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Judge declares Eastland Mall a public nuisance

The property owners of the mall must bring several aspects of the mall back up to code, according to Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The City of Columbus has obtained a court order declaring Eastland Mall a public nuisance following months of neglect by the property's owners to fix several health and safety code violations.

The city filed a case against the property's owners, Eastland Mall Holdings LLC, in April 2021 after multiple inspections at the mall.

Inspectors discovered multiple violations including inadequate lighting, potholes in parking areas, structural issues and unauthorized zoning. The city has filed additional violations this year as well.

According to Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein, the court order says the property owners must bring the property into and maintain compliance by fixing parking lot violations by Aug. 13. The owners must also fix other code violations, including littering and solid waste, high grass, noncompliant graphics, graffiti, broken concrete, wall overhang and mortar voids by July 13.

“The conditions at Eastland Mall are a hazard to the public and immediate action must be taken to bring the property into compliance, and that begins with property owners stepping up to make improvements,” Klein said. “Eastland Mall is important to our east side communities, and we’re prepared to pursue every legal option to hold property owners accountable and ensure the site’s long-term economic health.”

In addition, the court ordered the Eastland Mall property owners to conduct daily litter pickup and biweekly maintenance of the grounds to maintain the property and keep it up to compliance.

A contempt hearing is scheduled for Sept. 22 to determine if the property owners complied with the order. If the owners did not fix the issues ordered by the court, the city would be authorized to abate the property at the owner's expense.

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