Northwest Plaza
Encyclopedia
Northwest Plaza was an enclosed shopping mall
located in St. Ann
, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri
, United States
. The mall comprised nearly 1770000 square feet (164,438.4 m²) of gross leasable area
, making it the 27th largest mall in the United States according to the International Council of Shopping Centers prior to its closure. With a total of 1900000 square feet (176,515.8 m²) of enclosed space, it was the largest enclosed mall in the state of Missouri. The mall featured nine anchor stores and more than 210 stores at its peak. The future of the mall remains unknown. It is currently owned by St. Ann Shopping Center, LLC. The current plans for the mall incude a total demolition, and rebuilding into a lifestyle center. At the end of 2010, it became the second St Louis area mall to permanently close since 2006. The first was St. Louis Centre
.
, JCPenney, and Sears. Junior anchors included local department stores Vandervoort's (opened in 1965) and Boyd's (an upscale apparel store), a Walgreens
pharmacy, and a two-story Woolworth dime store. The Famous-Barr (later Macy's) store also featured a rotunda
. In 1969, a 12-story 194000 sq ft (18,023.2 m²) adjacent office tower was added to the mall. Stix Baer & Fuller later joined the center between 1971 and 1983. When Vandervoort's closed, its building was leased by Famous-Barr to use as its home fashions store while the basement was leased to Venture Stores
for office space. Dillard's
acquired and re-branded all Stix, Baer & Fuller stores in 1984 except the River Roads Mall location in North St. Louis County; the same year, New York-based Paramount Group acquired the mall.
miniature golf
course, was opened in the basement, the main level became a 12-bay food court
, and a 9-screen movie theater
was added on the upper level, replacing a freestanding cinema complex in the mall's parking lot. Kids "Я" Us was also added shortly after the mall's enclosure, and the large Woolworth store was shuttered in early 1989 when the mall terminated its lease. Woolworth was divided between a Phar-Mor
pharmacy on the lower level and smaller stores (EXPRESS and Victoria's Secret
) on the upper level, while Oshman's SuperSports USA moved into the former Boyd's, which had also closed during enclosure. In 1993 Phar-Mor closed due to a corporate scandal that threw the company into bankruptcy.
Under Westfield's tenure, the mall saw several new stores opening. Office supply store chain OfficeMax
opened one of its first mall-based location at Northwest Plaza in 1997. Burlington Coat Factory
moved into the former Oshman's, Schweig Engel Furniture moved into the old Phar-Mor, and many other stores: Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill, American Eagle Outfitters
, and Bath & Body Works
opened. Gap
, which had closed in 1996, even opened a new store. By 1999, the occupancy rate had increased to 98%. Additional plans for renovation were made by Westfield Corporation, but these plans never got beyond the addition of family restroom and a children's play area. Around this time, Westfield instead focused more on driving customer business to other area malls such as West County Center
in Des Peres
and Mid Rivers Mall
in St. Peters
, in turn neglecting Northwest Plaza, along with its redevelopment and upkeep. The first major vacancy at Northwest Plaza was JCPenney in 2002. Northwest Plaza had the second lowest occupancy rate of a Westfield mall, which was just 79% at year-end 2004.
acting as third-party leasing and management agent, the mall's name reverted to Northwest Plaza. As per the Federated Stores/May Co. merger, Famous-Barr was re-branded as Macy's. Later in 2007, the Tilt closed for good.
Somera unveiled a redevelopment plan in which the mall would become Lindbergh Town Center. In the plan, a small part of the Macy's hallway plus the former Kids R Us would be turned into a lifestyle center
. The Dillard's and the hallway between it and Sears would become a new anchor, plus the old food court/theater/Tilt would be reverted back into an anchor. The remaining mall was to be renovated to feature a new "picnic inspired" food court (on the upper level of the former Woolworth's), new flooring, new paint, new skylights, a "Secret Garden" themed play area, and a feature coffee kiosk. After the foreclosure of Northwest Plaza in September 2009, Somera is no longer associated with the property.
s once included (even as of 2008) Famous-Barr
(later Macy's), Steve & Barry's
, Dillard's
and Sears. Other anchors at one time included J.C. Penney
and Burlington Coat Factory
. Junior anchors included the Wehrenberg Northwest Plaza 9-screen cinema, Tilt! arcade, Office Max as well as Schweig Engel Furniture and Toys R Us (built on part of the mall's massive parking lot).
