The Bangor Daily News was the first to report this story. What you’re reading here would likely not be made public without the efforts of professional journalists asking questions, interviewing sources and obtaining documents.
The Bangor Mall is being sold, a Maine senator told the Bangor Daily News, though few other details about the pending sale are known.
A “local buyer” is under contract to buy the mall from Namdar Realty Group, Sen. Joe Baldacci exclusively told the BDN on Tuesday.
He declined to say who is buying the mall.
Baldacci has worked with developers over the past year who have expressed interest in purchasing the mall, after he proposed a bill to turn the property into affordable housing.
It is unclear when the sale will be completed and what will become of the property. A contract is signed, but it may be 30 to 60 days before things move forward, Baldacci said. A sale allows a new owner to try to revitalize the decaying property.
The mall’s owner, Namdar Realty Group, did not respond to a request for comment by time of publication. It first publicly mentioned selling the property six months ago.
The city of Bangor is unable to confirm if a sale is happening, spokesperson David Warren said.
If the sale goes through, it could usher in a new era for the Bangor Mall, which has been mired in legal disputes for years over its deteriorating condition and environmental hazards. The property has hemorrhaged tenants in recent years, leading some to consider future possibilities for the space beyond retail.
A group of investors is buying the property and are committed to making the mall more viable as a commercial space and public area, Baldacci said. One investor is a business man with “deep local roots” and a family that goes back generations in Bangor, Baladacci said.
“I’m very glad we’re at the position we’re at and it’s a long road behind us and there’s still a long road in front of us, but it’s better that the property be in local control,” Baldacci said.
New York-based Namdar bought the mall for $12.6 million in 2019, which was only half of the assessed value at the time. The property was assessed at just under $13.5 million as of April 1, 2025, according to the city of Bangor.
Namdar owns 380 properties across 37 states and at least four of its malls have been the subject of lawsuits. The company is facing more than 100 criminal complaints in Pennsylvania.
The sale comes as Namdar works to negotiate a settlement with the city of Bangor, after a judge ruled the company must pay $1.1 million for code violations ranging from sewer and roof leaks to potholes.
The city in February condemned the portion of the mall that once held a Sears. The city also cut the power to that same wing, forcing several businesses to either relocate or temporarily close.
Baldacci previously proposed a bill that would direct the state housing authority to buy the Bangor Mall, or seize it by eminent domain, and turn the property into 37 affordable housing units, including a mixture of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.
The Maine State Housing Authority said it did not want to be put in charge of buying and redeveloping the mall.
The bill did not pass. Instead, lawmakers passed a resolution directing the Maine Redevelopment Land Bank Authority to research uses of the property.
