RETAILING

Beleaguered Anaheim Plaza has a new manager.

The 33-year-old mall is now under the supervision of the Lehndorff Group, the Dallas-based commercial developer said Tuesday.

The move came as no surprise to industry insiders. In fact, it has been expected since early January, when JW Robinson announced it would close its Anaheim Plaza store later that month.

The mall is owned by a pension fund, the California State Teachers Retirement System. Seven months ago, Lehndorff--also a property manager--was brought in to advise the pension fund. That meant that the owner had little need for Melvin Simon & Associates, which had been managing the shopping center.

In a prepared statement, Thomas E. Flanigan, chief investment officer for the pension fund, said Melvin Simon was used to provide “ ‘short-term’ management . . . until an asset manager was named.”

A spokeswoman with Melvin Simon & Associates said the switch will make no difference to the Indianapolis development firm. “It’s just a good business decision for everybody involved,” said Linda Sonnonstine, public relations manager. “It makes sense and makes no major difference to us--we’ve got plenty to do.”

The same can’t be said for Anaheim Plaza, which has been in need of revitalization for some time. In 1986, the aging center reported the sharpest sales drop of any county mall, when taxable sales slipped 5.6% to $84 million.

While the Broadway and Mervyn’s department stores and 75 other smaller retailers are still open there, recent efforts to shore up Anaheim Plaza have met with limited success. The pension fund, for example, has failed in efforts to renovate the mall and improve freeway access, despite efforts by developers and the city.

The Lehndorff Group owns retail property in Tysons Corner Center in McLean, Va., as well as in Salt Lake City and Phoenix.