Northwest Plaza's highest grossing sales year was 2001. The early 2000s recession
caused a small decline in the number of stores occupying Northwest Plaza. A rapid decline began in 2004, due to the increased competition from St. Louis Mills
mall, which opened only 4 miles (6.4 km) away from Northwest Plaza. At the same time, the mall was suffering from lack of upkeep by then current owner Westfield. The mall's roof was examined under their ownership, and determined it needed to be replaced, among other things. Rather than the expensive rehabilitation of the mall, Westfield concluded it would not be cost effective, and decided to sell the mall entirely. When it was sold in 2006, Northwest Plaza had an occupancy rate of just 64%. Business continued to decline and when the late 2000s recession hit, most of the remaining stores vacated the mall. It was considered a dead mall by 2009.
J.C. Penney was the first anchor store to close in 2002. OfficeMax was the second to leave the mall, and remaining vacant for eighteen months before being replaced by 24 Hour Fitness. Burlington Coat Factory then left to move to St. Louis Mills mall, but it was soon rented out to Ford Motor Company
. Schweig Engel Furniture closed in July 2004 when the company went bankrupt but it was briefly replaced with discount retailer US Factory Outlets the following spring before becoming vacant again. Furniture retailer IKEA
had also planned to open a store at the mall, but later withdrew its plans. Also in 2004 there was the addition of a Retail Skills Center, which offered training and placement facilities for people seeking careers in retail, the first such center in the Midwest, and discount clothing retailer Steve & Barry's
in the former JCPenney. At the time Steve & Barry's opened, it was the largest in the chain. The mall's movie theater complex closed for good in September 2005. Toys R Us left the mall in early 2006. The Tilt! arcade closed in the summer of 2007, moving most of their arcades to other stores, namely their newest location in St. Louis Mills, despite being rated as one of the top 3 arcades in the St Louis area in 2003. Steve & Barry's closed in 2008, a year before the company became defunct. In early 2009, Dillard's left.
Northwest Plaza entered foreclosure and was auctioned on September 1, 2009. The shopping center was purchased by the only bidder at foreclosure, St. Ann Shopping Center LLC, for $29.95 million. The Macy's store closed in March 2010 and the Sears store closed in July 2010, the final anchor stores to leave. The final store left in November 2010. This left the mall with no internal stores. As of January 1, 2011, Northwest Plaza's doors have been permanently locked. Public access to the building is no longer allowed, as the only stores remaining are contained in the mall's outer ring (with external entrances only) and parking lot. The office tower remains open, but with entrances to the mall blocked. The future of the mall is unknown, with the idea of a total demolition, and the entire lot renovated into an office complex is one of the main proposals.
As reported by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on July 6, 2011, the distressed Northwest Plaza, with no internal stores which has an 8% overall occupancy, with the office tower less than 50%, was put up for auction online by current owner, a division of Wells Fargo
for 1.25 million in an attempt to spark interest in the property. The property failed to meet expectations though, as the bidding fell short of the minimum price.?
as the preferred re-developer of the mall. It is expected that the bulk of the mall will be torn down (although the current office tower could remain) and its 122 acre (0.49371692 km²) site remade as a mixed-use development with offices and some retail. The developer was expected to work with Sears, the only remaining anchor at the time, to keep its store on the site, but not necessarily at the same location. In light of the closing of the Sears store, it is unclear how this will affect the redevelopment effort. The city of St. Ann holds a purchase option on Northwest Plaza that was set to expire on December 31, 2010.
There have been a number of people in the area who are calling for the redevelopment of the site, rather than having a very large empty building. Demolition of the mall is anticipated, as efforts to revive the mall have failed. The new plans call for a completely new complex. The only part of the mall expected to remain is the office tower. It is expected this new complex will contain both office buildings as well as condos.
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
located in St. Ann
St. Ann, Missouri
St. Ann is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis in mid St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,020 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...
, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The mall comprised nearly 1770000 square feet (164,438.4 m²) of gross leasable area
Gross leasable area
Gross leasable area in the retail development industry is a term applied to shopping malls, lifestyle centers, outlet malls and other retail centers to indicate the amount of floor space available to be rented...
, making it the 27th largest mall in the United States according to the International Council of Shopping Centers prior to its closure. With a total of 1900000 square feet (176,515.8 m²) of enclosed space, it was the largest enclosed mall in the state of Missouri. The mall featured nine anchor stores and more than 210 stores at its peak. The future of the mall remains unknown. It is currently owned by St. Ann Shopping Center, LLC. The current plans for the mall incude a total demolition, and rebuilding into a lifestyle center. At the end of 2010, it became the second St Louis area mall to permanently close since 2006. The first was St. Louis Centre
One City Center (St. Louis)
One City Center is an office tower complex and former shopping mall in St. Louis, Missouri....
