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May 12, 2020

Westfield announces reopening plans for Trumbull, Meriden malls

PHOTO | New Haven BIZ The calm before the storm?: Westfield Trumbull mall.
By Michael C. Bingham

Westfield Shopping Centers announced Monday that it would open its Connecticut shopping malls to customers as of the May 20 target date.

Initial hours for Westfield Trumbull and Westfield Meriden will be 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays beginning next Wednesday.

On Saturday the office of Gov. Ned Lamont released its “Reopen Connecticut” guidelines for the first phase of reopening businesses that were closed by executive order after the March 10 emergency declaration. Previous “non-essential” businesses permitted to reopen beginning next week include retail stores (standalone as well as in shopping centers and malls), restaurants, offices and other businesses and public accommodations.

“Westfield is excited to open our doors again to the Connecticut community as we begin our initial recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Patrick Madden, Westfield’s vice president of shopping center management, in a statement. “We are working closely with local officials and other relevant community groups to ensure a healthy, clean and safe environment for our customers, tenants and employees; and are committed to providing the best experience possible as business begins to operate at the centers.”  

Westfield management says the company’s Connecticut centers will implement new practices focused on the health, safety and convenience of all guests, as well as retailer and center employees. They include: 

  • Increasing the frequency of cleaning measures following federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and local health department guidelines, with a focus on high-touch areas such as restrooms, play areas, dining areas and water fountains.
  • Monitoring and controlling the number of shoppers entering the centers and crowds in dwell areas and queuing lines.
  • Implementing and enforcing pertinent policies related to social distancing, face masks and other preventative measures.
  • Making available ample hand sanitizer and hand-washing stations, along with protective masks and other materials to those guests and employees who request them.

In addition, the centers are working with select retailers to facilitate curbside pick-up to make it as easy as possible for customers to quickly and safely collect purchases. More details on these programs are available from individual retailers, or through each center’s website (westfield.com/trumbull, westfield.com/meriden).

At least one academic economist expressed skepticism about shoppers’ reaction to the malls’ reopening.

“While all of us want to reopen the economy and get people and businesses back to work, I do not anticipate that most consumers are ready to go back into the stores,” said Fred McKinney, the Carlton Highsmith Chair for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and director of the People’s United Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Quinnipiac University.

“There will be some consumers who will return early to retail establishments like the mall in Meriden and Trumbull,” McKinney added. However, “The flow of consumers is likely to be a trickle, not a flood.” 

As of Tuesday morning a number of other Connecticut mall operators were still mulling details of reopening plans. These include Simon Property Group, the nation’s largest mall operator and owner of Clinton Crossing Premium Outlet, and Centennial Real Estate, owner of the Connecticut Post Mall in Milford.

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