HOLLAND TOWNSHIP (WHTC-AM/FM) — The Shops at WestShore general manager, Jean Ramirez, tells WHTC that news of Younkers impending closing is not a surprise.
She wrote in an email Thursday that she’d been aware of the possibility that Younkers would close “for some time now” but she and the other retailers found the reality of the news saddening.
“Our thoughts are with the many thousands of employees, specifically the 90 employees here in Holland that are a part of The Shops family, that will be losing their employment,” she wrote.
Many steps remain before Younkers’ parent company, Bon-Ton, can complete its bankruptcy and asset sell-off and The Shops can regain possession of Younkers’ existing retail space.
“We continue to focus on creating a comprehensive redevelopment of the entire 70-acre site,” Ramirez wrote, “with the goal of a mixed-use community that will appeal to multi-level income households, entrepreneurs, and exciting new tenants.”