.
Beginning
Northwest Plaza opened in 1963 as an open-air shopping center. The developers were Louis and Milton Zorensky. At the time the mall opened, it was the largest mall in the world. It was anchored by Famous-BarrFamous-Barr
The Famous-Barr Co. , St. Louis, Missouri, was a division of Macy's, Inc. . It was formerly the hometown division of The May Department Stores Company, which was acquired by Federated on August 30, 2005. On February 1, 2006, it was subsumed into the newly created Macy's Midwest division.The...
, JCPenney, and Sears. Junior anchors included local department stores Vandervoort's (opened in 1965) and Boyd's (an upscale apparel store), a Walgreens
Walgreens
Walgreen Co. , doing business as Walgreens , is the largest drugstore chain in the United States of America. As of August 31st, the company operates 8,210 locations across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1901, and has since expanded...
pharmacy, and a two-story Woolworth dime store. The Famous-Barr (later Macy's) store also featured a rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...
. In 1969, a 12-story 194000 sq ft (18,023.2 m²) adjacent office tower was added to the mall. Stix Baer & Fuller later joined the center between 1971 and 1983. When Vandervoort's closed, its building was leased by Famous-Barr to use as its home fashions store while the basement was leased to Venture Stores
Venture Stores
Venture Stores, Inc., was a chain of retail stores that operated in the American Midwest. The company operated over 70 stores with major market share in St. Louis, Chicago and Kansas City, being headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of O'Fallon, Missouri....
for office space. Dillard's
Dillard's
Dillard's, Inc. is a department store chain in the United States, with 330 stores in 29 states. Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dillard's locations are concentrated in Texas and Florida; with a major presence in other states including Arizona, Iowa, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Missouri,...
acquired and re-branded all Stix, Baer & Fuller stores in 1984 except the River Roads Mall location in North St. Louis County; the same year, New York-based Paramount Group acquired the mall.
Paramount
Paramount enclosed and expanded the mall in 1989, adding more than 200000 square feet (18,580.6 m²) of retail space in the process. The enclosed space contained nearly 2000000 square feet (185,806.1 m²), making it one of the largest malls in the country. The biggest change was remodeling the Famous-Barr home store/Venture office space into a mixed-use complex. A 40000 sqfoot Tilt! arcade, including an 18-holeGolf course
A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
miniature golf
Miniature golf
Miniature golf, or minigolf, is a miniature version of the sport of golf. While the international sports organization World Minigolf Sport Federation prefers to use the name "minigolf", the general public in different countries has also many other names for the game: miniature golf, mini-golf,...
course, was opened in the basement, the main level became a 12-bay food court
Food court
A food court is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dining. Food courts may be found in shopping malls and airports, and in various regions may be a standalone development...
, and a 9-screen movie theater
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
was added on the upper level, replacing a freestanding cinema complex in the mall's parking lot. Kids "Я" Us was also added shortly after the mall's enclosure, and the large Woolworth store was shuttered in early 1989 when the mall terminated its lease. Woolworth was divided between a Phar-Mor
Phar-Mor
Phar-Mor was a United States chain of discount drug stores, based in Youngstown, Ohio, and founded by Michael "Mickey" Monus and David S. Shapira in 1982. Some of its stores used the names Pharmhouse and Rx Place...
pharmacy on the lower level and smaller stores (EXPRESS and Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret is an American retailer of women's wear, lingerie and beauty products. It is the largest segment of publicly-traded Limited Brands with sales of over US$5 billion and an operating income of $1 billion in 2006...
) on the upper level, while Oshman's SuperSports USA moved into the former Boyd's, which had also closed during enclosure. In 1993 Phar-Mor closed due to a corporate scandal that threw the company into bankruptcy.
