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Clothing store suing San Francisco mall over rampant crime

Pedestrians pass at Westfield San Francisco Centre on Market Street in Downtown San Francisco. | Source: Garrett Leahy/The Standard

Fashion brand American Eagle has filed a lawsuit against the owners of the troubled mall in Downtown formerly known as Westfield San Francisco Centre, alleging more than 100 “significant security incidents” in the 12 months before May. The alleged incidents include the brandishing of firearms, verbal assaults against employees and staff members being threatened with a machete.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in San Francisco Superior Court, said that neglect and purposeful rejection of criminal enforcement and security enhancements exposed its employees to theft, violence and aggression from customers. The news was first reported by the San Francisco Business Times.

“These incidents, individually and/or collectively, constitute an interference with American Eagle’s ability to use and enjoy the use of the store,” the suit said.

Shoppers browse at Nordstrom in San Francisco Centre on the Downtown department store's last day in business on Aug. 27. | Source: Jason Henry for The Standard

The company began leasing a first-floor store with an entrance onto Market Street at the mall in early 2017. The lease, which runs through the end of January 2028, requires American Eagle to pay “millions of dollars in annual rent” to Westfield, which “owes certain duties to American Eagle,” the lawsuit contends.

The embattled mall has been caught in a maelstrom of discussion about its future, with its behemoth Nordstrom store closing in August. Mayor London Breed has floated the idea of demolishing the mall and turning it into a soccer stadium.

Numerous stores have closed in San Francisco’s Downtown core, many of which cited unsafe conditions in the area. The new Ikea store that opened nearby recently on Market Street announced in April that the store will feature round-the-clock security.

French real estate company Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, which co-owns the building with Brookfield Properties, announced in June it would give up control of the mall and planned to default on a multimillion-dollar loan for the space. The mall has since been renamed San Francisco Centre.

Downtown San Francisco has many empty and shuttered storefronts. | Source: Jason Henry for The Standard

“American Eagle believed it was leasing a prime retail space with a street-front entrance in Downtown San Francisco from one of the most established and reputable retail landlords in the country,” the lawsuit added. “But Westfield let the mall deteriorate into disarray, leaving American Eagle and its employees to suffer and respond to gun violence, physical assaults, burglaries, and robberies.”

American Eagle said it closed the street entrance of its store in an attempt to make employees safer, doubled its security expenditures starting in 2022 with security guard hires, installed security window film to counter vandalism, burglaries and smash-and-grab robberies, and upgraded its security-camera system after incidents of violence. The company said the costs of the measures would not have been required if Westfield met its lease obligations.

“This is not the store American Eagle paid millions of dollars for, or the store that Westfield promised,” the lawsuit continues. “Westfield cannot walk away from the harm that it has caused without consequence. [Westfield] must be held accountable for the damages caused by its failures and broken promises.”

The company seeks compensatory damages for breach of contract to be determined at trial, including costs, expenses, pre-judgment and post-judgment interest, attorneys’ fees and costs and any additional relief deemed appropriate by a court.

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield did not respond to requests for comment.

American Eagle says it operates over 1,400 stores worldwide that pulled in more than $1.7 billion in gross revenue last year.