By Wayne Grant
wgrant@hometownnewsol.com
ORMOND BEACH - The Ormond Mall is starting to show its new personality as the modernized façade and signage are beginning to appear.
The mall, along with the Publix supermarket, should be complete by the first week of March, said Kathryn Crownover, spokeswoman for Century Retail of Lakeland, owners of the mall.
Ormond Mall is located on State Road A1A in Ormond-by-the-Sea.
In addition to the obvious exterior changes, improvements were also made in waterproofing the hallway that extends along the front of the mall, and making the entire building more resistant to hurricane force winds.
Visitors will probably also notice more light poles in the parking lot, as the exterior lighting now meets the latest Publix design criteria, Ms. Crownover said.
The Gourmet Kitchen, a popular gathering spot for area residents for 20 years, closed when the remodeling began and its space was taken by the expansion of Publix.
Mike Hicks, manager of K's House of Charm, said neighborhood people would meet at the Gourmet Kitchen for breakfast or lunch and then go shopping.
"It was nice," he said. "They could do everything at the mall."
There will be at least one dining opportunity at the mall.
A Chinese restaurant is now being constructed and a new restaurant could be added.
"We are working with a number of restaurant tenants including the Gourmet Kitchen," Ms. Crownover said.
Ron Berry, owner of Gourmet Kitchen, said he had no plans to return to mall.
"I'm in the process of opening a Gourmet Kitchen restaurant in Tymber Creek Plaza on (State Road) 40," he said.
The Publix store, the only supermarket in Ormond-by-the-Sea, is being expanded from 41,500 square feet to 45,000 square feet. Dwaine Stevens, spokesman for Publix, said there would be "expanded offerings and the traditional sub-departments."
He said no hiring is planned at this time, because the associates were temporarily sent to other Publix stores in the area and will return upon re-opening of the store.
Ginger Hill, manager of Bealls Outlet, has already seen an increase in floor traffic and she thinks the new signage for her store is helping.
"We didn't have a sign up during the construction and I don't think people even knew we were even here," she said.
She said the new sign is backlit, so it won't interfere with turtles during nesting season and can be left on at night year-round.
Ms. Hill said she expects business to pick up for the entire mall once construction is complete because local people like to shop there.
"They don't want to go past that Granada and A1A intersection if they don't have to," she said.
George Brown of McClain Insurance is not so sure of the future. He said for the past year, mall management has only renewed his lease on a month-to-month basis. In the past, they have had leases for a year or longer.
"We've been here 42 years and we'd like to stay," he said. "But I know malls usually like to have restaurants and retail."
Mr. Brown said as Publix gets closer to opening, he thinks the plans for the mall will be firmed up and he'll know more about the future of his business.
Sherry Ellis, president of A1A Tax and Bookkeeping, said they missed some foot traffic during construction but it did not affect their business because they have regular customers and get new business mostly by word of mouth.
"Our biggest problem was we had to sweep out a lot of dirt," she said.
Mr. Hicks of K's House of Charm is looking forward to the construction being finished.
"It hurt our walk-in business during the summer," he said. "In the end, it's going to help our business. The mall is going to be much more attractive. It will be one thousand percent better."