Westfield
Northwest Plaza was acquired in late 1997 by the Westfield Group for $111 million, who re-named the mall "Westfield Shoppingtown Northwest" (later shortened to "Westfield Northwest" in June 2005) to match the nomenclature of other malls in their portfolio.Under Westfield's tenure, the mall saw several new stores opening. Office supply store chain OfficeMax
OfficeMax
OfficeMax , is an American office supplies retailer that was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Naperville, Illinois.-History:On April 1, 1988, OfficeMax was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, by Bob Hurwitz and Michael Feuer. Hurwitz served as executive chairman and chief executive officer and Feuer...
opened one of its first mall-based location at Northwest Plaza in 1997. Burlington Coat Factory
Burlington Coat Factory
Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corporation is a national department store retailer focusing on clothing and shoes, with over 450 stores in 45 states and Puerto Rico.. In 2006, it was acquired by Bain Capital, LLC in a take-private transaction...
moved into the former Oshman's, Schweig Engel Furniture moved into the old Phar-Mor, and many other stores: Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill, American Eagle Outfitters
American Eagle Outfitters
American Eagle Outfitters is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1977 by Mark and Jerry Silverman as a subsidiary of Retail Ventures, Inc., a company which also owned and operated Silverman's Menswear...
, and Bath & Body Works
Bath & Body Works
Bath & Body Works, LLC, is an American retail store under the Limited Brands umbrella. It was founded in 1990 in New Albany, Ohio and has since expanded across the United States and Canada. It specializes in lotions, bath items, personal care items, and home fragrances.The company launched both a...
opened. Gap
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
, which had closed in 1996, even opened a new store. By 1999, the occupancy rate had increased to 98%. Additional plans for renovation were made by Westfield Corporation, but these plans never got beyond the addition of family restroom and a children's play area. Around this time, Westfield instead focused more on driving customer business to other area malls such as West County Center
West County Center
West County Center is a shopping mall located in Des Peres, Missouri, originally built in 1969. The original mall closed in 2001, and a new mall on the site opened in 2002. From the mid-1990s to 2007, the mall was known as Westfield West County and was one of seven St...
in Des Peres
Des Peres, Missouri
Des Peres is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 8,373 at the 2010 census.-History:The first inhabitants of Des Peres were the Cahokia, the Kaskaskia, the Michigamea, the Moingwena, and the Tamaora Native American tribes....
and Mid Rivers Mall
Mid Rivers Mall
Mid Rivers Mall is a shopping center in St. Peters, Missouri, just off Interstate 70. The mall opened in 1987 and has since grown to be St. Charles County's largest shopping center. Mid Rivers Mall includes over 140 shops and four anchor stores ; junior anchors include BAM!, Dick's Sporting Goods...
in St. Peters
Saint Peters, Missouri
St. Peters is a city in St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The 2010 census showed the city's population to be 52,575.Interstate 70 passes through the city, providing a major transportation link. In 2008 St. Peters was named the 60th best place to live by Money magazine, putting it at the...
, in turn neglecting Northwest Plaza, along with its redevelopment and upkeep. The first major vacancy at Northwest Plaza was JCPenney in 2002. Northwest Plaza had the second lowest occupancy rate of a Westfield mall, which was just 79% at year-end 2004.
Somera
After years of continued decline, Westfield Corporation sold the mall in June 2006 to Somera Capital Management, LLC. After having bought the mall for $45 million, with General Growth PropertiesGeneral Growth Properties
General Growth Properties, Inc. is a publicly traded real estate investment trust in the United States. It is based in Chicago, Illinois at 110 North Wacker Drive, a historic building designed by architectural firm Graham, Anderson, Probst & White...
acting as third-party leasing and management agent, the mall's name reverted to Northwest Plaza. As per the Federated Stores/May Co. merger, Famous-Barr was re-branded as Macy's. Later in 2007, the Tilt closed for good.
Somera unveiled a redevelopment plan in which the mall would become Lindbergh Town Center. In the plan, a small part of the Macy's hallway plus the former Kids R Us would be turned into a lifestyle center
Lifestyle center (retail)
A lifestyle center is a shopping center or mixed-used commercial development that combines the traditional retail functions of a shopping mall with leisure amenities oriented towards upscale consumers...
. The Dillard's and the hallway between it and Sears would become a new anchor, plus the old food court/theater/Tilt would be reverted back into an anchor. The remaining mall was to be renovated to feature a new "picnic inspired" food court (on the upper level of the former Woolworth's), new flooring, new paint, new skylights, a "Secret Garden" themed play area, and a feature coffee kiosk. After the foreclosure of Northwest Plaza in September 2009, Somera is no longer associated with the property.
