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Web posted Sunday, April 1, 2001 Eklutna kills Eagle River outlet mall By Steve Kadel Morris News Service-Alaska EAGLE RIVER -- A Hawaiian developer's hope of building Alaska's first outlet mall in Eagle River has evaporated without a stick of wood being erected on the proposed site. Wally Birk envisioned building the Great Alaska Factory Outlet Mall on 35 acres owned by Eklutna Inc. west of the North Eagle River exit, but delays in signing tenants doomed the project. "Mr. Birk's option with Eklutna has expired," said Deborah Luper, company spokeswoman. She said Eklutna allowed Birk "several extensions" but the landowner's patience finally ran out. "We did not see the progress we had expected," Luper said, "and with the current economic outlook for malls we did not believe the project would get off the ground." Eklutna won't try to find another developer to build a mall on the location. Luper said the company's board of directors has not decided whether to pursue a different type of commercial development or to turn the acreage back to residential property. Last June, with the mall project a year behind schedule, Birk won a deadline extension from the Planning and Zoning Commission. The new timetable called for ground-breaking this fall. However, Eklutna's decision ends the project. Luper said development "had not progressed to the point where ground-breaking or the installation of infrastructure specific to the outlet mall was necessary." Birk pinned much of the problem on failing to sign Nike as a major tenant in the mall. The plan was to build the mall in three phases. Phase I would have included about 133,000 square feet of shopping space on 17 acres.