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Westfield Wheaton

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Coordinates: 39°02′10″N 77°03′14″W / 39.036°N 77.054°W / 39.036; -77.054
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Westfield Wheaton
Mall entrance to Macy's store, viewed from the upper level
Map
LocationWheaton, Maryland, USA
Address11160 Veirs Mill Road, Wheaton, MD 20902-1094
Opening dateFebruary 1960
ManagementWestfield Group
OwnerWestfield Group
No. of stores and services195[1]
No. of anchor tenants5
Total retail floor area1,650,334 sq ft (153,321.0 m2)[1]
No. of floors2
Parking6,481
WebsiteWestfield Wheaton

Westfield Wheaton (originally Wheaton Plaza) is a retail destination in Wheaton, Maryland, near Washington, DC for a diverse customer seeking a trendy mall for a true one-stop-shop shopping experience. It is owned by The Westfield Group.

History

Wheaton Plaza opened on February 5, 1960, as a single-level, open-air mall, with Woodward & Lothrop and Montgomery Ward as anchors.[2]

Developed by Isadore Gudelsky, an entrepreneur who amassed large land tracts funded by his families' Laurel Contee Sand and Gravel Company.[3] It was considered to be the first regional mall in the Washington, D.C., area, and was the largest until the Lerner-Gudelsky development Tysons Corner Center opened in 1968. The 80 acre fruit stand and farm property on Viers Mill Road was purchased in 1954 by six investors which included Gudelsky, and Theodore N. Lerner, who took charge of leases.[4] Wheaton Plaza was the site of the 1975 disappearance of the Lyon Sisters, whose case was never solved.

The old Hecht's department store

In 1974, a plan to enclose the mall was initiated. The seven year delay to enclose the mall and anchor expansion by business partner Lerner who also had interests in nearby White Flint Mall caused a $30 million lawsuit between partners.[5][6] and a new wing, anchored by Hecht's, was built in 1987. Target replaced Montgomery Ward after the latter chain ceased operations.

In 2005, the service tunnel beneath the mall was converted to retail space, and Macy's opened a new store, shortly before Macy's owner Federated Department Stores purchased Hecht's owner May Department Stores. The Hecht's store was closed after the May-Federated merger. Temporary anchor IFL Furniture took over the Hecht's location in 2006, and closed in March 2008. DSW Shoe Warehouse opened in the mall in November 2008.[7] In 2010, Costco announced that it would build a new store on the site of the vacant Hecht's; Costco opened in April 2013, in a new building that also contains a Dick's Sporting Goods.[8]

Anchors

References

  1. ^ a b "Westfield Wheaton". Westfield Group. Retrieved February 1, 2011.
  2. ^ Feinberg, Samuel. What makes shopping centers tick? p.10 (Fairchild Publications 1960)("Wheaton Plaza, Wheaton, Md., opened 15 of its planned 75 stores in February 1960. Total store space will be 1,100,000 square feet (100,000 m2). A Woodward & Lothrop store of 162,000 square feet (15,100 m2) and a Wards of 235,000 square feet (21,800 m2) are the principal tenants. Parking is provided for 5,300 cars.")
  3. ^ "Area Developer Gudelsky Dead". The Washington Post. December 18, 1963.
  4. ^ "Gudelsky, Lerner Built Center; Had a 'Feeling for Real Estate': Developer By Chance". The Washington Post. March 30, 1960.
  5. ^ "Wheaton Plaza Partners Sue Developer Theodore Lerner: Wheaton Plaza Shopping Mall Partners Sue Developer Theodore Lerner for $30 Million". The Washington Post. June 7, 1995.
  6. ^ Frank Ahrens (November 29, 1996). "At Malls, the Trends of Change". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
  7. ^ "Wheaton Urban District Advisory Committee". Meeting Minutes, January 2008. Montgomery County, Maryland. January 30, 2008.
  8. ^ Parcher, Amber (January 18, 2010). "Costco mulls move to Wheaton". The Gazette. Archived from the original on June 12, 2010. Retrieved June 12, 2010.

Further reading

  • "It's Wheaton's Turn Now; 40 Years Past Its Prime, Downtown Is Set to Catch Up With Silver Spring," The Washington Post, May 24, 2003
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Westfield Wheaton.

39°02′10″N 77°03′14″W / 39.036°N 77.054°W / 39.036; -77.054

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