Danville issues statement on auction of mall, says new owners will be held accountable

May 3—DANVILLE — Local officials are urging only responsible developers to bid on the upcoming auction of the Village Mall.

"This structure is very important to our community, and it is imperative that it ends up in the right hands," said Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. "We will be taking this very seriously because Danville has made too much forward progress to allow a cornerstone in our community to deteriorate."

The 35-plus-acre property, located at 2917 N. Vermilion Street, is being divided into three parcels that will be offered at an online auction on May 13. Williams said that it is has been put up for sale by the current property owner, which is the AZT Corporation.

"Two of the three parcels are being sold as an absolute auction with opening bids of just one dollar, meaning they will be sold to the highest bidder no matter how low the price," Danville officials said in a statement about the sale. "This means that anyone with a dollar or more could gain ownership of a very large, highly important structure in our city. Time and time again, we have seen what happens when these cornerstone buildings in our community end up in the wrong hands."

The online auctions are being held at Ten-X, under the supervision of the Riser Retail Group, said Danville Community Relations Administrator Ashton Greer. More information is available at .

According to the site, one of the parcels, listed as a "grocery anchored retail center" at 2917 N. Vermilion St., will have a starting bid of $1.75 million.

"This part of the offering includes 126,513 square feet spread across four fully occupied units," the listing states. "Tenants at this location include the Country Market, Pet Supplies Plus, Ross Stores, and Dunham's Sports."

On the other hand, the approximately 280,000-square-foot Village Mall property and a 1.24-acre outparcel lot are both being sold as an absolute auction. The listing states that the mall is currently "24% occupied."

For all three properties, auctions will run from May 13 to May 15.

The news comes after multiple mall tenants had their leases cut short by the AZT Corporation, the current owner of the mall. City leaders said in February that they attempted to reach out to the company but were not able to get ahold of them.

The city had previously offered to work with AZT Corp. on a feasibility study for potential future uses of the property, Williams said. However, the company wanted to know if the city was interested in purchasing the mall.

After city officials told AZT the study could take six to eight months, the company did not respond. Additionally, their phone number has been disconnected and emails have come back undeliverable.

The city said that it invests over $1 million annually in reducing blight and said that has observed ongoing issues with "mismanaged residential and commercial properties and a lack of maintenance and preservation efforts from their owners."

Officials pointed to Bresee Tower, the Sears building and the Adams building as other examples of this problem.

"When entities without the proper resources purchase these large structures at a small cost without the means of developing them or even maintaining them, the deteriorating structures eventually pose many threats to the health and economic viability of the area," local officials said, citing falling debris, increased crime, mold, property values and impact on new business attraction as being among their concerns.

In light of such concerns, the city emphasized that it will be "proactively" enforcing building code and maintenance standards for the mall property and hold the purchaser liable for the condition of the structure and parking lots.

"This accountability for improperly managed property comes with fines, legal expenses, and legal consequences," Danville officials said. "We know the incredible, positive impact that could occur for Danville with this structure in the hands of the right developer and we are doing everything possible on our end to ensure the best possible outcome for our citizens."