Chicago — Macy’s will close its longtime department store at Water Tower Place in Chicago, according to several media reports. The downtown mall is situated on the Magnificent Mile. Macy’s will begin a clearance sale this month at the 170,000-square-foot store. The retailer will continue to operate nearby stores in Skokie, Oak Brook, Schaumburg and Orland Park, Illinois.
In early 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic, Macy’s announced that it would close 125 stores nationwide over a three-year period in an effort to right-size its store fleet. This week, Macy’s unveiled plans to shutter an additional 45 locations as part of that three-year plan. A full list of the store closures was expected to be available by the end of the day Wednesday.
Located on Michigan Avenue, Water Tower Place rises eight stories and is home to more than 100 stores. Brookfield Property Partners owns the mall. Earlier this week, Brookfield Asset Management submitted a proposal to take Brookfield Property Partners private for $5.9 billion.
The retail vacancy rate for the Magnificent Mile was 10.5 percent in late 2020, up from 7.4 percent in 2019 and 6.5 percent in 2018, according to CBRE. In addition to Macy’s, Gap recently unveiled plans to close its flagship store on Michigan Avenue.