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LAST SUMMER, MITCHELL Modell was nearing completion of a leasing deal for a sprawling new Modell's store at 55 Chambers St.
He was particularly interested in the space because Modell's has a history there. The company set up a corporate office at the site in 1937 and opened a retail store in 1946. He closed that location about four years ago when the space was being redeveloped, however, and has been interested in returning ever since.
Immediately after Sept. 11, Mr. Modell had misgivings about opening a new store six blocks from the former Trade Center site. But the executive, whose family has been running the Manhattan-based sporting goods and apparel retailer since 1889, decided to press ahead and sign a 15-year lease.
"We were there before, and we wanted to rally around the mayor and the governor and show we believe in downtown revitalization," says Mr. Modell, president of the 92-unit chain. The company recently opened a 14,500-square-foot location at 55 Chambers, also known as 280 Broadway or the Sun Building, because the New York Sun once had offices there.
Complex motivations
Modell's high-profile...