The original owners of Bay Bridge Market Place couldn't attract enough customers to keep the business alive, even with top-draw tenants such as Harve Benard, Van Heusen and Mikasa. All but six of the 50 spaces are empty, and the managing company, B2CD Associates, declared bankruptcy two years ago.
But Douglas Jemal, a Rockville developer, figures a $1 million face lift will breathe life into Anne Arundel County's only outlet mall and attract tenants to fill it. He took over the 100,000-square-foot strip center at the western approach to the Bay Bridge last summer and began adding new facades, canopies and a new name -- Jemal's Bay 50 Outlet Mall.
"What happened here before is that it didn't have the right eye appeal," Mr. Jemal said. "If you don't have the right look, you won't attract the consumers."
Mr. Jemal, who manages 11 strip malls in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, said the U.S. 50 center didn't have the right colors, lighting or visibility from the highway. He also said poor management and the recession helped bring it down.
"Put those three together, and it's three strikes and you're out of the ballgame," said Mr. Jemal, president of Douglas Development Corp. and one of the owners of Nobody Beats the Wiz, a New Jersey-based chain of electronics stores.
Mr. Jemal believes the renovation, which is to be completed next month, will lure brand-name factory stores such as The Gap, Barney's and Reebok to move in by spring.
Merchants said the opening of two other outlet malls less than 15 miles away on the Eastern Shore and upgrades to U.S. 50, which made access more difficult, contributed to the mall's problems.
The traffic changes also hurt the Kent Narrows Factory Stores, which opened in 1987 as the second outlet mall along U.S. 50. The 97,000-square-foot center in Chester was filled until a few years ago. Now, it has only a dozen tenants.
"The restructuring of 50 had a tremendous impact. There was major construction right at our doors," said Stacy Wyman, general manager of the mall, which is owned by Willey Creek Co. of Exeter, N.H.
But Ms. Wyman said she expects business to pick up as people adjust to the new traffic patterns.
Meanwhile, Chesapeake Village, the third and largest of the outlet malls, escaped the roadwork that bedeviled the competition and thrived. The 219,300-square-foot center in Queenstown has maintained 100 percent occupancy since it opened in 1989.
"One thing that Chesapeake Village has is tremendous access," said Sarah Elder, regional marketing manager for mall owner McArthur/Glen Realty, of McLean, Va.
"We're at the intersection of 50 and 301 -- so we're at the intersection of not one but two major arteries."
With 59 stores and tenants such as Anne Klein, J. Crew and Nike, Chesapeake Village has more to offer than the other malls.
"You're looking at a critical mass of outlet stores," said Ms. Elder, whose company also runs 20 outlet malls across the country, including one in Perryville.
A few of the merchants remaining at the Annapolis-area Bay Bridge Market Place say they have stayed because of the access provided by U.S. 50.
"This has been an excellent location for us," said Sara Summa, manager of Mikasa, the mall's oldest tenant. "It's on the way to the ocean, we have a lot of Washington and Baltimore customers and people from the Eastern Shore."
And with the renovations and new management, things can only get better, she added.
"I think this is going to be a booming place," Ms. Summa said. "We're looking forward to full occupancy. The more the merrier."
But at least one longtime tenant isn't banking on a revival. Windsurfing Unlimited is moving this month to the Festival at Riva, on Riva Road in Annapolis.
Manager Mark Bandy said the location near the Bay Bridge is good for windsurfing clientele during the summer, but the store has a hard time selling other merchandise, such as snow boards or in-line roller skates.