID alternative clothing, Omega Sports memorabilia and the Echo Through Time history museum have all relocated there.
They are a welcome addition, filling nearly 18,000 square feet of previously vacant space.
Echo Through Time’s 1,800-square-foot location hadn’t been filled in several years and was most recently being used for storage. Though it won’t be a big retail money-maker, mall general manager Russ Fulton expects it to bring precious traffic volume.
“That’s a huge piece of the puzzle,” Fulton said. “They will be bringing in two school tours a week. It’s going to mean school buses, tours, educators coming in. We’re very excited about the traffic.”
As stores leave the Summit and fill in the blanks of other retail sectors, they restore the balance to a region once overly saturated with retail space.
The Pine Avenue business district in Niagara Falls landed three new tenants from the Summit’s closure — Summit Life Outreach pregnancy support center, Alan Geldin Audiology and radio station WJJL will all relocate to Pine Avenue.
Laux Sporting Goods, Cut & Shop salon and Beacon Christian Bookstore are all headed for space at or near the Military Road and Pine Plaza retail corridor near the Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls.
Summit Park Pharmacy, Rainbow Tropical Fish and Niagara Cerebral Palsy will fill spots in retail plazas near the mall on Niagara Falls Boulevard. EGW Personnel Services and V-Twin Cycles are headed for North Tonawanda.
Transcom call center, Leon’s Pizza, Cardiology of Niagara, Seasons Hallmark, Deb shop clothing store and Macri’s Restaurant are currently shopping new space and said they have committed to staying within the immediate Niagara County area.
Though the mall’s last day is officially slated for today, doors of the mall will remain open for limited weekday, daytime hours until further notice, as the center makes its way through bankruptcy court and awaits sale at auction.
That’s welcome news not just for the mallwalkers who regularly stroll The Summit’s halls, butto the Krow’s Nest game center, Perfect Stitch alterations and gown store and Niagara Choice Federal Credit Union. They have held off on relocating in hopes a buyer could be found for the mall, which has been assessed at $3 million.
The Rev. Linda Badame, senior pastor of Wheatfield Community Church, held out hope of an eleventh hour reprieve when she announced plans to acquire the mall in conjunction with several other investors. But by Wednesday afternoon, that deal had fallen through.
A suggested plan by Sen. George Maziarz for New York State to relocate its Power Authority offices to the mall from White Plains were rebuffed by Gov. David A. Paterson. Rumors of other potential last-minute buyers never came to fruition. But even though the story of The Summit doesn’t end with a white knight’s arrival, many are hopeful its legacy will stay alive.
Brian Marciniak, the most recent general manager at The Summit, hopes something positive will come from the mall’s demise.
“Maybe these stores will be like seeds in the community, filling other retail spaces,” he said. “Maybe the Summit will live on that way.”
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