BY JOHN A. DARNELL JR.
      associate editor
      After lingering for about a year without paying property taxes, last week the Kohan Retail Investment Group paid its delinquent property tax bill, some $1.25 million. Kohan had attempted to pay at least three times on the bill, only to have those payments rejected because of insufficient funds.
      According to the Mahoning County Auditor, two parcels of property at Southern Park are held by Kohan interests. One parcel, used for the theater section owed $87,735 in back taxes; and a second parcel that is used for department stores and other retail purposes owed $937,840 in back taxes.
      Boardman Township officials were never contacted by Kohan about the delinquent tax payments, and it remains uncertain if a letter drafted for the Ohio Attorney General’s officials expressing concerns over the non-payment of taxes was ever sent to the Attorney General’s Office; and if so, if Boardman Township ever received a reply.
      A third section of the Southern Park Mall property, the former Higbee’s and Dillard’s store, is held by Boardman SC LLC, said to be an arm of the Cafaro Co. that operates the Eastwood Mall in Trumbull County.
      Boardman SC LLC purchased that property in 2019 for some $8.97 million, and within a year the site was devalued to $2.172 million, according to the auditor’s office. The site generates about $57,793 a year in property taxes that have been timely paid.
      All totaled, the three properties at the Southern Park Mall generate annual property taxes revenues of some $1.083 million.
      Of particular local interest, of the total property tax revenues on the three properties, the Boardman Local School Systems receives annual revenues of $391,574; Boardman Township government gets $146,979; and Boardman Park gets $8,129.
      Reportedly as the delinquent property taxes were paid, a man named William McClure has been named manager of the Southern park Mall.
      McClure, of Fairground Blvd., Canfield, is reportedly a Cardinal Mooney graduate and a graduate of Toledo University. He reportedly spent several years as a real estate agent in Florida, and prior to that was employed with the Edward J. DeBartolo Corp.
      In an interview reported by WFMJ. McClure said he’s going to be working on everything from attracting businesses to the mall to marketing.
      “We’re making plans, and we will be releasing those plans early into 2026. And it’s going to involve marketing, it’s going to involve new stores,” said McClure. “I can’t worry about what came before me. I can only worry about what’s happening right now.”
      McClure replaces Vincent Tyler who resigned as manager of the Southern Park Mall in mid-November, shortly after issues surfaced in late October over non-payment of salaries to mall employees.
      According to an article in the Youngstown Business Journal, Tyler said the payroll incident was the culmination of a host of other frustrations that he said led to his resignation. “It’s a culture of chaos,” he said of the ownership structure. “You don’t know who to ask. You don’t know who to get an answer from.”
      “The Southern Park Mall is a strong mall, and it’s profitable,” Tyler said, noting it’s 95 per cent filled. Approximately 2,600 are employed throughout the various retail stores in the complex and Tyler estimated Southern Park contributes to approximately $53 million in economic impact across the Mahoning Valley.
      Meeting on Dec. 16, Boardman Township Trustees Larry Moliterno, Tom Costello and Steve Yacovone, as well as Trustee-Elect Matt Gambrel, U.S. Rep. Michael Rulli, State Sen. Al Cutrona, State Rep. Tex Fischer and Boardman Fiscal Officer Brad Calhoun signed-off on a letter that addressed concerns about the Southern Park Mall.
      The letter was then sent to the Mahoning County Prosecutor’s Office for review, and not to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
      The host of elected officials asked if mall owner Kohan “has engaged in fraudulent or deceptive business practices related to bounced/dishonored tax payment checks,” requested the Ohio Attorney General’s Office could “determine whether there is a pattern of misconduct---serial bounced checks, misrepresentations for county tax authorities, or concealment of financial instability.”
      The letter concluded “As citizens (and taxpayers) in the community, we are deeply concerned that this major commercial property owner is not fulfilling their public tax obligation. The possibility that a business of this size is not paying what it owes, or is doing so in a way that violates the law, undermines public trust and harms the local government and community.
      “We are beyond frustrated with the deceptive practices and lack of communication from Kohan Retail Investment Group regarding the Southern Park Mall property.”
      And as the Southern Park Mall touts on its web site, “Stay Connected.” What?