North Olmsted is edging closer to landing a new grocery store on the east end of Great Northern Mall, as city leaders move toward a development agreement for the long-vacant Sears site. City council is preparing to sign off on terms that would open the door for the property to be redeveloped and marketed to potential tenants, and officials say they expect to identify a grocery tenant within weeks.
Under the proposal, the city would enter into a development agreement with R6 Motors Inc., which now holds the parcel that includes the former Sears building and surrounding lots. As reported by Cleveland.com, the site covers roughly 16 acres and the move is intended to speed negotiations with a grocery chain. The property has previously been tied to the Rafih Automotive Group and earlier redevelopment concepts, including dealership plans, according to reporting by NEOtrans.
Zoning and site appeal
The Sears parcel sits on the mall’s east end, visible from Great Northern Boulevard and close to the I-480 interchange, a location developers tend to prize for drive-up shoppers and quick highway access. According to the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission, the city’s Mall Area Mixed Use Overlay District was created to make it easier to convert large mall properties into denser, mixed-use projects. That zoning framework gives city officials leverage to require features such as streetscaping, pedestrian connections and other public benefits as conditions of any redevelopment deal.
Officials expect an announcement soon
Max Upton, the city’s director of economic and community development, told local reporters that officials expect to name a grocery tenant “in a couple weeks,” adding that the development agreement would clear the way for site preparation. The Cleveland.com report notes that council is expected to enter into the development agreement with R6 Motors Inc. if terms are finalized. Upton is scheduled to leave the administration for a private-sector role on Feb. 28, 2026, a change that could affect who shepherds the project through its later phases.
What a grocer could mean for the mall
City leaders and developers say a supermarket could bring consistent daily traffic, helping transform Great Northern into more of a mixed-use destination rather than simply a traditional retail center. The mall has been repositioning in recent years, with new in-mall tenants and a movie complex that the center’s website promotes as part of a broader reinvention strategy. Observers have also floated the idea of a grocery store paired with a small fuel or convenience outparcel, though no tenant has been named and no concept has been confirmed…