Crime
After the expansion of Northwest Plaza, the mall developed a reputation for crime. Part of this was because of multiple fatal shootings that occurred at the mall. The first fatality was in 1990. There was a second shooting in 1994 inside the Famous-Barr store, which resulted in the death of a teenager. In 2006, the third shooting involved an off-duty police officer who fatally shot a man inside the mall.Damage
The mall suffered from a leaking roof. Also, crumbling floor tiles in the north court caused by the leaking roof between the former Sears and Dillards required it to be blocked off from foot traffic. The Tilt! arcade's 18-hole miniature golf course left behind after it closed was damaged beyond repair by vandalism, and subsequently the basement area was walled off. The food court which used to contain a 12-bay court, as well as the 9-screen cinema were also both walled off due to the extensive water damage.Decline
The anchor storeAnchor store
In retail, an anchor store, draw tenant, anchor tenant, or key tenant is one of the larger stores in a shopping mall, usually a department store or a major retail chain....
s once included (even as of 2008) Famous-Barr
Famous-Barr
The Famous-Barr Co. , St. Louis, Missouri, was a division of Macy's, Inc. . It was formerly the hometown division of The May Department Stores Company, which was acquired by Federated on August 30, 2005. On February 1, 2006, it was subsumed into the newly created Macy's Midwest division.The...
(later Macy's), Steve & Barry's
Steve & Barry's
Steve & Barry's was an American retail clothing chain, featuring casual apparel. By mid-2008, the chain operated 276 stores in 39 states. The company was headquartered in Port Washington, New York. The company liquidated all of its stores throughout 2008....
, Dillard's
Dillard's
Dillard's, Inc. is a department store chain in the United States, with 330 stores in 29 states. Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dillard's locations are concentrated in Texas and Florida; with a major presence in other states including Arizona, Iowa, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Missouri,...
and Sears. Other anchors at one time included J.C. Penney
J.C. Penney
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. is a chain of American mid-range department stores based in Plano, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas. The company operates 1,107 department stores in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. JCPenney also operates catalog sales merchant offices nationwide in many...
and Burlington Coat Factory
Burlington Coat Factory
Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corporation is a national department store retailer focusing on clothing and shoes, with over 450 stores in 45 states and Puerto Rico.. In 2006, it was acquired by Bain Capital, LLC in a take-private transaction...
. Junior anchors included the Wehrenberg Northwest Plaza 9-screen cinema, Tilt! arcade, Office Max as well as Schweig Engel Furniture and Toys R Us (built on part of the mall's massive parking lot).
Northwest Plaza's highest grossing sales year was 2001. The early 2000s recession
Early 2000s recession
The early 2000s recession was a decline in economic activity which occurred mainly in developed countries. The recession affected the European Union mostly during 2000 and 2001 and the United States mostly in 2002 and 2003. The UK, Canada and Australia avoided the recession for the most part, while...
caused a small decline in the number of stores occupying Northwest Plaza. A rapid decline began in 2004, due to the increased competition from St. Louis Mills
St. Louis Mills
St. Louis Mills is a shopping center in Hazelwood, Missouri, just off Route 370. When it opened in November 2003, it had over 200 specialty shops and 8 anchor stores. Due to the current weaker economy, this number shrank to just over 180. It is a venture investment by developer and former owner,...
mall, which opened only 4 miles (6.4 km) away from Northwest Plaza. At the same time, the mall was suffering from lack of upkeep by then current owner Westfield. The mall's roof was examined under their ownership, and determined it needed to be replaced, among other things. Rather than the expensive rehabilitation of the mall, Westfield concluded it would not be cost effective, and decided to sell the mall entirely. When it was sold in 2006, Northwest Plaza had an occupancy rate of just 64%. Business continued to decline and when the late 2000s recession hit, most of the remaining stores vacated the mall. It was considered a dead mall by 2009.
J.C. Penney was the first anchor store to close in 2002. OfficeMax was the second to leave the mall, and remaining vacant for eighteen months before being replaced by 24 Hour Fitness. Burlington Coat Factory then left to move to St. Louis Mills mall, but it was soon rented out to Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
. Schweig Engel Furniture closed in July 2004 when the company went bankrupt but it was briefly replaced with discount retailer US Factory Outlets the following spring before becoming vacant again. Furniture retailer IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
had also planned to open a store at the mall, but later withdrew its plans. Also in 2004 there was the addition of a Retail Skills Center, which offered training and placement facilities for people seeking careers in retail, the first such center in the Midwest, and discount clothing retailer Steve & Barry's
Steve & Barry's
Steve & Barry's was an American retail clothing chain, featuring casual apparel. By mid-2008, the chain operated 276 stores in 39 states. The company was headquartered in Port Washington, New York. The company liquidated all of its stores throughout 2008....
in the former JCPenney. At the time Steve & Barry's opened, it was the largest in the chain. The mall's movie theater complex closed for good in September 2005. Toys R Us left the mall in early 2006. The Tilt! arcade closed in the summer of 2007, moving most of their arcades to other stores, namely their newest location in St. Louis Mills, despite being rated as one of the top 3 arcades in the St Louis area in 2003. Steve & Barry's closed in 2008, a year before the company became defunct. In early 2009, Dillard's left.
