Eastland Mall (Charlotte, North Carolina)

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Charlotte's Eastland Mall

Eastland Mall logo/entrance
Facts and statistics
Location Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Opening date 1975
Developer Faison
Owner Glimcher Realty Trust (60%)
City of Charlotte (40%)
No. of stores and services 120
No. of anchor tenants 4
Total retail floor area 1,031,746 million square feet
(GLA)[1]
No. of floors 2
Website EastlandMall.com

Eastland Mall is a shopping mall in the eponymous area of Charlotte, North Carolina. The center opened in 1975 as the then-largest mall in North Carolina with three anchor department stores, Belk, J.C. Penney and Ivey's, and a Sears store joined four years later.[2] The only remaining anchor is Burlington Coat Factory in half of the former JCPenney, while the remaining anchors are vacant. The mall is owned by Glimcher Realty Trust and the City of Charlotte though Glimcher has requested the mall be put into receivership due to heavy debt.

Contents

[edit] History

Development began on a shopping center in east Charlotte in the early 1970s after seeing the success of SouthPark Mall about six miles (10 km) away. Henry Faison, the developer, recalls planning the mall with a team of only six people.[3]. In 1975, Eastland Mall opened to much fanfare as the biggest mall in North Carolina at that time (superseded shortly after by Hanes Mall). Additionally, the mall included an outparcel convenience center with a Harris Teeter grocery store and a General Cinemas movie theater.

Throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, Eastland was considered by many to be the finest mall in Charlotte. Miller & Rhoads joined as a junior anchor,[citation needed] and when Sears was added in 1979, the mall had four anchor stores (SouthPark only had three), but that was soon to change. SouthPark expanded and began an upscale trend, and with the opening of the mid-market Carolina Place Mall in the early 1990s a suburban retail shift was occurring. Also in the early 1990s, Ivey's became Dillard's and the store expanded, and the mall's interior was renovated and updated as well.

[edit] Decline

[edit] Demographic changes

By the late 1990s, Eastland Mall's image and physical appearance began to degrade. Adding to the retail shift in Charlotte, demographic changes and ethnic shifts to the surrounding areas have changed the retail makeup of the mall. Crime rates also increased around the mall.[4] In late 2005 there was a shooting inside the mall near the Gourmet Gardens food court and also a shooting outside in the parking lot. Another shooting took place in 2006 near the food court. A bullet smashed one of the glass doors and one person was shot.[5]

Mall and city officials cite that it is "a perception of crime" that has scared patrons away as opposed to actual crime happening every day.[6]

[edit] Retail changes

The first original anchor store to depart the mall was J.C. Penney, which left in 2002 after a few years after becoming a J.C. Penney Outlet store. In 2004, the anchor space was split up and a Burlington Coat Factory store took the upper level, while the bottom space was subdivided between a Fred's discount store and Prime Time store. [1] Dillard's closed off one level of their store in 2005, and operated a Dillard's Outlet on the other level.

The Harris Teeter store on the periphery closed on June 26, 2006, after being in operation since 1975. The store cited underperformance as the cause for its closure; however, changing demographics and lack of investment in remodeling may have contributed to this store's demise.

Belk closed in 2007 as well, becoming the third anchor to leave the mall. Following Belk's departure, Limited Brands closed all five of their stores inside the mall, which included Bath & Body Works and Victoria's Secret. [2] Fred's and Prime Time closed as well, followed by the Dillard's Outlet and movie theater in late 2008.

These retail changes have been accompanied by a degradation of the mall's physical appearance, which has deteriorated to the point that its owner, Glimcher Realty Trust, has labeled the mall a "fixer-upper". [3] The mall's deterioration has been mirrored in its surrounding area, labeled "corridors of crap" by a local politician due to its inexpensive and aging retail structures. [4] The mall no longer even has a general manager.[5]

On February 26, 2009 Sears Holdings Corporation announced that the Sears store at Eastland store is set to close on May 31, another major blow to the beleaguered mall. This will leave the city of Charlotte without a Sears store inside its city limits. [7]

[edit] Future

One day after the announcement of Belk's departure, Eastland Mall officials announced the original movie theater showing first-run films will reopen after closing in 1996. It had reopened in the last few years but was only specializing in foreign language films and 'G' and 'PG' rated films.[8]

On March 8, 2007, the Urban Land Institute Advisory Council shared its recommendations: to tear the mall down and make it into a vibrant community center with mixed-use shopping and an amusement park. Full report of ULI's findings.[9]

The City of Charlotte has acquired an option to buy the soon-to-be vacant Dillard's anchor space, and rumors allege that Glimcher may walk away from the portion of the mall that it controls rather than pay an upcoming mortgage payment on the Eastland $42 million mortgage. [10]

In an earnings press release dated July 23, 2008, Glimcher Realty Trust announced that it "will not fund any further cash deficits at the property." The company also requested court-appointed receivership and liquidation for the property. [11]

As of February of 2009, the former Ice House ice skating rink which had been shuttered last year has now been replaced with a soccer field. For a mall that receives a brunt of negativity, this is one major positive for Eastland. [12]

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Eastland Mall, CoStar Group Commercial Real Estate Information". http://www.costar.com/freesearch/Detail/Detail.aspx?p=5D1D6446C6A4571B96BEBD927EC997B3. Retrieved on 2007-03-08. 
  2. ^ "Sears History". http://www.searsarchives.com/stores/history_northcarolina.htm. Retrieved on 2007-03-08. 
  3. ^ "ULI Charlotte". http://www.thmgmt.com/images2/ULI/05smr/2005-06%20YLG%20NL.htm. 
  4. ^ "Crime In Charlotte: Eastland". http://www.crimeincharlotte.com/search?q=Eastland. 
  5. ^ "Eastland Mall back to normal after Monday shooting". WCNC-TV. http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/stories/112905-ad-wcnc-eastland.21002cf9.html. 
  6. ^ "Channel 9 Eyewitness News". Experts in town looking at ways to revitalize Charlotte's Eastland Mall. WSOC-TV. http://www.wsoctv.com/news/11187747/detail.html. 
  7. ^ "Charlotte Business Journal". Sears to close at Eastland Mall. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2009/02/23/daily55.html. 
  8. ^ "Charlotte Observer". Movie theater to reopen at Eastland. http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/business/16253745.htm. 
  9. ^ "Group recommends razing Eastland Mall". Charlotte Business Journal. http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/03/05/daily43.html. 
  10. ^ {http://www.charlotte.com/171/story/684832.html}
  11. ^ "Glimcher Reports Second Quarter 2008 Results". Glimcher Realty Trust press release. http://www.glimcher.com/press/release/50-glimcher-reports-second-quarter-2008-results. 
  12. ^ "At Eastland Mall, soccer venue replaces ice rink". Charlotte Observer. http://www.charlotteobserver.com/277/story/535731.html. 

[edit] External links

Malls in Charlotte, North Carolina
Asian Corner | Carolina Place | Eastland | Freedom | NorthPark | Northlake | SouthPark

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