Hobby Lobby coming to Sandusky Mall

PERKINS TWP. — The Sandusky Mall crafted a partnership with Hobby Lobby to fill one its vacant anchor spaces. "It's a good retailer that we are looking forward to doing business with and we think people will be excited to have it in the community," said Joe Bell, a spokesman for mall owner Cafaro Co. David Green opened the first Hobby Lobby in Oklahoma City in 1973. What started as a single arts and craft store has grown to include more than 800 stores across the country. The chain is valued at $4.3 billion. Hobby Lobby will occupy the majority of the former Sears location, which has sat vacant since the department store closed in 2016. Cafaro Co. is splitting the store 80,000 square foot space with Hobby Lobby slated to occupy 50,000 square feet. The remaining 30,000 square feet will be redeveloped for use by other tenants. Bell said they hope to turn the renovated space over to Hobby Lobby by March 2020. The mall has several other vacant store spaces, including the former locations of Macy's and Elder-Beerman. But Hobby Lobby is the just the beginning of the mall's revitalization, according to Cafaro Co. "We think this is just the first piece of a great deal of renovation and reformation that is going to be taking place at the Sandusky Mall," Bell said. "We have a lot of plans in the pipeline that we're hoping to finalize in the near future. People are going to be pleasantly surprised by the new features and tenants we are planning to put in place." Bell previously told the Register that redevelopment plans would most likely turn the mall into a mixed-use property to include tenants outside traditional retail like entertainment, office space and residences. A spokesperson for Hobby Lobby could not be immediately reached. Reach reporter Michael Harrington at michaelharrington@sanduskyregister.com, follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegister