Arden Fair mall closes until further notice over coronavirus concerns

Arden Fair mall has become the latest closure over the coronavirus pandemic in Sacramento, with a mall official telling The Sacramento Bee on Tuesday night that the shopping enter is shutting down immediately until officials determine it is safe to reopen.

“We are going to be in constant contact with all the (public health and law enforcement) agencies and we won’t open until it’s safe for our employees and our guests,” Nathan Spradlin, the senior marketing manager for the mall, said in an interview shortly before the center closed at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

The mall, which has 165 stores employing more than 1,000 workers, already had reduced its hours to be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. as concerns about the outbreak of COVID-19 grew. But as city and county officials warned against people going out in public unless necessary, mall officials decided to shut down a center that attracts about 9 million people a year.

“That really was the impetus for us to protect the health and safety of our employees and patrons,” Spradlin said. “We’ve been in nearly constant contact with our tenants, as well as the city and the police department.”

The closure includes Market Square at Arden Fair, and will continue indefinitely.

The mall, anchored by major tenants including Nordstrom, Sears, Macy’s and J.C. Penney, is shutting down amid a raft of closures across Northern California of casinos, restaurants, bars, schools and numerous gathering places for residents, with government officials ramping up their warnings on a daily basis that people should stay home unless absolutely necessary.

Arden Fair is the first major mall to announce such a closure in the region.

The Westfield Galleria at Roseville said on its website late Tuesday that it “remains open and operating so that retailers are able to serve the broader community and their customers during this unprecedented global pandemic; and so that we continue to support the local economy, ensuring that critical products and services are available to those who need them.”

This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 7:24 PM.