The owner of the Johnstown Galleria is speaking out after he recently filed a series of lawsuits, alleging that neighboring property owners failed to pay their share of maintenance costs.
Mall owner Leo Karruli also claims that the building they own is falling into serious disrepair.
Court documents show that Karruli and other owners of the mall filed lawsuits in Cambria County courts against Storage of America, the owner of the now empty Sears location.
Photos show some of the damage to the roof of the former Sears building, as well as to the inside of the store, including damaged ceiling tiles and paneling.
Karruli claims that the former Sears property is not being properly cared for by its owner and has been left in very poor condition.
He also claims that the owner is not paying for maintenance of the property.
Karruli says that he reached out to Richland Township, sending them a letter to inform them of the poor condition and claims that they have done nothing.
We reached out to township for comment but have not yet received a response.
Two years ago, the Richland Township zoning board unanimously denied a proposal by Storage of America to convert that former Sears store into a self-storage facility.
We asked Karruli if he believes that if those storage units were approved, that the property would be taken care of.
In response, he says that the storage units would not have been good for the mall.
We also asked if there has been conversation with any new anchors, such as the rumored Target store, to which he claims that he has met with Target, among several other department stores, and they told him that the owner of that space needs to reach out to them.
As we began to look into the issues at the Galleria, we discovered other lawsuits that Karruli filed against other properties, including the owner of the vacant Bon Ton location.
He’s claiming more of the same type of neglect to that store as well.
In regards to the Sears location, we also reached out to American Storage LLC, who declined to comment due to ongoing litigation.