Plans to transform Regency Mall move forward

RACINE, Wis. (CBS 58) – The plan to transform the Regency Mall in Racine is moving forward and with a clearer idea of what it will look like in the future.

It doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone that Regency Mall has seen better days and now the owner has a proposal to revamp the property.

Hull Property Group, which owns the mall, says they plan to start renovating the mall as early as next month.

This includes covering the vacant parts of the building with drywall, historic pictures, and murals of the city.

Hull is paying for part of the project with $7 million of its own money. If approved by the common council, the city would help out with a  13-year, $3.5 million pay-as-you-go payment plan, as long as Hull pays its taxes and the property value of the building increases.

“Hull Group has a magic formula that they believe really helps return people shopping by improving the look of the mall, by making it safer. Incentivizing tenants to come back into the mall property. They believe that that's going to work for them,” says Racine City Development Director Amy Connolly.

The Racine Redevelopment authority will look over the plan during a meeting Thursday evening at 6:00.

From there, the plan will go to the Common Council who will make a decision at the end of the month.