Chester County’s only enclosed mall closed on June 30. After five decades as a retail hub, the nearly 1-million-square-foot Exton Square Mall once sparked a commercial boom in Exton, but the complex has been languishing for years with a desolate interior and only a handful of stores. The Boscov’s, Main Line Health offices and Round 1 entertainment venue will remain open. Abrams Realty & Development, which bought the mall from PREIT for more than $34 million, wants to transform the site into a mixed-use complex with hundreds of townhouses, rental apartments, a 55-plus community and a town center with shops, restaurants, medical offices and green space. West Whiteland supervisors rejected Abrams’ proposal over sewer, traffic and density concerns. The community has seen a subsequent rise in residential development, with millennials and baby boomers fueling demand for high-end, low-maintenance living. In the past five years, about 3,000 luxury apartments and townhouses have been built in the 13-square-mile township. Litigation relating to the development is ongoing.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 6/24/2026