{"id": "n-9aff49fd4a", "slug": "asheville-former-sears-store-at-asheville-mall", "type": "big-box", "name": "Former Sears store at Asheville Mall", "aka": [], "city": "Asheville", "county": "Buncombe County", "state": "NC", "country": "US", "census_division": 5, "lat": 35.59536, "lon": -82.55084, "geocode_method": "nominatim-city", "address": null, "metro": null, "original_use": "Sears store", "year_opened": null, "year_closed": null, "acres": null, "gla_sqft": null, "stores_peak": null, "levels": null, "original_developer": null, "original_architect": null, "before_notes": "Draft from wlos.com, model-extracted, unreviewed: The former Sears store at Asheville Mall was proposed for a mixed-use development with housing, retail, and entertainment but remains empty as plans fell through.", "strategy": ["redevelop"], "new_use": ["entertainment", "housing", "retail"], "share_retrofit": null, "status": "proposed", "year_retrofit": null, "developer": null, "architect": null, "after_notes": "still sitting empty", "narrative": null, "narrative_license": null, "narrative_source": null, "zoning_change": null, "public_subsidy": null, "entitlement_year": null, "planning_notes": null, "wikidata_qid": null, "wikipedia": null, "osm_id": null, "verified": "draft", "verified_by": null, "last_verified": null, "last_updated": "2026-10-18", "created": "2026-10-18", "contributor_name": null, "contributor_org": null, "contributor_link": null, "international": 0, "county_fips": "37021", "opp_score": 5.0, "opp_reasons": ["already in play: under construction, approved, or sold to a developer with housing plans", "county grew 6.8% 2018–23", "housing in the record"], "for_sale": 0, "distressed": 0, "url": "https://retrofitatlas.org/big-box/nc/asheville-former-sears-store-at-asheville-mall/", "events": [], "sources": [{"id": 8801, "site_id": "n-9aff49fd4a", "url": "https://wlos.com/news/local/what-happened-to-plans-for-a-mixed-use-development-at-former-sears-site", "title": "What happened to plans for a mixed-use development at former ...", "publisher": "wlos.com", "date": null, "quote": "former Sears store at Asheville Mall", "kind": "news", "license": null, "retrieved": "2026-10-18"}], "deals": [], "parties": [], "parcels": [], "context": {"assessment": {"what_happened": "The former Sears store at Asheville Mall remains vacant despite being listed as 'proposed' for redevelopment. It has not been occupied since closing.", "why": "The site is empty (after_notes: 'still sitting empty'), and the proposed new uses (entertainment, housing, retail) have not materialized. Housing market data shows active construction (1,379 single-unit permits in 2024) and a 6.8% county population growth (2018–2023), but no progress on this specific site.", "where_it_stands": "No developer or timeline is specified. The site is within 8.7km of Biltmore Square Mall (status unknown).", "for_a_planner": ["Vacancy status is current (not under construction or sold).", "Housing demand is active in Buncombe County (per 2024 permits).", "I-240 traffic (80,082 ADT) provides access."], "for_a_developer": ["No active deals or approvals noted.", "Housing market shows demand (ZHVI: $440k, down 4.4% YoY).", "No information on land costs or existing permits for this site."], "risks_and_unknowns": ["No timeline for redevelopment.", "No developer identified.", "Biltmore Square Mall status unknown (may affect competition)."], "data_quality": "partial", "one_line": "Vacant Sears site in Asheville; proposed redevelopment stalled despite housing market activity in county.", "model": "qwen3-30b-a3b-64k:latest", "machine": "Dell 5820 RTX 3090 (Ollama, qwen3-30b-a3b)", "record_sha1": "4f4bc17362ae"}, "cluster": {"within_10km": [{"id": "m-9fbc6f2855", "name": "Biltmore Square Mall", "city": "Asheville", "status": "unknown", "km": 8.7}], "count_10km": 1, "count_25km": 1}, "elevation": {"elevation_ft": 2219.3, "resolution": 1, "source": "USGS EPQS (3DEP)", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "food_access": {"tract10": "37021000100", "urban": 1, "lila_1_10": 0, "low_access_1mi": 0, "poverty_rate": 25.197628458498002, "median_family_income": 69896.0, "snap_households": 188.0, "pop2010": 1398.0, "source": "USDA ERS Food Access Research Atlas 2019 (ArcGIS copy)", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "housing_market": {"zhvi": {"latest": 440368, "month": "2026-09", "change_1y": -0.044, "change_5y": 0.16}, "zori": {"latest": 1700, "month": "2026-09", "change_1y": 0.001, "change_5y": 0.166}, "county_fips": "37021", "source": "Zillow Research (ZHVI, ZORI)"}, "jobs_lodes": {"tract20": "37021000100", "jobs": 13022, "retail_jobs": 962, "food_accommodation_jobs": 3061, "year": 2022, "source": "Census LEHD LODES8 WAC 2022 (all jobs, primary and secondary), blocks summed to the 2020 tract", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "listings": {"zip": "28801", "month": "202609", "median_listing_price": 749945, "median_listing_price_yy": -0.0456, "active_listing_count": 