Northwest Plaza entered foreclosure and was auctioned on September 1, 2009. The shopping center was purchased by the only bidder at foreclosure, St. Ann Shopping Center LLC, for $29.95 million. The Macy's store closed in March 2010 and the Sears store closed in July 2010, the final anchor stores to leave. The final store left in November 2010. This left the mall with no internal stores. As of January 1, 2011, Northwest Plaza's doors have been permanently locked. Public access to the building is no longer allowed, as the only stores remaining are contained in the mall's outer ring (with external entrances only) and parking lot. The office tower remains open, but with entrances to the mall blocked. The future of the mall is unknown, with the idea of a total demolition, and the entire lot renovated into an office complex is one of the main proposals.
As reported by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on July 6, 2011, the distressed Northwest Plaza, with no internal stores which has an 8% overall occupancy, with the office tower less than 50%, was put up for auction online by current owner, a division of Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational diversified financial services company with operations around the world. Wells Fargo is the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by assets and the largest bank by market capitalization. Wells Fargo is the second largest bank in deposits, home...
for 1.25 million in an attempt to spark interest in the property. The property failed to meet expectations though, as the bidding fell short of the minimum price.?
Future
In March 2010, the St. Ann Board of Aldermen voted to select G.J. Grewe Development Co. of Crestwood, MissouriCrestwood, Missouri
Crestwood is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States, part of the Metropolitan Statistical Area known as Greater St. Louis. The population was 11,912 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Crestwood is located at ....
as the preferred re-developer of the mall. It is expected that the bulk of the mall will be torn down (although the current office tower could remain) and its 122 acre (0.49371692 km²) site remade as a mixed-use development with offices and some retail. The developer was expected to work with Sears, the only remaining anchor at the time, to keep its store on the site, but not necessarily at the same location. In light of the closing of the Sears store, it is unclear how this will affect the redevelopment effort. The city of St. Ann holds a purchase option on Northwest Plaza that was set to expire on December 31, 2010.
There have been a number of people in the area who are calling for the redevelopment of the site, rather than having a very large empty building. Demolition of the mall is anticipated, as efforts to revive the mall have failed. The new plans call for a completely new complex. The only part of the mall expected to remain is the office tower. It is expected this new complex will contain both office buildings as well as condos.
Former Anchors
- Burlington Coat FactoryBurlington Coat FactoryBurlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corporation is a national department store retailer focusing on clothing and shoes, with over 450 stores in 45 states and Puerto Rico.. In 2006, it was acquired by Bain Capital, LLC in a take-private transaction...
(opened 1997, closed 2004) - Dillard'sDillard'sDillard's, Inc. is a department store chain in the United States, with 330 stores in 29 states. Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dillard's locations are concentrated in Texas and Florida; with a major presence in other states including Arizona, Iowa, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Missouri,...
(opened 1984, closed early 2009) - Famous-BarrFamous-BarrThe Famous-Barr Co. , St. Louis, Missouri, was a division of Macy's, Inc. . It was formerly the hometown division of The May Department Stores Company, which was acquired by Federated on August 30, 2005. On February 1, 2006, it was subsumed into the newly created Macy's Midwest division.The...
(opened 1963, became Macy's in 2006) - JCPenney (opened 1963, closed 2002, became Steve and Barry's in 2004)
- Macy'sMacy'sMacy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
(opened 2006, closed March 2010) - Sears (opened 1963, closed July 2010)
- Steve and Barry's (opened 2004, closed late 2008)
- Stix, Baer and Fuller (opened 1970, became Dillard's in 1984)
Former Junior Anchors
- 24 Hour Fitness (opened 2008, still open with exterior access only)
- OfficeMaxOfficeMaxOfficeMax , is an American office supplies retailer that was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Naperville, Illinois.-History:On April 1, 1988, OfficeMax was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, by Bob Hurwitz and Michael Feuer. Hurwitz served as executive chairman and chief executive officer and Feuer...
(opened 1997, closed 2007, became 24 Hour Fitness in 2008) - Tilt! arcade (opened 1989, closed 2006)
- Toys R Us (opened 1989, closed early 2006)
- Wehrenberg Northwest Plaza 9 (opened 1989, closed 2005)