Simon Property Group Will Buy Short Hills Mall Owners

MILLBURN, NJ — New Jersey is not, as the old joke about Paramus goes, a Native American word meaning "Land of many malls." But it does have approximately 28 of them. And now, there will be fewer owners among them.

It was reported in the New York Times and LA Times this week that Simon Property, which owns malls and outlets such as Newport Centre Mall in Jersey City and Jersey Gardens in Elizabeth, is buying Taubman Centers, which owns high-end shopping centers across the country including one in New Jersey: the Short Hills Mall in Millburn.

Forbes reported Tuesday that Simon will buy Taubman Centers for $36 billion.

While the Taubman family, according to Forbes, will sell a third of their holdings, they'll keep a fifth of Taubman Realty group. Taubman has 26 "super-regional centers" in the U.S. and Asia, Forbes said.

Simon Properties already owns a total of 13 malls and outlets in New Jersey, including Livingston Mall, the Menlo Park Mall, Quakerbridge Mall, and Jackson Premium Outlets. Some of their properties are among the country's most lucrative malls ("A malls").

Forbes noted, "The sale was probably inspired by the high number of bankruptcies (Forever 21, Barney’s and others) that are occurring this year, as well the closing of many department stores such as Macy’s ... and the anticipated announcement that J.C.Penney will close additional units."

Maybe Simon will have strategies in Short Hills to prevent all that shoplifting of pricey pocketbooks.