It May Be The End Of The Woburn Mall As We Know It

WOBURN, MA -- The company that bought the Woburn Mall last summer for $44 million wants to overhaul the 23-acre property to develop a so-called lifestyle center, which mixes retail, housing and commercial space. Edens LLC got approval for a preliminary subdivision of the property from the Woburn Planning Board Wednesday night, which was the first step in the approval process. Edens is still working with city officials to develop a finalized plan for the property.

"This location has great potential to be transformed into something much better than what's there," said Mark Vaughan, an attorney representing Edens, adding that no formal development plans had been finalized. Wednesday's approval essentially preserved zoning for the property, allowing Ednes to begin formalizing its plans.

Traditional shopping malls have struggled in recent years to compete with the newer lifestyle centers, which are designed to mimic a small-town center. The open air sites often include parks and play areas, and usually include a housing component. In addition to MarketStreet Lynnfield, there are proposals to build a lifestyle center at the site of an old miniature golf course on Route One in Saugus, and the Burlington Mall will replace the now-closed Sears with an area meant to mirror the lifestyle center concept.

Because no formal plan has been submitted, its not clear whether the existing mall would be razed. It's also unclear what type of housing would be constructed.

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Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).