User:Yx7791/Sandbox/Mohawk Commons

Mohawk Commons is a big box power center in Niskayuna, New York. It opened in 2002 and replaced the former enclosed Mohawk Mall previously located on the property. By October 2005, it had as many as 25 stores.

Ownership
The property, including the largely empty Mohawk Mall, was purchased from Wilmorite in June, 2000, by Myron M. Hunt and Benderson Development Co. from Buffalo, NY. At the time, the remaining enclosed mall tenants were Marshall's, Media Play, and Rex's TV and Appliances.

In mid 2004, Developers Diversified Realty of Cleveland purchased the center from Benderson Development Corporation. At the time, Developers Diversified Realty was in the process of purchasing over 100 shopping centers across the United States.

Development
Demolition of the unoccupied portions of the old Mohawk Mall was completed by Spring, 2001. The sections of the old mall containing Rex TV & Appliances, Media Play, and Marshall's remained while development of the power center began.

Near the end of February, 2002, the developers signed a lease with Target for a 125,000 sq. ft. store in the new center. By July, 2002, Target purchased land at Mohawk Commons from the developers for $3.9 million.

Owners of the Rex TV & Appliance store complained about the difficulty customers had finding their store during construction. They closed in mid to late February, 2002, and began searching for a new location in the Schenectady area.

In late October, 2002, Bed Bath and Beyond, Inc. signed a lease for a 30,000 square foot store in the group of stores where Target would be located.

Tenants
Over the years, tenants have included:

Expected Crossover Tenants from Mohawk Mall
When demolition of the old Mohawk Mall began in 2000, the remaining mall tenants were Rex TV & Appliances, Media Play and Marshall's. It was expected that all three would be located in the new strip mall power center. However, Rex and Media Play closed during construction. (Media Play closed on September 9, 2001. ) Marshall's remained throughout construction. Its store space was in the back of the mid-section of the old mall. Customers had to walk through the former Media Play store in order to go to the Marshall's store.

On April 25, 2002, Marshall's reopened in a new 30,010 square foot space, being the only store from the old mall to transfer to new retail space. The building housing the old Marshall's store and former Media Play store would be demolished later in the year to make way for additional construction.