Dadeland Mall: Difference between revisions
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==History== |
==History== |
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Originally an open-air center, the mall was anchored by [[Burdine's]] (spelled with an apostrophe at the time), and also boasted a [[Food Fair]] grocery, full-service Gray Drug and the Summit Restaurant, Lounge and Cafeteria (later known as The Forum). A Jordan Marsh anchor store was added to the west end, which opened in November 1966. |
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A massive construction project, initiated in late 1969, doubled the size of the mall by twinning it (leaving the huge Burdine's in the middle), and adding a wing of fully-enclosed retail onto the east end. Moreover, the existing courts and concourses were fully-enclosed and air-conditioned. Another feature of this expansion was the King of the Mall, an enormous [[Burger King]] (whose corporate headquarters were then located across from Dadeland on [[North Kendall Drive]]). This renovation project was completed with the opening of [[J.C. Penney]], the mall's new east anchor store, in early 1971. |
A massive construction project, initiated in late 1969, doubled the size of the mall by twinning it (leaving the huge Burdine's in the middle), and adding a wing of fully-enclosed retail onto the east end. Moreover, the existing courts and concourses were fully-enclosed and air-conditioned. Another feature of this expansion was the King of the Mall, an enormous [[Burger King]] (whose corporate headquarters were then located across from Dadeland on [[North Kendall Drive]]). This renovation project was completed with the opening of [[J.C. Penney]], the mall's new east anchor store, in early 1971. |
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Revision as of 06:25, 25 April 2010
 Partial view of the mall, as seen from the Palmetto Expressway. The original landmark tower with the letter 'D' is still present. | |
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| Location | Dadeland, Miami, Florida, United States |
|---|---|
| Opening date | 1 October 1962 |
| Management | Simon Property Group |
| Owner | Simon Property Group |
| No. of stores and services | 185+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 6 |
| Total retail floor area | 1,468,000 sq ft (136,400 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
| Website | Official site |
Dadeland Mall is a large enclosed shopping mall located in the Dadeland neighborhood of Kendall, Florida, which is southwest of Miami. The mall, originally developed by the Joseph Meyerhoff Company of Baltimore, opened October 1, 1962 as a 535,000 square foot, open-air complex of sixty stores and services.
Dadeland Mall, and the surrounding Dadeland neighborhood is served by the Miami Metrorail at two stations: Dadeland North Station and Dadeland South Station. Both stations directly serve Dadeland, and connect Dadeland to Downtown Miami. Numerous Miami Metrobus lines terminate at the Dadeland South Station, as this is the start of the South Miami-Dade Busway which connects the multiple southern Miami Metrobus lines to the Metrorail.
History
Originally an open-air center, the mall was anchored by Burdine's (spelled with an apostrophe at the time), and also boasted a Food Fair grocery, full-service Gray Drug and the Summit Restaurant, Lounge and Cafeteria (later known as The Forum). A Jordan Marsh anchor store was added to the west end, which opened in November 1966.
A massive construction project, initiated in late 1969, doubled the size of the mall by twinning it (leaving the huge Burdine's in the middle), and adding a wing of fully-enclosed retail onto the east end. Moreover, the existing courts and concourses were fully-enclosed and air-conditioned. Another feature of this expansion was the King of the Mall, an enormous Burger King (whose corporate headquarters were then located across from Dadeland on North Kendall Drive). This renovation project was completed with the opening of J.C. Penney, the mall's new east anchor store, in early 1971.
The mall attained notoriety as the site of a 1979 drug-related shooting spree during Miami's "cocaine cowboy" era. In broad daylight, two gunmen exited a paneled truck, entered a liquor store and gunned down two men wounding the store clerk. Upon exiting the store the gunmen opened fire on passersby. The dead men were eventually identified as a Colombia-based cocaine trafficker and his bodyguard. [1]
A third expansion, undertaken in early 1983, added Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord & Taylor to the south-facing front of the complex. A food court had also opened, in the shuttered Pantry Pride (former Food Fair) supermarket, in 1982. A subsequent renovation, completed in September 1987, saw the interior of the mall updated, with its early 1960s animal statues being removed.
One of the unique trademarks of the shopping complex is the concrete tower with a giant "D" (for Dadeland) at the top. This local landmark was there from the beginning. The photo at the right shows it in its original aqua color. Through the 80s and some of the 90s the tower was painted white but is now aqua once again.
The fourth renovation, completed in late 1991, added The Limited/Express and a new main entrance. In the fall of 2004, the circa-1986 Lord & Taylor (that had been shuttered in 2003) was replaced with a Nordstrom anchor store.
Dadeland Mall Today
Today, Dadeland is owned by the Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group, who established full ownership of the center in August 1987. The anchors include Florida's largest Macy's (Macy's Florida's flagship store), as well as Macy's Home Gallery & Kids (the west end anchor), J.C. Penney, Saks Fifth Avenue, The Limited, and Nordstrom. Former tenants of the west end anchor space, currently occupied by the Macy's Home Gallery & Kids, were Jordan Marsh (1966-1991) and Burdines Home Store (1993-2005).
Dadeland Mall's largest restaurants are Villagio and The Cheesecake Factory.
The outer part of the mall, particularly the original main entrance, was featured in the 1985 Chuck Norris film Invasion U.S.A. The inside and outside of the mall was featured in the 1990 Alec Baldwin film Miami Blues. The mall has been remodeled since both of those films however. Talks are currently underway about adding a second floor to the entire mall. This project will once again double the malls space plus add second floor access to the anchor stores all of which already have second floors.
Anchors
- JCPenney (192,710 sq ft.) [2]
- The Limited Express (79,620 sq ft.)
- Macy's (421,073 sq ft.)
- Macy's Home/Kids (210,000 sq ft.)
- Nordstrom (150,090 sq ft.)
- Saks Fifth Avenue (78,669 sq ft.)
References
- ^ History Television, Underworld Histories, "Miami"; [1]
- ^ "Mall Directory". Dadeland Mall Website. Simon Property Group Inc. Retrieved 2007-02-04.
