On August 13, 2025, the Citrus Heights City Council is set to convene a closed session meeting that could shape the future of one of its most prominent landmarks: Sunrise Mall. The council will discuss real estate negotiations with Namdar Realty Group, the majority owner of the mall, involving three key property parcels. This move comes amid mounting frustration over the mall's decline and a litany of unresolved code violations, signaling a pivotal moment for both the city and Namdar, a company whose national portfolio has come under increasing scrutiny for similar issues elsewhere.
According to The Citrus Heights Sentinel, the council’s agenda lists the parcels under negotiation as APNs 243-0192-015, 243-0192-017, and 243-0192-012. These parcels represent the heart of the Sunrise Mall complex: the main building, the former Macy’s Men’s and Women’s stores, and a significant portion of the parking lot. Namdar Realty Group, a New York–based firm specializing in the acquisition of struggling malls, became the majority owner after purchasing parts of the property in December 2018 and again in 2020.
But what was once a bustling retail hub has deteriorated sharply. As of the end of July 2025, only about 20 businesses remain in the mall, which was originally designed to host up to 120 tenants. The decline is starkly visible, not only in the empty storefronts but in the mounting code enforcement violations. By mid-July, the mall had racked up over $500,000 in fines for various infractions, many tied to health and safety concerns identified during joint inspections with Sacramento County and Metro Fire District officials.
After these inspections, the city issued Namdar a Notice to Abate, ordering the company to address the violations. Yet, as of August 2025, Namdar had not corrected the major issues. Frustrated by the lack of progress, Citrus Heights took the significant step of filing a lawsuit against Namdar on July 15, 2025, alleging ongoing neglect and the creation of a nuisance property.
The complexity of the situation is compounded by the mall’s fractured ownership structure. The nearly 100-acre Sunrise Mall property is split into seven parcels controlled by five different entities, making coordinated redevelopment efforts a logistical headache. Namdar controls the central 25-acre parcel with the main building and two additional 12-acre parcels that once housed Macy’s. The rest is owned by various parties, including Ethan Conrad Properties, JCPenney, Red Robin, and Antioch Street LP.
While the closed session at 5 p.m. on August 13 will be behind closed doors, the city council will reconvene in open session at 6 p.m., where the public will be watching closely for any hints of progress. The stakes are high, not just for Citrus Heights, but for communities across the country grappling with the fallout from mall decline and absentee ownership.
Namdar Realty Group’s troubles are not confined to California. According to TribLive, the company owns 372 properties across 37 states, and a pattern of neglect has emerged at several of its sites. In Frazer Township, Pennsylvania, where Namdar owns the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills, local authorities issued a staggering 400 citations in April and May 2025 for issues ranging from crumbling parking lots and knee-high grass to inoperable doors. In July, a lawyer for Namdar pleaded guilty to 36 of these citations, resulting in a $1.8 million fine imposed by a local magistrate. Another hearing is scheduled for late August to address further citations related to potholes and road conditions.
Frazer Township’s aggressive enforcement stands in contrast to the slower-moving legal battles elsewhere. The Office of the District Attorney of Allegheny County has also criminally charged the LLC that owns Pittsburgh Mills with public nuisance, with a jury trial set for February 2026. "The code violations overlap with some of the issues alleged in the criminal public nuisance," a spokesperson for the Allegheny County DA’s office told TribLive, though they declined further comment on the pending case.
Meanwhile, in Bangor, Maine, Namdar faces two pending lawsuits filed by the city. In April 2025, a judge ruled that Namdar had violated multiple city codes at Bangor Mall, another property in the company’s vast portfolio. Back in February, the city asked the court to assess at least $2 million in fines and fees. While no fines have been levied yet, some repairs have begun at the Bangor Mall, including patching potholes and fixing a broken sewer main near the former Books-A-Million store—a problem that originated with a sinkhole in August 2024. City spokesperson David Warren confirmed that plans to repair the sewer main are being finalized and that leaking skylights in the roof have either been repaired or replaced. Still, some issues persist: the mall’s sign remains missing letters, and the final hearing in the case is scheduled for September 22, 2025.
The pattern is hard to ignore. Namdar’s properties have been plagued by a range of problems, from defaulted loans in Connecticut to rodents in a food court in California, as reported by TribLive. Municipalities, for their part, are increasingly turning to legal action and hefty fines in an effort to compel the company to maintain its properties. But results have varied. In Frazer Township, the swift admission of guilt and substantial fine stand in contrast to the protracted lawsuits and slow repairs seen in Bangor and Citrus Heights.
Namdar itself has remained largely silent in the face of mounting criticism and legal pressure. In both Bangor and Citrus Heights, the company declined to provide comment to reporters. This silence has only fueled frustration among local officials and residents eager for solutions to the blight and safety hazards associated with neglected malls.
Back in Citrus Heights, the city’s lawsuit and the upcoming negotiations represent a critical juncture. The council’s willingness to pursue all available legal and administrative avenues underscores the seriousness of the situation. As the city’s negotiators—City Manager Ash Feeney and City Attorney Ryan Jones—sit down with Namdar’s representatives, the community will be hoping for a breakthrough that could pave the way for the mall’s revitalization, or at the very least, a resolution to the ongoing health and safety concerns.
For now, all eyes are on Citrus Heights City Hall. The outcome of the closed session and subsequent open meeting could signal whether local governments can successfully hold absentee mall owners accountable—or whether the cycle of neglect and legal wrangling will continue to play out, one struggling property at a time.