An Owings Mills developer said this week he believes the 45-year-old Security Square Mall in Woodlawn should be redeveloped as a town center with office, retail, hotel and residential space.

Howard S. Brown, president and CEO of David S. Brown Enterprises, outlined his vision for the mall property at a community meeting Wednesday coordinated by the Security Woodlawn Business Association and Baltimore County Councilman Tom Quirk, whose district includes the mall.

“You don’t have anything in this area,” Brown said. “You have suburban apartments, you have retail strips, but you don’t have an urban center which encompasses all of it.”

Pulling together the mall properties, whose ownership Quirk said is divided among several entities, could be the biggest barrier to Brown’s vision. But Brown already has partnered with developer Michael Glick, who led the investment group Security Wards LLC that bought what was a Montgomery Ward store 16 years ago and redeveloped it for various entities.

Brown said he is negotiating to acquire additional parcels before creating a design plan.

A representative of mall management did not respond to requests for comment.

Brown has developed several mixed-use projects in Baltimore County, including the 7 million-square-foot Metro Centre at Owings Mills, which includes offices, retail space, 1,700 residential units and a parking garage — as well as satellite branches of the Baltimore County Public Library and the Community College of Baltimore County.

The developer also built Lansdowne Station, a development on Washington Boulevard in Lansdowne that is home to a Walmart, a Petco pet supply store, offices and several dining options.

Security Square Mall opened in 1972 with about 1 million square feet of space. It predates the former Owings Mills Mall, which opened in 1986 and was demolished recently as part of another redevelopment plan.

Brown said the idea of solely locating retail and big-box stores in one area is no longer viable.

“As in most malls, it’s time [for Security Square] to be scrapped and it’s time to come up with a new concept,” he said.

A town center, he said, with a mix of large stores, small retail shops and restaurants would bring more people together.

About 100 people attended the meeting Wednesday. Residents said they want a community center to be included in any redevelopment plan.

Brown said a public component would be part of the center.

“What you’re looking at is an urban redevelopment as if it was downtown Baltimore city, located in Baltimore County,” he said.

Marisol Johnson, president of the Security Woodlawn Business Association, said the area deserves a robust, diverse and up-to-date retail center.

She said residents want developers to be “held accountable.”

David Karceski, a land use attorney representing the developers, said the area is zoned to accommodate the town center concept.

“We want an expeditious path for approval,” he said. “One that will bring upgrades to community as quickly as possible.”

Quirk said he was optimistic for redevelopment.

“This is not ‘if’ or ‘maybe.’ This is happening,” said Quirk, a Democrat.

But he also recognized the challenge of gaining ownership consensus.

“We have a huge investor and what we need to happen is we need the bigger fish to swallow some of the smaller fish, because when you try to get five owners to agree on anything, it’s very difficult,” Quirk said.