PORTLAND, Ore. -- An historic piece of downtown Portland is about to change.
Macy’s announced it has sold its iconic downtown store in the 600 block of Southwest 5th Avenue. The sale will close this year. The store will be open through the holiday season, closing this spring.
The deal outlined in an earnings report said Macy's has reached an agreement to sell the building for $54 million, netting the retailer about $36 million.
Macy's also will close its Lancaster Mall outlet next year when the lease expires.
The department store chain, based in Cincinnati, is closing 1 percent of its 700 stores nationwide. Selling off some of the more valuable real estate properties is part of that plan.
Longtime Portlanders remember sitting on Santa’s lap at that location. Others remember riding the monorail.
Macy’s bought parent company Meier & Frank back in 2005 and has been at the downtown location since 2007. Meier & Frank had been there since 1909.
Retail experts in Portland say the downtown retail market is hot.
Lisa Frisch, the Director of Retail Programming for the Portland Business Alliance, says the vacancy rate downtown is 6 percent, down from 12 percent during the recession. Downtown Portland has added 35 new retail businesses this year and more than 100 new businesses since 2009.
The new owners of the building have not been announced.
Earlier, the Portland Business Journal reported that stores at Washington Square and Clackamas Town Center will likely remain open.
