Great Lakes Crossing Outlets

Great Lakes Crossing Outlets, formerly Great Lakes Crossing, is an enclosed shopping mall in the city of Auburn Hills, Michigan, a northern suburb of Detroit. The site of the mall was originally to have been occupied by a different mall called Auburn Mills, which was never built due to financial issues of its intended developer, Western Development Corporation. Great Lakes Crossing was built on the site and opened in 1998. Constructed and owned by Taubman Centers, Great Lakes Crossing Outlets is the largest outlet mall in the state of Michigan. It features 185 stores, with anchor stores including Burlington, Bass Pro Shops, TJ Maxx, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Marshalls; other notable attractions include a 1,000-seat food court, a 25-screen AMC Star movie theater, Legoland Discovery Center, and Sea Life Michigan Aquarium.

Great Lakes Crossing Outlets
The marquee sign, facing Interstate-75
LocationAuburn Hills, Michigan, U.S.
Address4000 Baldwin Road
Opening dateNovember 12, 1998 (November 12, 1998)
DeveloperTaubman Centers
ManagementTaubman Centers
OwnerTaubman Centers
No. of stores and services170+
No. of anchor tenants9
Total retail floor area1.355 million sq ft (125,900 m2)[1]
No. of floors1
Public transit accessFlint MTA Great Lakes Crossing
SMART 753
Websitehttp://www.greatlakescrossingoutlets.com

History
An entrance on the mall's south side near Marshalls, May 2014.

In 1990, Western Development Corporation (later known as Mills Corporation) proposed to build a shopping mall called Auburn Mills just south of Interstate 75 between Baldwin and Joslyn roads in the city of Auburn Hills, Michigan. Herbert Miller, the then-chairman and CEO of Western Development, announced in a July 1990 interview that the mall would have 230 inline stores, comprising both traditional mall tenants and outlet stores. It would also have nine anchor stores including outlet locations of Sears and J. C. Penney; also included would be Phar-Mor, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Waccamaw Pottery, the latter two of which had no locations in Michigan at the time. Although the proposed Auburn Mills had received conditional approval from state environmental officials, the property was subjected to two lawsuits filed by the city of Lake Angelus, just across Baldwin Road from the proposed mall site, over traffic and environmental changes that the mall would cause.[2] Oakland County judge Edward Sosnick ruled in favor of the mall developers in August 1990 after determining that the mall would not have significant negative environmental impact. At this point, Western Development had announced that construction would begin within 30 days, with a projected cost of $200 million and projected completion date of late 1992.[3] Western Development then delayed construction until early 1991 after failing to secure a loan toward construction costs.[4] Further delaying construction of the mall was a threat of foreclosure from the Union Bank of Switzerland, a bank which loaned the money to acquire the land in 1989. Western Development first had to acquire a construction loan before it could begin paying off the mortgage but faced difficulty in doing so due to lenders restricting themselves in the wake of the savings and loan crisis.[5] Western Development agreed to let Union Bank of Switzerland take ownership of the mall property in July 1991,[6] effectively canceling any construction by Western Development.[7] Despite this cancellation, Kmart built a prototype store across Joslyn Road in 1992.[8]

Development of Great Lakes Crossing
The Rainforest Cafe is one of several restaurants located within the mall.

