Spring Hill Mall's property taxes paid, but village officials concerned about mall's future

Although property taxes on the Spring Hill Mall property were paid on Thursday, officials in West Dundee and Carpentersville remain concerned about the mall's future.

Kohan Retail Investment Group, which bought the mall property six months ago, missed the June 1 deadline for the first installment on property taxes for 17 parcels owned by the New York firm.

On Friday, the Kane County treasurer's office confirmed it is processing $114,436 in payments for property owned by Spring Hill Mall Realty Holding LLC, which is owned by Kohan Retail Investment Group. The payments include a 1.5% late fee and covered the first half of property tax payments on the properties.

"It just got overlooked," Michael Kohan, founder and CEO of Kohan Retail Investment Group, said Friday about the late payment. "The bill went to a different address. We did not receive it."

Thursday's payment, however, did little to alleviate concerns about the mall's future. The mall currently is less than half occupied, according to West Dundee Village President Chris Nelson.

"A Brookfield or a Simon (mall management companies) doesn't wait until the newspaper article to pay their property taxes," Nelson said, pointing to a Thursday article about the mall's missed payment.

Officials in both towns pointed to Kohan Retail Investment Group's history in other communities and news accounts detailing the continued demise of troubled properties after the company purchases them.

"The village sees the future of the mall needing significant municipal intervention," Nelson said, noting the majority of the mall property is within West Dundee village limits. "We don't believe the current ownership has the best interest for the property or the community."

According to news accounts, utilities have been shut off in the past at some Kohan Retail Investment Group properties after electric and water bills went unpaid for months. News accounts also indicated Kohan has missed property tax payments on other properties it owns across the country.

Michael Kohan didn't deny the previous problems.

"These properties have challenges," he said. "Any landlord with a challenging mall has had issues."

But, he said, the company has helped stabilize, and in some instances, revitalize troubled properties. He could not, however, provide an example when asked.

"The fact is, we've done good stuff to the malls we've bought," he said.

Officials in West Dundee and Carpentersville, however, remained skeptical.

"If you look at their model nationwide, they have not historically been the best community partners, " Carpentersville Village Manager Eric Johnson said. "But, I invite them to change that narrative in our communities."

Kohan said he does not have any specific redevelopment plans for Spring Hill Mall, but said he has had conversations with possible tenants. He said potential uses for the property could include entertainment or possibly a call center. He also was open to the possibility of a mixed use for the property that would include housing.

Carpentersville and West Dundee officials said Kohan has done little to communicate his plans for the property since purchasing the mall. West Dundee officials said interim uses such as carnivals, paintball facilities or call centers are not consistent with how they want to see the property redeveloped.

Officials hope to eventually have some type of mixed-use development, including housing, on the mall property. Carpentersville officials recently approved plans for an apartment development at the corner of Huntley Road and Route 31 near the mall property.