After images from a shuttered and vandalized mall in Westminster made national and international headlines, the new owner of the 14-acre retail center said he is cleaning up the property and transforming it into a mixed-use community.
Since the old Westminster Mall closed last October, nearly 90 people have been arrested for vandalism and graffiti. Some images circulating on social media appear to show someone may have been living inside.
Bill Shopoff, the new owner of Westminster Mall, said he and his team were aware of the criminal activity.
“We did not own the balance of the mall at the time. We were working with the other group to try and secure the building as quickly as we could,” Shopoff, the president and CEO of Shopoff Reality Investments, said.
“The place got completely thrashed as you can see – broken glass, general vandalism, so now we’re cleaning that up,” he said.
Shopoff said he bought the property, knowing that it was a “failing mall,” and that he would have to do something different.
“I think the pattern of shopping is different. Retail is definitely not gone, but this type of retail is very expensive to operate,” he said.
Instead of recreating a traditional shopping mall, Shopoff said he’s going to build a “vibrant new community” with 2,200 residential unites and 200,00 square feet of retail space by April or May 2026.
Westminster police said last month that it responded to the property approximately 250 times and arrested dozens of people for trespassing and vandalism over a few months.