Taubman Centers made announcements in June 1996 to buy the land from Union Bank and build an outlet mall on the site. Their plans called for a smaller footprint than the originally planned center, so as to lessen the impact on the environment around the property.[9] Taubman Centers had owned the land in the 1980s when it was still zoned residential, but sold it to Western Development in 1989 after that company expressed interest in building a mall.[10] Michael Crosson, a Detroit-based marketing analyst, considered the area to have the most potential for retail growth at the time.[11] In response, Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) began expanding Interstate 75's interchange with Baldwin Road.[7] As with Auburn Mills, Taubman's plans for the property called for a large number of anchor stores, along with a mix of outlet stores and traditional mall tenants.[9] As proposed, the mall would have over 185 tenants situated along an oval-shaped mall corridor, with 1.35 million square feet (125,000 m2) of gross leasable area. It would also be divided into nine different "districts", each with its own décor and tenant mix.[7][12] Overall, the mall occupied 39 acres (16 ha) of land, with the mall building itself spanning nearly 0.5 miles (0.80 km) from end to end.[13] Taubman had undergone negotiations with a large number of retailers prior to seeking approval from the city of Auburn Hills, including various big-box store as well as various department store chains which also operate outlet locations.[7] Detroit-based retail analyst Fred Marx felt that the varied mix of stores would distinguish the mall from competitors such as Prime Outlets (now Birch Run Premium Outlets) in Birch Run, which was then the state's largest outlet mall, without having a negative impact on that mall's business.[11] By September 1997, the proposed mall had been named Great Lakes Crossing. Taubman had estimated building costs at over $100 million, and predicted that nearly 40 percent of sales would come from tourists.[14] Tenants confirmed for the mall by May 1998 included Star Theatres, Rainforest Cafe, GameWorks, Marshalls, TJ Maxx, Bed Bath & Beyond, Finish Line, FYE, and Burlington Coat Factory (now known as Burlington), which would be relocating from an existing store in Bloomfield Hills.[15][16] Several other confirmed tenants of the mall would also be operating their first Michigan locations at the mall, including Oshman's Sporting Goods, Bass Pro Shops, J. C. Penney Outlet, and Last Call, the outlet division of Neiman Marcus.[17][16] Also included in the plans for the mall was a 1,000-seat food court.[18] Three outparcels of the mall would be occupied by Chili's, On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina, and a Borders bookstore.[12]

Opening

Great Lakes Crossing opened on November 12, 1998. Taubman predicted that the mall would have over 17 million visitors within its first year, and that its location would be convenient for tourists traveling to northern Michigan.[18] Many major tenants were still under development at the time of the mall's grand opening, including Bass Pro Shops, Oshman's, Star Theatres, Stir Crazy, and Wolfgang Puck Cafe.[18] Developers noted that the presence of traditional mall stores would impact other malls located on the north side of metro Detroit, such as Oakland Mall and Summit Place Mall.[18] They also noted that the mall included several amenities suitable for families and children, including child-accessible restrooms, a children's playplace in the food court, an indoor amusement park called Jeepers!, and The Children's Place.[19] Opening ceremonies lasted for four days and included appearances by Miss Michigan 1998 Laura Welling; performances by the University of Michigan marching band, jugglers, comedians, and magicians; souvenirs for the first 10,000 shoppers; and a prize drawing whose grand prize was a power boat offered by Bass Pro Shops.[20] A directory published in the Detroit Free Press just before the mall's opening indicated that a large number of stores had opened their first Michigan locations at Great Lakes Crossing, including Charlotte Russe, Ann Taylor Loft, Bebe Stores, The Icing, Rack Room Shoes, GameWorks, and restaurants Ben & Jerry's, Hot Dog on a Stick, Stir Crazy, and Alcatraz Brewing Company.[17] At opening, 91 percent of the mall's storefronts were leased,[15] and over 54,000 shoppers attended on opening day.[21]

One year after the mall's opening, many individual retailers had expressed concerns that sales had dropped off, despite the mall's then-general manager noting that sales were up to expectations;[15] specifically, mall sales were between $300 and $400 per square foot in the mall's first year of business, over the then-national average of $291.[21] The International Council of Shopping Centers noted that a decrease in traffic was not unusual for a mall in its first year of business, particularly due to factors such as unusually high expectations from retailers following a grand opening, and shopper unfamiliarity with the mall's mix of tenants.[15] Taubman also noted that, other than a small number of temporary stores that were only open for the Christmas 1998 shopping season, the only stores to close within the first year were clothing store J. Riggings and shoe store The Wild Pair, both due to the bankruptcy of their parent company Edison Brothers Stores in 1999.[15] In addition, the Wolfgang Puck Cafe was never opened due to financial difficulties, so Taubman Centers underwent negotiations to fill the space where it would have opened.[15] Several other stores joined in 1999, including Victoria's Secret, White Barn Candle Company, Limited Too, Forever 21, and Zales Jewelers,[21] while two other strip malls were built across Interstate 75: The Auburn Mile and Baldwin Commons, whose tenants featured such big-box stores as Costco, Kohl's, Meijer, and Target.[15]

After opening

In 2000, a report filed by the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau found that the mall was visited less by tourists than other attractions in metropolitan Detroit including Somerset Collection. A specalist hired by Taubman Centers to manage tourism marketing for the mall theorized that this deficiency was due to an overemphasis by mall marketers on tour bus travel, combined with the mall being new enough that out-of-state tourists may not have been aware of its existence yet.[22] Despite this, the mall continued to have significant regional impact. By 2001, vacancy had begun to increase at Summit Place Mall in nearby Waterford Township by more than ten percent since Great Lakes Crossing's opening.[23] J. C. Penney closed its outlet store at the mall in early 2002.[24] A portion of the former J. C. Penney outlet became a Circuit City, which opened in November 2003.[25] Taubman Centers assumed total ownership of the mall in 2003 after buying out a fifteen percent minority stake held by UBS Group AG, successor to Union Bank of Switzerland.[26]

