Muncy Township, Pa. — If you build it, they will come.
That was the theme Sunday afternoon as local officials and developers Famvest Partners addressed a crowd of several hundred people regarding plans for the former Lycoming Mall site, including a more than 77,000 square-foot Bass Pro Shops.
The public open house, which was held from 2 to 3 p.m. March 1 at the former Best Buy store, was hosted by Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce and Famvest, who purchased the former mall in 2023 and renamed the site District at Lycoming Valley.
It was standing room only as several hundred members of the public came to hear plans for the long-awaited redevelopment of the mall. A table set up near the front entrance had a sign asking attendees to write down what they would like to see come to the District at Lycoming Valley. There also was a paper to write questions, which were to be discussed at the end of the speaker session.
Several hundred members of the community attended the open house event on Sunday, March 1 at the former Best Buy.
Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce President/CEO Jason Fink started the event by discussing the history of the former mall and how it declined when its fourth owner, Kohan Retail Investment Group, failed to invest in the property and did not fill empty store spaces. The mall closed in February 2023.
Now, three years later, Bass Pro Shops has committed to being an anchor space and several other national retailers said they will locate at the 120-acre property once construction begins, according to Ara Kervandjian, vice president for Famvest. A national retailer is close to signing to go into the former Big Lots space, he added.
Wawa, Hilton planned for property
The crowd began to clap when Kervandjian announced a Wawa gas station and a Hilton brand hotel will locate directly across the street from Bass Pro Shops at the Bush House property. Famvest bought the Bush House Estates in 2023. It includes several acres of farmland property and a historic home that served as a lodging and an event venue.
Bass Pro Shops, which will be an anchor at the District at Lycoming Valley, typically is a draw for other retailers to locate to an area. The store is expected to bring in several million visitors from as far as New York state, and will bring millions of dollars of revenue to the area.
“Bass Pro is the catalyst, for sure,” Kervandjian said. “It is the anchor that creates energy and momentum but it is not the end of the vision, it’s just the beginning.”
Attendees listen as the new plans for the former mall are discussed at an open house event.
The location for the future Bass Pro Shops is ideal because it’s at the gateway of the PA Wilds, according to Kervandjian. “The alignment could not be more natural. This is more than retail development. It is an opportunity to celebrate and amplify the outdoor heritage that defines our region. And it is an opportunity that will benefit this community for decades to come,” Kervandjian said.
Kervandjian said the Bass Pro Shops will be an outpost store and will be four times the size of the current Best Buy space. Plans for the new store will build off the existing Best Buy store, adding additional space from the front entrance out to the far edge of the parking lot. A second level also will be built. A parking lot will be constructed east of the current lot in what is currently a grassy area.
Bass Pro Shops’ land development plans have been submitted to Muncy Township, Department of Environmental Protection, and Army Corp of Engineers. Construction is expected to begin late this spring with a projected opening in 2027, Kervandjian said.
The Muncy Bass Pro Shops store will be one of just a few in Pennsylvania. Currently, there is only one other Bass Pro Shops in the state, located in Harrisburg. Another location will be going in the Pittsburgh area.
Lawmakers react
State Rep. Joe Hamm said officials in Lycoming County were in competition with other areas, including State College and Wilkes-Barre, to get a Bass Pro Shops. The outdoor retailer has 180 stores nationwide, Hamm said. “Do the math. That’s three stores per state,” Hamm said. Muncy will be one of the few in Pennsylvania. “I don’t care if it’s 70,000 square-feet or 100,000 square-feet, we’re landing a Bass Pro Shop,” Hamm said.
Sen. Gene Yaw, who also spoke, said the population in Lycoming County has been steadily declining. “We will lose population provided we maintain status quo and don’t do anything. That’s why this is important,” Yaw said, adding this is the largest construction project in the county in 50 years. Yaw and several other officials also cited loss of a younger population and noted the development of the area could help keep this generation’s children here.
Jason Fink of Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce speaks during an open house detailing future plans for the District at Lycoming Valley.
Officials pointed out how much money the county had lost when the Lycoming Mall started to decline under the previous owner’s tenure. The mall officially closed in February 2023 and it has created not only loss of tax base dollars for the county, but also for Muncy Township. Lycoming County Commissioner Scott Metzger said the county, Muncy Township, and Muncy School District have lost more than $6 million in tax dollars in the past few years due to the vacant mall. Metzger also said due to loss of tax base in the county the commissioners had to raise taxes last year.
President of the board of Muncy School District, Scott Johnson, also addressed the crowd and emphasized how important the tax revenue of the mall had been to the school district. The district has not raised taxes for the past six years. With teacher contracts and rising costs, the school district is now under pressure, Johnson said, as he cited the millions lost from lack of revenue at mall property.
Other speakers included Muncy Township supervisor Terri Lauchle, who vouched support for the project. Lauchle said the township’s role isn’t about promotion nor is it about opposition, but rather making sure that things move along in accordance with zoning and state laws.
Questions answered
There was time at the end for roughly 10 submitted questions, as Fink read off questions about future plans for the property. One person questioned putting a gas station at the former Bush House property. Jon Johanshahi, president of Famvest, said the developers purchased the 2 to 3-acre property a few years ago and have put it for sale but have not found a buyer.
A sign encourages attendees at the open house to share what businesses they’d like to see come to the former mall property.
“We have to tear it down. We bought it to develop it,” Johanshahi said. However, a person expressed interest and Famvest is going to meet with her when she returns from Florida, Johanshahi said.
Johanshahi also fielded a question about the mall itself, stating it will eventually be razed and redeveloped to build for national tenants who have interest to locate there. Kervandjian took a question regarding if residential development will occur there, to which he replied that the development at this time will be all commercial.
When asked if a department store will go into the former mall property, Kervandjian said, “I can’t comment.”
The remaining questions and answers will be posted by Friday, March 6 on the District at Lycoming Valley website.