A Chicago mall with Zara and AMC sold for $30 million.

Block 37’s new owner needs tenants for roughly a third of the mall. For a retailer, that could mean a different negotiation from one at a center with few vacancies.

At Oakbrook Center, the owners are seeking a major refinancing of a largely leased property. In Wisconsin, the city of Brookfield is considering buying part of Brookfield Square. Understanding what each owner needs from its next tenant is a useful starting point before comparing rents.

Edwards Realty bought Block 37 from CIM Group for $30 million, closing on October 6. Newmark, the seller’s broker, puts the retail area at about 278,000 square feet and lists Zara, Sephora, AMC Theatres and The Dearborn among the tenants. The price covers the four-level garage but not the separately owned office and residential towers.

It is the first downtown Chicago acquisition for Edwards, which owns suburban centers including Gateway Plaza in Orland Park. The price works out to about $108 per square foot of retail space, though it covers more than the shops. The mall is about 65% leased, according to Edwards president Ramzi Hassan.

The third floor, previously home to the Latinicity food hall, is central to the leasing plan. Hassan told Crain’s Chicago Business that floors one and two stay focused on retail while the third goes to entertainment and experiential uses. Edwards also plans an incubator for small businesses and a new name, and has not announced replacement tenants.

Block 37 sits above the pedway that joins the CTA Red and Blue lines. Edwards wants more of the people passing through to stop and spend.

The owners of suburban Oakbrook Center are arranging a loan that would repay existing debt and return about $65 million to the sponsors after costs. Bisnow reported the proposed $800 million refinancing in September, citing an S&P Global presale report.

The report expected an October 8 closing. That was a target date, not confirmation that the refinancing had been completed.

It puts reported tenant sales above $1.2 billion in the 12 months to May 2026 and the property about 94% leased in July. These are reported property figures, not our own measurements, and occupancy definitions vary between owners.

Oakbrook gives lenders an established rental business to assess. Strong tenant sales help explain their interest, but they are not the landlord’s income: rent, after operating costs, is what services the debt. The disclosed figures do not show how much risk the lenders are taking.

The city of Brookfield, Wisconsin, has secured the right to buy about 34 acres of Brookfield Square from CBL Properties for $28 million. The right comes from a council decision on October 6; it is not an obligation. The city will review the property and work with development partners before deciding, and any financing would need further council action.

A separate project is planned on the former Boston Store site. Visit Brookfield, the local tourism organization, will own and operate a public market there, targeting the first quarter of 2028. That is a different parcel from the proposed purchase, so the market’s progress does not settle what happens to the rest of the mall.

→ The Mall at Partridge Creek, Clinton Township, Michigan. DICK’S House of Sport will take the 116,000 sq ft former Nordstrom, vacant since 2019. No opening date yet.

→ Msheireb Galleria, Doha. Msheireb Foodhall opened on October 7 with nine concepts, six local and three international, run by TGP International.

→ Skylight Mall, Dubai. Dubai Retail announced a 1.3 million sq ft project on Al Khail Road on October 6, with more than 360 stores, targeting 2027.

A sale price, a proposed loan and a possible municipal purchase are different transactions, not a ranking of mall values. They are more useful to an expansion team as prompts for questions about each property.

At Block 37, a prospective tenant should ask which businesses are committed to the new plan and when they will open. At Oakbrook, the starting point is the trading record of existing tenants. At Brookfield Square, ownership and the redevelopment plan still need to be resolved.

An owner filling vacant space may have more reason to negotiate. That does not guarantee a better deal: a retailer also needs to know which improvements are funded and what happens if the promised neighbors arrive late.

Before comparing rents, ask what the landlord needs your store to do.

Mati Brooks,

Editor, Malls Money

Malls.com tracks malls, brands, store openings, and retail expansion signals across 50+ countries.