Mall Closures Ripple Through Small Town America

The Fort Steuben Mall in this former steel town on the edge of the Ohio River is battling a double whammy of store closures that have thrust it into a fight for survival. On one side of the mall is an empty space that housed a Sears department store and automotive center until the struggling retailer closed the location last June. On the opposite side sits a Macy’s set to close in early spring, the retail chain said early this month, as part of 100 closures announced last summer. Fort Steuben Mall is being swept up in a wave of store closings that is buffeting landlords across the U.S. Specialty retailers such as the Limited and department stores such as Sears and Macy’s in recent months have announced plans to close hundreds of stores nationwide and slash jobs as online shopping takes a growing share of revenue. Malls in smaller U.S. cities are often linchpins of local economies and their struggles can have a ripple effect, from jobs and tax revenues to the fortunes of logistics and transportation companies that provide trucking and inventory support for stores. Creditors who invest in mortgage securities tied to troubled malls face the risk of default.