Coleman: Macy's Closure Is 'Tremendous Opportunity'

ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO/AP) -- Macy's announced on Thursday morning that they are planning on closing the downtown St. Paul location as the company reevaluates "underperforming stores that no longer meet our performance requirements."

The department store's employees were called to a store-wide meeting Wednesday night. This closure reduces Macy's presence in the Twin Cities further after it closed its Bloomingdale's store at the Mall of America last year.

St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman said that city's planning and economic development department has already started to consider reuses for the site. One of the four scheduled light-rail stops for the forthcoming Central Corridor line sits nearby.

Coleman's office said the closure would have been a blow to the city's economic recovery a decade ago following "years of decline," but said that the revitalization loan helped bridge a gap until now. In 2013, the closure presents "a tremendous opportunity to bring another part of our city into the 21st century," Coleman's office said.

Coleman cited the revitalization of Union Depot, the construction of a new Lund's grocery store and light-rail's arrival to the city, "momentum and rebirth continues."

Macy's recently completed terms of a 10-year forgivable loan with the city.

Macy's also plans to consolidate two stores at Ridgedale in Minnetonka into one expanded store next year.

Overall, Macy's said it will close six underperforming stores as part of a normal review of its business. The other stores include a Bloomingdales Fashion Show Home Store in Las Vegas, Nev.; and Macy's in Paseo, Colo.; Belmont, Mass.; Honolulu, Hawaii; and Houston, Texas. Closing the stores will cost $2 million to $4 million taken in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, Macy's said Thursday that revenue in stores open at least one year rose 4.1 in December, edging past Wall Street estimates. But the figure grew less than the company expected during the combined two-month November and December period, the key holiday shopping months, and Macy's lowered its fourth-quarter guidance.

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