Franklin Park Mall

Franklin Park Mall
Franklin Park Mall logo
Map
LocationToledo, Ohio, United States
Coordinates41°41′42″N 83°38′27″W / 41.694898°N 83.640765°W / 41.694898; -83.640765
Address5001 Monroe Street
Opening dateJuly 22, 1971; 53 years ago (July 22, 1971)
DeveloperThe Rouse Company
ManagementJLL
OwnerPacific Retail Capital Partners
No. of stores and services150[1]
No. of anchor tenants6
Total retail floor area1,299,000 sq ft (120,700 m2)[1]
No. of floors1 with partial upper level (2 in anchors, 3 in parking garage)
Parking6,100 spaces[1]
Public transit accessBus interchange TARTA
Websitevisitfranklinparkmall.com

Franklin Park Mall is a shopping mall in Toledo, Ohio. The anchor stores are Dillard's, Macy's, Dick's Sporting Goods, Forever 21, DSW, and JCPenney.

History

Developed by The Rouse Company, the mall opened on July 22, 1971, occupying the former site of the Franklin Airport.[2] The mall was built using the Syncon modular building subsystems for an estimated savings of $500,000.[3] When the mall opened, its original anchor stores were Hudson's, J. C. Penney, and local department store Lamson Brothers.[4] The mall comprised about 75 stores in 940,000 square feet (87,000 m2) of floor space, with the 294,000 square feet (27,300 m2) J. C. Penney anchor being one of the largest in the chain at the time.[2] Mall concourses featured sunken courts before the entrance to each department store, skylights, and a mobile constructed by Alexander Calder in front of the Hudson's entrance.[2]

In 1974, Lamson Brothers went bankrupt and the store was replaced by Jacobson's of Jackson, Michigan. This store was the fourteenth in the Jacobson's chain.[5]

In 1993, Rouse significantly remodeled the mall and added a new wing anchored by the Lion Store. In 1998 the Lion Store was renamed Dillard's, while in 2001, Hudson's was renamed Marshall Field's. The Westfield Group acquired the shopping center in early 2002, and renamed it "Westfield Shoppingtown Franklin Park", dropping the "Shoppingtown" name in June 2005. Jacobson's went bankrupt and closed its location in early 2002, days before Westfield announced the takeover.

The former Lamson Brothers/Jacobson's was demolished in 2004 and in its place a new wing, the centerpiece of a massive $100 million renovation, opened in 2005. It was at this time that a new National Amusements multiplex theater and Dick's Sporting Goods were built, as well as a new Food Court and Borders books. Marshall Field's became Macy's in 2006.

In 2008 Westfield held a press conference at Franklin Park to announce were shoe retailer DSW Warehouse, clothing store Old Navy, and an Ulta cosmetic salon. The stores opened as part of the 49,000-square-foot (4,600 m2) addition.

After Borders went out of business in 2011, its space became Forever 21, which relocated from a smaller store within the mall.[6]

In fall 2013 the mall was sold to Starwood Capital Group with 7 other Westfield properties. As a result, it reverted to Franklin Park Mall.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Franklin Park Mall | Starwood Retail Partners". starwoodretail.com. Retrieved 2020-07-04.
  2. ^ a b c "Bands, ribbon-cuttings open mall". The Blade. 22 July 1971. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  3. ^ Kinchen, David (February 5, 1972). "Syncon Develops System to Cut Building Costs". No. Part 2, Page 11. Milwaukee Sentinel.
  4. ^ Brickey, Homer (7 March 1971). "Shopping opportunities to grow by millions of square feet". The Blade. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  5. ^ "Newcomer in town". Toledo Blade. 23 October 1974. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  6. ^ "Toledo real estate sees increased activity in retail market - wistv.com - Columbia, South Carolina". www.wistv.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04.
  7. ^ "Westfield Franklin Park mall being sold Private equity firm Starwood Capital Group purchases Toledo shopping-scape as part of a $1.64 billion, seven-mall package". The Toledo Blade. 16 September 2013. Retrieved 5 November 2013.