According to growing rumors, TownMall in Westminster could be headed for closure?

By Timothy Cox for Patch Online.com

WESTMINSTER, MD -- In a non-responsive action to two media inquiry memos to TownMall Westminster ownership – as represented by public spokesperson Mark Seaman, as of the week of May 3, 2026 – this writer has yet to receive any confirmation or responses to my written inquiries.

Upon visiting mall headquarters or offices inside the mall, two young ladies suggested that I contact Mr. Seaman, in order to receive an official stance from mall ownership.

However, in my recent followups to what have been growing amounts of rumors and small-talk, suggesting that the mall is set to completely shut down by the end of September 2027, I have yet to receive any confirmation or denials about the shopping mall’s future. At least from an ownership's persective.

According to published reports, TownMall Westminster originally opened as Cranberry Mall in 1978.

In fact, I have also gotten a chance to access a business permit and it clearly states that the mall will be closing by the end of 2026 or by the beginning of 2027. On a positive note, a significant portion of the mall property could be re-built to represent a Super Wal-mart.

The permit was posted on a community Westminster Facebook page, according to Heather Fogel, manager of Eternia Dreams – a toy-gift shop located inside the TownMall area’s main thoroughfare.

According to published reports, TownMall of Westminster, formerly Cranberry Mall, is a shopping mall located in Westminster, Maryland, United States on Maryland Route 140, 30 miles northwest of Baltimore as owned by Westminster Mall LLC, and managed by The Woodmont Company. The mall features more than 20 stores, including a food court and Movie Theater. Belk, Boscov's, Dick's Sporting Goods, and RC Theaters are the mall's anchors. It's the only enclosed regional shopping center in Carroll County.

Historical Tidbits about TownMall Westminster:

The mall opened in 1978 as "Cranberry Mall". The original anchors were Leggett (now Belk), Caldor, Montgomery Ward (now Boscov's) and Sears, which opened on a site originally planned for Hutzler's before that chain went bankrupt. Montgomery Ward opened in 1990. After closing in 2001, Montgomery Ward became Boscov's,^[3][4] while Caldor closed in 1999 and later became the first Steve & Barry's store in Maryland. After this store closed, the space was split in 2010 between Dick's Sporting Goods, Gold's Gym and Paradise of Fun (now Fun and Fit Factory). It is the only mall to have both northeastern chain Boscov's and southern chain Belk together in the same mall. The Boscov's store has the only escalators in Carroll County.

In 2011, a man was stabbed in the mall.

As of December 2015, there have been a number of closings, including Shenk&Title, The Dress Barn, Super Buffet, Radio Shack, Bon Worth, Hurricane Racing, Deb, Things Remembered, KFC, and a coffee shop that had changed names a few times over the past two years Mugshots, Black and White, Coffee Shop. Many of the closed store's spaces remain vacant or house temporary seasonal clientele.

On June 23, 2017, Gold's Gym announced it would be closing as a result of an inability of not coming to terms of leasing. Later in the year, THE GYM opened up in that space.

In early December 2017, it was announced that the mall had been sold to Westminster Mall, LLC.

On October 15, 2018, it was announced the Sears store would be closing as part of a plan to close 142 stores nationwide as a result of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The store closed on January 6, 2019.

In 2021, Books-a-Million, FYE, and Yankee Candle are among the longtime tenants to close their doors.

Personally, as a media type and a Westminster resident, I along with my fellow shoppers and residents would certainly like for “our” mall to remain open.

And, with that being said, perhaps current mall owners can confirm whether or not there are plans to shutter the mall or keep the mall open?

Inquiring minds would like to know!

(About the Author: Timothy Cox lives in the Carroll County and Baltimore County meetro regions. He can be reached at teacawks2@gmail.com).