Charlestowne Mall

Charlestowne Mall was a two-story shopping mall located in St. Charles, Illinois. The majority of the mall closed on December 1, 2017. The mall's anchor stores are Classic Cinemas and Von Maur. There are 3 vacant anchor stores that were once Sears, Carson Pirie Scott, and Kohl's.

Charlestowne Mall on Final Day
The Quad St. Charles
LocationSt. Charles, Illinois, United States
Coordinates41°55′24.5″N 88°16′9″W
Opening date1991
Closing dateDecember 1, 2017
DeveloperWilmorite Inc.[1]
ManagementThe Krausz Companies Inc.
OwnerThe Krausz Companies Inc.
No. of stores and services120 (1 open, 119 vacant)
No. of anchor tenants5 (2 open, 3 vacant)
Total retail floor area773,665 sq ft (71,875.8 m2)[2]
No. of floors2

History
Charlestowne Mall in late May 2014, before construction for The Quad St. Charles

Charlestowne Mall was built on the far east side of St. Charles. It opened in 1991. In 1995, then-owners Wilmorite Properties planned to expand the mall with a new anchor store.[3][4]

Original anchor store JCPenney closed in 2000 and became Von Maur the same year.[5]

In June 2010, a California-based investment group acquired the mall with plans to revitalize it.[6][7] However, as of early 2012, there were numerous vacancies in the mall. While marketing and signage have advertised the construction of an indoor ice rink and a large sushi and seafood buffet.,[8] After over a year later there have been no indications of communication between mall ownership and the city in terms of beginning construction for these projects,[9] On January 4, 2011, Sears announced that their Charlestowne location would close before April 3, 2011 after negotiations between the new mall management company and Sears officials broke down, leaving only Carson Pirie Scott (now known as Carson's), Kohl's, and Von Maur the remaining anchor stores. Sears shut its doors for the last time on March 20, 2011.[10]

After two years of no contact with the mall's ownership, city officials stated a plan in 2012 to spend $35,000 on a study to determine the best options for the mall site.[9][11]

In mid-August the abandoned mall was put under contract to be sold by Mark Goodman & Associates. They hoped to close on the property as soon as mid September, according to the Daily Herald. A full presentation of the future plans of the mall was to be given to the city within the next 30–45 days they stated. "Goodman said his group 'absolutely' intends to keep the mall property as some form of a shopping center." [12]

The Quad St. Charles

On November 14, 2013, The Krausz Companies Inc acquired the mall property and renamed it from Charlestowne Mall to The Quad St. Charles. The new owners planned to demolish the current Sears wing of the mall and completely remodel the interior and exterior of the mall. "The inspiration for The Quad name centers on the "neighborhood feeling" the company is trying to bring to the mall through a redesign. Outdoor patio dining and exterior merchandised retails will be part of the mall for the first time. There will also be a 'welcoming center' with a fireplace as the key attraction for families and shoppers to gather. The existing abundant natural light will be retained in the new environment" said Krausz Executive Vice President Jay E. Krigsman. Construction was expected to start in April 2014 and completed by Fall 2015. [13] The mall's famous 2 level Italian carousel was also put up for sale due to there being no room for it in the mall's new floor plan.[14] As of April 2014, the only true tenant left in the mall was Lenscrafters (excluding anchor stores). Lenscrafters, the anchor stores, and the movie theater planned to stay open during construction.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held in August 2014, and mass earthworks were in process at the site preparing for the redevelopment of the main mall buildings. Updating the city council in April 2015, representatives of Krausz shared that the project was proceeding with a grand reopening contemplated for 2016.

At the end of May 2015, the carousel was disassembled.

On March 16, 2016, it was announced that Kohl's would be closing as part of a plan to close 18 stores nationwide. The store closed on June 25, 2016.

In early 2017, the Classic Cinemas received a new exterior entrance.

Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurants opened outside of the mall on May 15, 2017.

The original plan for redevelopment was canceled in 2017.

In mid-2017, the east wing of the mall, spanning the center court to Carson's, was closed; its mall entrances permanently locked, and a large wall was constructed on both floors near the center court. The rest of the mall interior, originally announced to close on October 31, 2017, finally closed December 1 with the exception of Carson's, Von Maur, Classic Cinemas; and accessible via the theatre: a long-standing kiosk, and a gymnasium still leasing a former Deb between the theatre and the vacant Sears anchor, on the second floor. On April 18, 2018, Bon-Ton Stores Inc. announced the closure of Carson's, leaving Von Maur, Classic Cinemas and Power Athletics as the last stores in the mall.[15]

gollark: Oh wait, I actually can edit my results, nice.
gollark: And it apparently took me vaguely indicating support of some government intervention in markets as 43% supportive of a planned economy, which is very no.
gollark: The quiz seems to partly take me thinking it's somewhat inevitable as an endorsement of it.
gollark: Hard to avoid, but bad.
gollark: War is kind of bad?

References
  1. Young, David. "SEARS BEATS MALL TO GRAND OPENING".
  2. "City Of St. Charles PUD for Charlestowne Mall (The Quad)" (PDF). Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  3. Gregory, Shirley Siluk. "CHARLESTOWNE MALL'S EVENTUAL GROWTH OKD".
  4. Writer, Barbara Sherlock, Tribune Staff. "MALL FINDS TENANT FOR ANCHOR SPACE".
  5. "Von Maur likely adding its style to suburban shopping". Crain's Chicago Business.
  6. "California investment firm acquires Charlestowne Mall". REJournals.com. June 30, 2010. Archived from the original on July 7, 2010. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
  7. "Charlestowne Mall sold to California investment company". mysuburbanlife.com. St. Charles Republican. June 16, 2010. Archived from the original on June 22, 2010. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
  8. "Charlestowne Mall plans addition of recreation corridor". TribLocal. March 27, 2012. Archived from the original on March 29, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  9. "St. Charles ready to crack down on Charlestowne Mall". Daily Herald. April 10, 2012. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
  10. "Sears Closing Charlestowne Mall Store". Daily Herald. January 4, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
  11. "Upgrades may help struggling mall". Chicago Tribune.
  12. "Charlestowne Mall buyers may force decision on new taxes". Daily Herald. August 16, 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  13. "Renovations at The Quad expected to start in April". Daily Herald. November 14, 2013. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  14. "Owners have big plans for ailing Charlestowne Mall in St. Charles". Chicago Sun-Times. February 19, 2014. Archived from the original on June 18, 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  15. "Bon-Ton Stores expected to close; Younkers, Boston Store and Carson's included". 18 April 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.