Westwood Plaza Sold to Creditor, Tractor Supply Co. Building Expected to be Sheriff Sold in June | News

EBENSBOURGPa. – Foreclosures of Westwood Plaza in Lower Yoder Township and the Tractor Supply Co. building on Galleria Drive have resulted in sheriff sales.

The Westwood Plaza property went to its creditor on Friday, similar to the Johnstown Galleria last year. Both malls were owned by Zamias companies.

Zamias Services Inc. President Perry Russ said the company still has two holdings in the Johnstown area, East Hills Plaza at 1523 Scalp Ave. and University Park Plaza, 1425 Scalp Ave. in the township of Richland.

“They are doing extremely well,” he said.

The Zamias company’s website shows that it also leases and manages 4.6 million square feet of retail space in New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Westwood Plaza has struggled for years since losing its grocery anchor, Russ said. He did not comment on the sale of the square on Friday, saying it was a long-running formality.

The plaza was one of several properties auctioned Friday at the Cambria County Courthouse.

With an offer of $250,000, the creditor who foreclosed on the Westwood Plaza mortgage purchased the mall at 1919 Minno Drive.

It’s a typical decision by creditors who owe large sums of money to buy properties at sheriff’s sales and either sell them privately or continue to exploit them to recover the money owed, Russ said.

Last June, an $11.5 million judgment was entered into the square, which has been owned by Westwood Zamias Limited Partnership since 1990.

An attorney for the creditor, Deutsche Bank Trust Co., kicked off the auction Friday with a bid for $1,584 for sheriff’s fees. After just one more bid of $1,600, by a man named Tim Dollar, the bank’s attorney increased his bid to $250,000, which ended the bidding.

The plaza has tenants including Conemaugh Health System Offices, Westwood Plaza Theater & Cafe, Andolina Barber Shop, Bargain Beer & Pop, Burger King, Capri Pizza & Restaurant, Dollar Tree, Dunkin’ Donuts, H&R Block , HF Lenz Company, Northwest Bank, O’Shea’s Candies, Pizza Hut, Vantage Physical Therapy, Fine Wine & Good Spirits and Main Source Trading Corp.

The lawyer who bid on the square was from the law firm Knox McLaughlin Gornall & Sennet, but he declined to discuss his client’s purchase on Friday.

The Johnstown Galleria at 500 Galleria Drive was also the subject of a sale by the sheriff to its creditor last year.

“Malls closed nationwide have been challenged,” Russ said.

In the summer, a separately held Galleria Drive property is set to be auctioned.

Banks foreclosed on the mortgage of a commercial building at 640 Galleria Drive, occupied by Tractor Supply Co. The building is across the road from the former Bon-Ton department store.

The Tractor Supply building auction was rescheduled for Friday until June 10.

Tractor Supply Co. is the tenant, but the building is owned by 640 Galleria Drive LLC, which has consistently missed monthly loan payments since 2020, according to court documents. The judgment on the property is over $4 million.

Tractor Supply seems unfazed by the building owner’s lockdown.

“Since 2004, Tractor Supply has been proud to serve our neighbors and provide quality careers for our team members in the Johnstown community,” a Tractor Supply spokesperson said in an email. “We plan to continue to operate the 640 Galleria Drive site, and look forward to serving the ‘Out Here Lifestyle’ needs of our new and familiar friends and neighbors for many years to come.”