Belle Oaks Marketplace continues to take shape where the former Richmond Town Square mall in Richmond Heights once stood. With construction equipment moving dirt, water housing tamping down clouds of dust and work crews standing by to work on the new Firestone building, the site of the old mall looks much different today. Jeremy Kumin, a spokesperson for Belle Oaks Marketplace’s California-based developer DealPoint Merrill, said in an update on their Facebook page that the concrete pad for the new Meijer building has been poured and prefabricated walls have already been trucked in. Walls go up for more buildings at the Belle Oaks Marketplace Development. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) He said that the leasing office on the corner of Richmond and Wilson Mills roads, whose foundation pad has been cleared and prepped for further construction for around a month, should be under construction by August. “New signage just went up on the JustStorage building. Branded with the development name, the sign really shines! We love seeing our name in lights,” Kumin wrote in a June Facebook post. “Progress continues on the new Firestone building. The building’s handsome features begin to emerge. Work on getting the building under roof is accelerating! Hopefully, the hot weather we have for the next week or so will help and not hinder the crews.” Construction equipment dig a trench for a pipe outside the Firestone Building. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) “Work continues at the new Firestone Building and it’s really starting to take shape,” he wrote in a separate late June Facebook post. “Some of the architectural features are starting to come into focus and now, work has commenced on the interior space as the floor is prepped for concrete! I don’t know about you, but I love to watch as buildings are erected.” Shoring equipment is placed outside of a future area of development. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) One holdup that has been a problem for Belle Oaks Marketplace has been the Sears building, which was connected to the mall, and since is considered a historic building by the Historical Society since it is 55 years old. The issue came up at a recent City Council meeting where newly hired economic development director Chelsey Kovar reassured council members that the building does not meet the other criteria of being historic besides age. Prefabricated walls are placed for future buildings inside the Belle Oaks Marketplace Development. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) “Historic buildings need to have some unique aspects to their architecture,” Kovar told council. “There were many Sears buildings that looked like this. This building is not historic. I repeat, it is not historic.” Kovar went on to say the building should be approved for demolition by federal and state agencies soon, and the delay it might cause on construction should be minimal.