Cafaro Company
The Cafaro Company is an American property management and real estate development company that owns several retail shopping centers throughout the United States. Based in Niles, Ohio, it is the largest privately owned shopping center development and management company in the U.S., managing more than of commercial real estate throughout the country.
History
Brothers William M. Cafaro and John A. Cafaro began developing grocery stores for Kroger in 1942. In 1949, they formed William M. Cafaro & Associates and expanded into shopping center development, beginning with a grocery plaza in Sharon, Pennsylvania. The brothers managed the non-grocery tenants in the centers they developed.In 1965, Cafaro opened its first regional shopping mall, American Mall in Lima, Ohio. During the 1970s and 1980s, the company's regional mall projects were concentrated primarily in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. In 1970, Cafaro opened Iowa's first enclosed mall, Kennedy Mall. In 1988, Target Corporation asked the company to develop centers for the retailer in the Pacific Northwest, expanding the company portfolio to Washington and Oregon and resulting in the establishment of an office in Puyallup, Washington. William M. Cafaro died in April 1998.
In the 2000s, the Cafaro Company diversified into sports and mixed-use development, including Eastwood Field baseball park and redevelopments of properties such as Millcreek Mall and Spotsylvania Towne Centre. Anthony Cafaro Sr., son of founder William M. Cafaro, retired as president of the company in December 2009 and was succeeded by his sons, Anthony Cafaro Jr. and William A. Cafaro.