Steve & Barry's relocated to near Summit Place Mall in 2006. H&M opened a 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m2) store at the mall in 2007, as part of an expansion into the state which began with a store at Briarwood Mall in Ann Arbor earlier in the year. Taubman representatives noted the addition of this chain to both Great Lakes Crossing and other malls under its ownership represented a move toward targeting younger shopper demographics.[27] In 2009, tenants that joined the mall included Michael Kors Outlet, Calvin Klein Outlet, Dakota Watch Company, and Bar Louie.[28] This was followed in February 2010 by a 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m2) Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill, the sixth in a chain of bars founded by singer Toby Keith.[29] GameWorks closed in May 2010 as part of a corprorate restructuring.[30]

2010s and 2020s

Taubman Centers announced in late 2010 that the mall would be renamed Great Lakes Crossing Outlets, in order to reflect more clearly the presence of outlet stores in the tenant mix. This renaming coincided with several new tenants, including the first Michigan locations of Lord & Taylor Outlet, Hugo Boss Factory Store, and Talbots Outlet. Other new stores at the time included Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store, Wilsons Leather Outlet, and aerie Outlet.[31] Art Van Furniture also opened a 43,000 square feet (4,000 m2) store at the mall on Black Friday 2010, replacing Circuit City which had gone out of business in 2009.[32] The rebranding was accompanied by a grand reopening ceremony which included free gift cards and tote bags for customers, along with several performances by local musicians and a ribbon-cutting.[33] The rebranding made Great Lakes Crossing the largest outlet mall in the state of Michigan, with over 185 stores.[34] Borders, one of the mall's outparcels, went out of business in 2011 and their location became a secondhand bookstore called 2nd and Charles.[35]

The mall underwent a large number of major store changes throughout the late 2010s and into 2020. In late 2014, Taubman announced that the former GameWorks location would be replaced by an aquarium called Sea Life Michigan.[36] Legoland Discovery Center opened at the mall in 2016, taking the place of Jeepers![37] Sports Authority, which had acquired the Oshman's chain in 2005, closed its store in August 2016 after filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy.[38] Taking its place was the first Michigan location of the Japanese entertainment franchise Round1.[39] Neiman Marcus closed the last of its Last Call outlet stores, including the one at Auburn Hills, on January 15, 2018 due to bankruptcy protection as a result of the retail apocalypse.[40] The store was replaced by a Planet Fitness later in the year.[41] Off 5th closed at the mall in December 2018, and in July 2019, Nordstrom announced that it would relocate its Nordstrom Rack outlet store from Baldwin Commons into the former Off 5th location by early 2020.[42] On March 5, 2020, Art Van announced that it would be closing all of its company-owned stores, including its Great Lakes Crossing Outlets location, as it filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy.[43] In May 2020, furniture chain Arhaus confirmed the opening of a clearance center in the space vacated by Lord & Taylor in 2019.[44] As of 2020, the mall contains over 185 stores, and is described by Taubman Centers as "the top tourist shopping destination in Michigan", with over 30 percent of annual sales coming from out-of-state tourists.[45]

