COLUMBIA, S.C. — Possible new development at the Richland Mall in Forest Acres might be making progress soon. Forest Acres City Council voted a plan on Tuesday to approve the partial purchase of the mall.
"I think we've got a plan for this concrete dinosaur that's been plaguing our community for quite some time," Mayor Frank Brunson said.
In a special called meeting, the council voted unanimously to purchase the Sunnyside Road and Forest Drive portion of the mall for $3 million.
"We hope to have an event space, an outdoor event space to have concerts. and it’s just gonna be a walking trail but no playground amenities,” the mayor said.
With this new venue, people in the Midlands could see the return of some favorites, like 'Rooftop and Rhythm'. The concert is a long-standing tradition that took place at the Richland Mall parking deck.The last time this event happened was more than five years ago.
"I think that's exciting it's gonna be sad to see this go the building will obviously they'll have to tear it down. But it's been a long time coming. Something had to happen with this property," Marc Rapport, a resident said.
The Richland Mall is 931,000 square feet and only has three tenants. It was first built in 1961 as an outdoor mall and Columbia's first mall. In the 1980s, the mall was converted to an indoor mall.
The plan for the mall now is to demolish what's left and rebuild it. That plan is pending the decisions made at the Richland County Council meeting Tuesday night.
For now residents are anticipating what else is to come of the rest of the mall.
“It'll be interesting to see more things here and more stuff that that's accessible and to actually use this," Shawna Cair said. She frequents the mall for her afternoon coffee breaks.
The project will take 10 years to complete. The start date will not be decided until after Richland County Council makes a decision and negotiations between mall owners and developers.