Charleston Town Center has lost its final major department store after JCPenney closed, following Sears and Macy's exits, as city leaders discuss taking ownership of the struggling property.
The downtown Charleston, West Virginia, mall no longer has its traditional big-box anchors. JCPenney, Sears, and Macy's have all left Charleston Town Center, leaving a large retail property without the stores that once drew steady foot traffic.
The Sun reported that local leaders have spent years talking with current owner Hull Property Group about transferring the mall to city ownership, with plans that include turning the site into a multi-use space.
Mayor Amy Goodwin made clear the city sees the property as central to downtown's future, while stressing it remains in private hands for now.
She said leaders want an owner ready to put real money into the site rather than let it sit idle.
"It's my understanding that there is interest in the Charleston Town Center mall property, but the mall is privately owned."
Goodwin added that talks have been ongoing and the goal has not changed.
"We have been engaged in conversation about the future of the property for years, and our priority remains the same, we want to see it in the hands of someone who will invest in it and move it forward."
She tied the outcome directly to the city's broader prospects.
"This property is an important part of downtown Charleston, and what happens there matters to the future of our city."
The Charleston exits fit a wider pattern of department-store retreat. Sears filed for bankruptcy in October 2018 and has closed thousands of stores since then. It now operates just five locations across the country: one in California, one in Texas, one in Massachusetts, and two in Florida.
JCPenney and Macy's also took hits this year with closures of their own, though both still keep a larger national footprint than Sears. At Charleston Town Center, all three are gone. The old Sears and Macy's spaces were demolished, and JCPenney's departure removed the last of the classic anchors.
Malls across the country have faced the same pressure: fewer tenants, thinner crowds, and rising concerns about safety and upkeep. Charleston Town Center is now another example of a downtown retail complex that lost the big names that once defined it.
Hull Property Group still owns the mall. Charleston officials have not announced a signed deal, only that conversations continue. The mayor's statements frame the issue as one of capital and execution: who will put money into the buildings and actually advance a plan.
City concepts include a multi-use redevelopment rather than a pure retail revival. No detailed blueprints, budgets, or timelines appear in the available reporting. What is clear is the political priority Goodwin described, getting the property to an owner willing to invest and push it forward.
For residents and taxpayers in Charleston, the stakes are practical. A large downtown site without anchors can drag on surrounding businesses, tax base, and the look of the city center. Empty boxes and demolished wings send a message. So does a long stretch of talks without a finished transfer or visible construction.
Private ownership remains the starting point. Any city role would come only after a deal with Hull Property Group. Until then, the mall sits in limbo between past retail glory and whatever comes next.
Department stores once anchored American malls with jobs, taxes, and daily traffic. Their retreat leaves cities holding the bag unless serious private capital shows up. Charleston's leaders say they want exactly that. The test is whether talk turns into a buyer who builds.