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See also

References
  1. "Great Lakes Crossing Outlets". Taubman Centers. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  2. Joann Muller (July 18, 1990). "Giant mall will have Sears and Penney". Detroit Free Press. pp. D1. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  3. John Gallagher, Joann Muller (August 28, 1990). "Judge opens door to mall, suburban growth". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1A, 8A. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  4. Joann Muller (October 20, 1990). "Auburn Mills mall is delayed". Detroit Free Press. pp. 10B, 11B. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  5. Joann Muller (March 5, 1991). "Megamall faces foreclosure threat". Detroit Free Press. pp. 6C. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  6. Joann Muller (July 10, 1991). "Builder gets time to fund megamall". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1F, 2F. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  7. R. J. King (August 4, 1996). "Outlet mall goes upscale". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1C, 3C. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  8. "The ticker". Detroit Free Press. January 21, 1992. pp. 4B. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  9. Charlotte W. Craig (June 25, 1996). "Auburn Hills to see bargains". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1A, 8A. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  10. John Gallagher (August 21, 1989). "Planning commission says yes — of course — to Auburn Mills". Detroit Free Press. pp. 4C. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  11. Molly Brauer (July 15, 1996). "Coming soon: Glitzy department store offshoots will rise at Taubman's outlet mall". Detroit Free Press. pp. 6F–8F. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  12. "Great Lakes Crossing: What's in Store". Crain's Detroit Business. November 2, 1998. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  13. "Great Lakes Crossing fun facts". Detroit Free Press. November 8, 1998. pp. B5. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  14. Molly Brauer (September 8, 1997). "Shopping trips: The mall emerges as a tourist destination". Detroit Free Press. pp. 8F, 10F. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  15. Jennifer Bott, Carol Teegardin (November 5, 1999). "No big crush of customers". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1A, 16A. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  16. Molly Brauer. "The mall of the future". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1F, 3F. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  17. "Store directory". Detroit Free Press. November 8, 1998. pp. 4B. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  18. Molly Brauer (November 10, 1998). "Cruising Great Lakes Crossing". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1E, 2E. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
  19. "Great Lakes made with family in mind". Detroit Free Press. November 8, 1998. pp. B1. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  20. Rene Wisely (November 8, 1998). "Four days of events celebrate opening". Detroit Free Press. pp. B1. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  21. Rene Wisely (November 7, 1999). "Great Lakes Crossing weathers bumps during its first full year". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1B, 4B. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  22. Jennifer Bott (June 21, 2000). "Mall falls short of projections". Detroit Free Press. pp. 3C. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  23. Jennifer Chambers (February 25, 2001). "Summit Place struggles to attract shoppers". Detroit Free Press. pp. 4B. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  24. "Compuware shares drop 25 percent after bad news". Crain's Detroit. April 8, 2002. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  25. "Growth Report". Detroit Free Press. November 18, 2003. pp. 6C. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  26. "Scio Twp. retail plan may run into difficulties with zoning". Crains Detroit. April 7, 2003. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  27. Sheena Harrison (May 21, 2007). "Growing trend: Malls alter mix to cater to younger shoppers". Crains Detroit. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  28. Joseph Szczesny (November 8, 2009). "New stores move into Great Lakes Crossing". The Oakland Press. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  29. "Toby Keith raises the bar: Popular country musician opens new venue at mall". The Oakland Press. February 13, 2010. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  30. Joseph Szczesny (May 6, 2010). "Gameworks closes due to Sega reorganization". The Oakland Press. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  31. Daniel Duggan (September 27, 2010). "Great Lakes Crossing to become outlet center". Crains Detroit. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  32. Greta Guest, Georgea Kovanis (September 25, 2010). "A greater Great Lakes". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1A. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  33. Joseph Szczesny (October 7, 2010). "Great Lakes Crossing hosting celebration party". The Oakland Press. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  34. Greta Guest (November 23, 2011). "Aggressive outlet sales". Detroit Free Press. pp. C1. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  35. "2nd & Charles Opens in Auburn Hills". Inside Auburn Hills. September 24, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
  36. J. C. Reindl (March 17, 2014). "Giant aquarium to be built at Great Lakes Crossing Outlets". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  37. "Legoland Discovery Center Michigan set to open to public Friday". Crain's Detroit Business. March 23, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  38. "Sports Authority closing all stores; four are in Mich". The Detroit News. May 20, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  39. Shari Welch (December 22, 2016). "Bowling 1 to open site at Great Lakes Crossing Outlets". Crain's Detroit Business. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  40. "Neiman Marcus to close 10 Last Call stores". USA TODAY. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  41. Blake, Kathy. "Business briefs: Novi-based ITC award; Planet Fitness Gym to open in Auburn Hills; Blue Grill Foods of Commerce". TheOaklandPress.com. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  42. "Nordstrom Rack Baldwin Commons store moving to Great Lakes Crossing". Crain's Detroit Business. July 9, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  43. Reindl, JC (2020-03-05). "Art Van Furniture to close its stores, begin liquidation sales". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
  44. "Arhaus hiring Grand Opening - Warehouse Associate - Auburn Hills Loft in Auburn Hills, Michigan, United States | LinkedIn". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
  45. "Great Lakes Crossing fact sheet" (PDF). Taubman Center. Retrieved July 29, 2019.

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