In another setback to the beleaguered Fashion Mall, the Yellow Strawberry Salon, one of the mall’s busiest tenants, left the building Saturday.
Salon owners said they don’t know yet where they will relocate, but, fed up with landlords, they said they are looking to buy their own building in west Plantation.
The salon, which claims 30 employees and hundreds of customers, has been in the mall at 321 N. University Drive since it opened in 1988. Yellow Strawberry has another store in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
“Our patience had simply run out,” said Denise Briggs, the daughter of the owner and business partner. “We decided to close because they [mall management] won’t return our calls, would not return our e-mails. We’re too unsure of the future of the Fashion Mall to give them any more time or money.”
The mall has been steadily declining since Hurricane Wilma smacked the area and Macy’s moved out.
The city’s Police Department left its satellite office there this summer. About two-dozen stores remain.
U.S. Capital Holdings Group, a China-based investment group with local offices, purchased the mall in the fall of 2004.
The firm’s vision is to revamp the mall into a venue with retail, residential and office space.
The owners want to build 450 apartment and condo units at the mall.
Paul D’Arelli, a Fort Lauderdale-based attorney who represents U.S. Capital, said the mall is working to make improvements, including meeting fire codes.
The salon’s departure won’t take plans off course, he said. “It doesn’t impact our redevelopment plan,” he said. “The plan is moving forward.”
There are still a handful of tenants who remain.
“They [the hair salon] had enough and I can empathize with that but we’re going to try to stick it through,” said Steve Fried, owner of the jewelry store Diamonds in the Grove. “It’s not worthwhile for us to give up on the mall. It’s a beautiful mall and we’re cautiously optimistic.”