126, "median_days_on_market": 74, "price_reduced_share": 0.1904, "pending_ratio": 0.247, "source": "Realtor.com Research, inventory core metrics by ZIP (ZCTA at the site point)", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "opportunity": {"tract10": "37021000100", "kfr_p25": 0.3829, "jail_p25": 0.0252, "kids_count": 24.4956, "commuting_zone": "Asheville", "vintage": "children born 1978-83, outcomes measured 2014-15", "source": "Opportunity Insights, Opportunity Atlas (Chetty, Friedman, Hendren, Jones, Porter 2018)", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "peers": {"peers": [{"id": "n-aceb3108cc", "name": "Research Triangle Park", "city": "Raleigh-Durham", "state": "NC", "score": 4.5, "why": ["same strategy: redevelop", "also in NC"]}, {"id": "n-feb9adae3d", "name": "Carolina Shores Golf Course and Country Club", "city": "Carolina Shores", "state": "NC", "score": 4.5, "why": ["same strategy: redevelop", "also in NC"]}, {"id": "n-1b7e2ef508", "name": "Former Carolina Shores Golf & Country Club", "city": "Carolina Shores", "state": "NC", "score": 4.5, "why": ["same strategy: redevelop", "also in NC"]}, {"id": "m-8699fc85c6", "name": "Midtown Square Mall", "city": "Charlotte", "state": "NC", "score": 4.0, "why": ["same strategy: redevelop", "also in NC"]}, {"id": "m-ecc37a2c35", "name": "North Hills Mall", "city": "Raleigh", "state": "NC", "score": 4.0, "why": ["same strategy: redevelop", "also in NC"]}, {"id": "m-e196fd4dd2", "name": "Westchester Mall", "city": "High Point", "state": "NC", "score": 4.0, "why": ["same strategy: redevelop", "also in NC"]}], "method": "size, era, strategy, status, type, state, distance"}, "permits": {"county": "Buncombe County", "2024": {"units_1": 1379, "units_2_4": 10, "units_5plus": 2224, "value_total": 948581187}, "2023": {"units_1": 1383, "units_2_4": 12, "units_5plus": 1199, "value_total": 742057715}, "retrieved": "2026-10-18"}, "qcew_retail": {"county": "37021", "year": 2025, "establishments": 1326, "employment": 17293, "avg_annual_pay": 40112, "lq_employment": 1.3, "employment_change_1y": 0.2, "source": "BLS QCEW 2025 annual, county, NAICS 44-45 retail trade, private", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "retail_trend": {"2012": {"estab": 1132, "emp": 16275}, "2023": {"estab": 1320, "emp": 19291}, "estab_change": 0.166, "emp_change": 0.185, "county_fips": "37021"}, "schools": {"district": "Asheville City Schools", "district_geoid": "3700270", "grades": "KG-12", "district_vintage": "SY2024-25", "public_schools_1mi": 5, "schools": ["Claxton Elementary", "Asheville Middle", "Isaac Dickson Elementary", "Montford North Star Academy", "Mountain City Public Montessori"], "schools_vintage": "SY2023-24", "source": "NCES EDGE", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "storms": {"county": "37021", "years": "2016-2025", "events": 100, "by_type": {"Thunderstorm Wind": 53, "Hail": 27, "Flash Flood": 12, "Flood": 6, "Tornado": 1, "Debris Flow": 1}, "property_damage_usd": 602628000, "deaths_direct": 38, "injuries_direct": 0, "note": "county-typed events only; events logged to forecast zones (CZ_TYPE Z: most winter, heat, flood and coastal events) are not counted", "source": "NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, details files", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}, "traffic": {"max_aadt": 80082, "trucks_aadt": 2131, "road": "I-240", "class": "Interstate", "lanes": 4, "segments_600m": 33, "year": "2024", "source": "FHWA HPMS", "retrieved": "2026-10-20"}}, "elements": [{"slug": "use-retail", "name": "Retail (continued)", "group_": "use", "evidence": "new_use field", "origin": "newtypes-extraction"}, {"slug": "place-apartment-boom-county", "name": "County permitting 2,000+ apartment units a year", "group_": "place", "evidence": "2,224 units, Buncombe County", "origin": "census-bps"}, {"slug": "strategy-redevelop", "name": "Redeveloped", "group_": "strategy", "evidence": "still sitting empty", "origin": "record"}, {"slug": "use-housing", "name": "Housing", "group_": "use", "evidence": "new_use field", "origin": "newtypes-extraction"}, {"slug": "place-high-traffic", "name": "30,000+ vehicles a day on an adjacent road", "group_": "place", "evidence": "80,082 on I-240", "origin": "fhwa-hpms"}, {"slug": "place-freeway-frontage", "name": "Interstate or freeway within 600 m", "group_": "place", "evidence": "I-240", "origin": "fhwa-hpms"}, {"slug": "use-entertainment", "name": "Entertainment and sports", "group_": "use", "evidence": "new_use field", "origin": "newtypes-extraction"}, {"slug": "status-pipeline", "name": "Retrofit in the pipeline", "group_": "finance", "evidence": "proposed", "origin": "record"}], "details": {}, "photos": [], "provenance": {"after_notes": "newtypes-extraction"}, "restricted_fields": {"parcels": ["owner_addr", "assessed", "taxable", "tax_amount", "sale_price", "deed_ref"], "deals": ["price", "price_per_acre", "price_per_sqft", "loan_amount", "asking_price"], "how": "free API key: POST /api/v1/keys {\"email\": …}"}}