Glendale Galleria welcomes new stores

The owner of the Glendale Galleria emerged from bankruptcy protection Tuesday with a new operating plan that officials said would have little immediate impact on local consumers.

A spokeswoman for the Galleria's owner, Chicago-based General Growth Properties, said there were no immediate plans for changes at the Glendale mega-mall. General Growth owns or operates more than 200 malls.

Under the plan, the company restructured roughly $15 billion of project-level debt, and obtained $6.8 billion in new capital, according to an announcement. General Growth was also able to pay all creditor claims, the company said.

General Growth will also become two separate companies, with one controlling most of the mall properties, and the other focused more on master-planned communities and real estate development.

While the emergence from 19 months in Chapter 11 protection isn't expected to bring immediate change to the Galleria, the mall is already welcoming four new stores as the holiday shopping season kicks into gear.

Women's fashion store the Limited returned to the Galleria on Nov. 1 after a 13-year hiatus.

Executives from the Limited's Columbus, Ohio, headquarters visited the Glendale store for events including a Tuesday night appearance by fashion expert Jeannie Mai, host of the Style Network's "How Do I Look?"

Linda Heasley, chief executive of the Limited, was in the area scouting other Southland sites for an expansion of the chain, according to Marci Milito, director of public relations and events.

"We are really excited about being in L.A.," Milito said. "We don't have much of a presence in L.A., though our e-commerce site shows we have a lot of shoppers in this area."

Like the large anchor stores at the Galleria, Milito said. The Limited hopes to make its Glendale store a showplace. The shop, in a location near Macy's that formerly housed a Talbot's women's wear store, is 30% larger than typical and has room for a runway at special events, Milito said.

"We want this to be an event hub for us to continue to capitalize on this market," she said.

Other new Galleria stores include a Crocs shop, featuring the popular rubber sandals in a variety of eye-popping colors; BCBGeneration, with fashion-forward clothing and accessories for teens and young women; and the lingerie store Candid Intimates.

BCBGeneration and the Crocs store already have opened, while Candid Intimates is slated to open in December.

Anchored by Macy's, Nordstrom, JCPenney and Target, the Glendale Galleria has more than 200 boutiques and shops.

Shoshanna Puccia, marketing director for the Galleria, said the mall is now roughly 95% leased.

The mall is still looking for a tenant to occupy the prominent, former Mervyns department store site at Brand Boulevard and Broadway.

"We are actively searching for the right business," Puccia said.

FOR THE RECORD: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that the Burbank Town Center is operated by General Growth. It is now operated by Chicago-based Jones Lang LaSalle.