Suite 170 at Old Capitol Mall, 201 S. Clinton St., had been empty for years. Christopher Hunter of the Iowa City Downtown District told The Gazette that "this space in the Old Capitol Mall has been vacant for several years." On Sept. 3, the district announced that Royceann's Soul Food would move into that suite from the South District Market on U.S. Highway 6, with an opening planned for mid-September.
That move is part of a much larger change. The University of Iowa already owns more than half of the building and has agreed to buy the rest. Under the terms the Board of Regents approved, the university also has to sign off on any lease in the mall that runs past Oct. 1, 2027. That date is less than 11 months away, so a multi-year lease signed there now would run past it and need the next owner's approval.
A Long-Empty Suite Gets a Soul Food Kitchen
Royceann Porter opened Royceann's Soul Food in 2023, while she was serving as a Johnson County supervisor. In the announcement she said she wanted to fill Iowa City's "soul food desert." The first location held its grand opening on March 25, 2023 at South District Market, 947 U.S. Highway 6, as The Daily Iowan reported. Since then, the restaurant has appeared on Midwest Living's list of notable Black-owned restaurants in the region.
According to the Downtown District's announcement, the menu comes from recipes Porter learned from her mother while growing up in Saginaw, Michigan:
- Meats: fried chicken, fried catfish, fried pork chops, and baked and smothered chicken
- Sides: collard greens, fried cabbage, macaroni and cheese, candied yams, spaghetti, mashed potatoes and cornbread
- Desserts: banana pudding, peach cobbler, cinnamon rolls, and chocolate or caramel cake
Meals are served family-style and average about $22, and the menu includes vegetarian-friendly options. The downtown location plans to keep dine-in service, catering and local delivery through services such as Chomp. It also plans to keep the Soul Food Club, which gives members $5 off their next visit after signing up. The announced hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, and the Corridor Business Journal reported the same schedule. The restaurant posts updates on the move on its Instagram account, @royceannssoulfood.
Porter told The Gazette that "relocating downtown gives us the chance to make soul food more accessible to the whole community." Because the restaurant is a Downtown District member, it can also take part in Taste of Iowa City, Top Chef: Downtown, the Farm to Street Dinner and the district's gift card program.
How the Mall's Storefronts Have Changed Since 2024
Royceann's announcement is the latest in a string of tenant changes since 2024:
| Business | What happened | When |
|---|---|---|
| Zolly's Grill | Opened in the space Bollywood Grill had left earlier that year | Sept. 21, 2024 |
| NutriSport & Smoothie | Opened in Suite 148 | August 2025 |
| NutriSport & Smoothie | Closed its Iowa City location | June 3, 2026 |
| Royceann's Soul Food | Announced its move into Suite 170 | Sept. 3, 2026 |
The Daily Iowan covered Zolly's opening in October 2024. NutriSport's closing note, reported by KCRG, gave two reasons: rising costs and reduced summer traffic. The second reason matters here because of who uses the rest of the building.
The university's share is largely the second floor, and it calls its part of the building University Capitol Centre. It houses the Office of Student Financial Aid, International Programs, Student Disability Services, Information Technology Services and the Office of the Vice President for Research. UI Campus Safety uses the entire basement. A lot of the building's daily foot traffic depends on student and staff errands, and those errands follow the academic calendar.
The University Is Buying the Rest of the Building
The mall opened in 1981, when JCPenney and Younkers were its anchor stores. The university's share has grown in steps since then:
- 2006 to 2009. The university bought its current 55% interest in three phases. That share is about 207,000 square feet of a building close to 375,000 square feet, according to The Daily Iowan.
- January 2022. The university's 10-year Facilities Master Plan described an option to buy the rest of the building.
- October 29, 2024. The university announced it would ask the Board of Regents for approval to buy the remaining 45% for $20.6 million.
- November 2024. The regents approved the purchase. The terms call for a 10% payment up front, with the remaining 90% paid over three years.
- October 1, 2027. Final closing. All existing commercial leases transfer to the university on that date.
Until that date, the space the university has not yet bought stays under the current ownership group, and the university remains the majority owner rather than the only one.
The 2027 Date Already Shapes New Leases
The proposal described by The Daily Iowan included a rule that applies before closing day. It said "the university would be required to approve any new commercial leases or change in terms of existing leases in the mall if the lease extends beyond Oct. 1, 2027."
When the purchase was approved in late 2024, that rule mostly affected long leases. By mid-November 2026, Oct. 1, 2027 is less than 11 months away, so it would cover any lease signed this fall for a term longer than that. A business signing such a lease is choosing the university as a future landlord, and the university has a say in the terms now.
The university has also said what it intends to do with the shops. Rod Lehnertz, senior vice president for finance and operations, said in the university's announcement:
"The building has a strong retail presence of shops and restaurants that serve our campus. Our long-term plan is to retain retail space in the building."
The regents' materials gave a financial reason for that plan: retail income helps offset the building's operating costs. In 2024, The Daily Iowan reported that the university planned to keep the existing commercial leases and make no immediate changes to the mall after it takes ownership.
Before You Go
The relocation announcement lists hours of 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily for the Suite 170 location, which would cover both lunch and an early dinner. The restaurant's Instagram account is where it said it would post updates on the downtown location.
The restaurant also caters. It has catered for local churches and organizations such as Dream City, and it plans to keep offering catering downtown. With Thanksgiving coming up on Nov. 26, the same Instagram account is the place to check for catering information.
If you own a shop, run a restaurant or are thinking about leasing commercial space downtown, it helps to understand how a pending sale like the one at Old Capitol Mall affects a lease. Case Group Realty works on commercial leases and sales across Iowa City, and we're glad to talk through what a building's ownership timeline could mean for the space you're considering. Work With Us.
