The Millcreek Mall is considering whether to open and pursue legal action against Pennsylvania because its concourse and many interior stores cannot reopen while Erie County remains in the yellow phase, Cafaro Company co-president Anthony Cafaro Jr. told Erie News Now Friday.

Nearly every other retail outlet in Erie County has been operating for weeks, but many stores in the mall cannot open because they do not have exterior entrances, he said.

Eleven of the company's 12 malls in 10 different states have reopened as of a week ago; the only exception is the Millcreek Mall, Cafaro Jr. said. 

There have been very few issues, and reopening can be done in a safe, effective way, he said.

"We just want to have a governmental authority recognize the error in judgment that was made when these orders were first initiated, when the yellow phase was determined as not permitting malls, for whatever reason, and somehow differentiating a mall from every other retail business," Cafaro Jr. said. "We think that's inherently wrong, and it's not based on any facts."

If the mall does reopen, he said its retailers may or may not choose to reopen. Many brick-and-mortar retail stores already faced challenges before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic forced them to close, according to Cafaro Jr.

Until March, the Millcreek Mall has never closed for an entire day with the exception of a snow storm a few years ago, Cafaro Jr. said.