News · Marquette
Marquette’s closed Westwood Mall is set to come down by the end of 2026 under a brownfield plan, with new stores promised by late 2027
MARQUETTE, Mich. — The shuttered Westwood Mall on US-41 west of Marquette is on track to be torn down by the end of this year, after the Marquette County Board unanimously approved a brownfield plan that helps a new owner pay for demolition and cleanup.
The board adopted the plan Tuesday, Oct. 20, after a public hearing, TV6 and WNMU reported. Under the plan’s schedule, the roughly 112,000-square-foot mall building would be completely demolished by the end of 2026, and developer Garritt Bader of Green Bay would build an initial commercial building of about 25,000 square feet by the end of 2027.
The mall, at 3020 US-41 West in Marquette Charter Township, has been closed since part of its roof collapsed under heavy snow in February. That followed nearly three years of scrutiny over overdue property taxes under its current owner, Kohan Retail Investment Group, according to TV6.
What stays. The Kohl’s, Dunham’s and North Iron Church properties are not part of the plan, WNMU reported, so those buildings are not slated for demolition.
How the money works. A brownfield plan uses tax increment financing, or TIF. Township Supervisor Lyn Durant told WNMU that the township set up a brownfield TIF district at the mall. For the 2027 tax roll, the site will be valued as vacant land. As new buildings raise its value, local taxing units keep collecting only the taxes on that vacant-land value, and the extra taxes from the higher value go to the Brownfield Authority to repay the developer’s demolition costs.
The draft plan in the township planning commission’s Sept. 23 packet proposes reimbursing GB Real Estate Investments LLC up to $1,047,200 for eligible costs, with the plan lasting up to 23 years or until the costs are repaid and five years of capture for a local revolving fund have passed, whichever is sooner, according to a summary of that packet by CivicIQ. The same summary puts total project investment at about $5 million.
“We believe this is a small price to pay to have a very visible eyesore removed and a wonderful new development take its place,” Durant told WNMU.
Board Chair Joe Derocha said the county was glad to back the township. “We couldn’t be more pleased to get that blighted building torn down and have a new developer in Marquette County,” he told TV6.
What this means for you. No one’s tax rate goes up under a brownfield TIF. The trade-off is time: for as long as the plan runs, the new tax growth on this one site pays back the developer instead of flowing to schools, the county and the township. In return, a private buyer, not taxpayers up front, pays to clear a blighted, collapsed building on one of the busiest commercial strips in the Marquette area. Shoppers who still use Kohl’s and Dunham’s should not be affected by the plan itself, though demolition work next door could bring fencing and traffic changes later this year.
What’s next. The board also appointed Margaret Brumm to finish the District 1 commission term through Dec. 31, filling the seat Karl Numinen left Oct. 13, and scheduled a 4:30 p.m. Oct. 27 presentation from Tyler Technologies, one of two companies vying to run the county’s 911 dispatch software, TV6 reported. The township has not announced a demolition start date or tenants for the new building.
Sources:
TV6/WLUC, “Marquette County Board approves Brownfield plan for The Westwood Mall, appoints new commissioner,” Oct. 20, 2026 (vote, schedule, Kohan, roof collapse, Derocha quote, Brumm, Tyler presentation), https://www.uppermichiganssource.com/2026/10/21/marquette-county-board-approves-brownfield-plan-westwood-mall-appoints-new-commissioner/
WNMU-FM, “Brownfield TIF plan approved for former Westwood Mall,” Oct. 21, 2026 (excluded properties, developer, how the TIF works, Durant quote), https://www.wnmufm.org/business/2026-10-21/brownfield-tif-plan-approved-for-former-westwood-mall
Marquette County, Notice of Public Hearing, Brownfield Plan for the former Westwood Mall, 3020 US-41 West (Oct. 20 hearing), https://www.co.marquette.mi.us/newsdetail_T3_R602.php
CivicIQ, summary of Marquette Charter Township Planning Commission agenda packet, Sept. 23, 2026 (reimbursement cap, term, investment estimate), https://civiciq.com/public-contract/town-of-marquette-mi-gb-real-estate-investments-llc-other-2026-09-23
Photo: TenPoundHammer, “Younkers marquette.jpg,” Oct. 20, 2010, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/), cropped and color-adjusted, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Younkers_marquette.jpg
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