Upper Valley Mall was a shopping mall located near Springfield, Ohio, northeast of Dayton. Built in 1971 by the Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation of Youngstown, the mall at closing had no anchor stores. The Upper Valley Mall was located west of Springfield, off US 68, in German Township, Clark County. The mall is currently owned by the Clark County Land Reutilization Corporation. The Upper Valley Mall contained 267,466 sq ft (24,848 m2) of floor space. The mall had room for 55 stores depending on layout.
 | |
| Location | Near Springfield, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°56′56″N 83°51′15″W / 39.9488889°N 83.8541667°W |
| Address | 1475 Upper Valley Pike |
| Opening date | 1971 |
| Closing date | 2021 |
| Developer | Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation |
| Owner | Clark County Land Reutilization Corp. |
| No. of stores and services | 13 (55 at peak) |
| No. of anchor tenants | 4 (all vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 267,466 sq ft (24,848 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 (2 in former Macy’s) |
History
editThe Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation built Upper Valley Mall in 1971. At the time, it featured J. C. Penney, Sears, a two-story Rike's (later Shillito-Rike's, Lazarus, Lazarus-Macy's and finally Macy's), and Wren's (later Block's, a unit of Allied Stores), as its anchors.[1] Another original tenant was an F. W. Woolworth Company dime store, which closed in January 1992.[2]
Shortly after Federated Department Stores' 1987 purchase of Block's and its consolidation into Federated's Lazarus division, the Block's location was converted to additional sales space for Lazarus.
Anchor Elder-Beerman opened on October 2, 1992, replacing the Woolworth.[3] Both Elder-Beerman and Old Navy closed in January 2013.[4]
In March 2013, the Dayton Society of Natural History (DSNH) opened a satellite version of their main museum called the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery Springfield in an approximately 4000-square-foot space in the mall,[5] moving to 20,000 square feet in the former Elder-Beerman space in November. On March 25, 2016, DSNH announced that it would close this satellite museum;[6] it did so on April 30.[7]
The mall went into receivership in July 2014,[8] and by the end of the month, management was transferred from Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group (successor of DeBartolo) to Urban Retail Properties.[9]
In spring 2015, Macy's[10] and J. C. Penney[11] closed their stores in the mall. The mall's cinema, an original tenant, closed on February 20, 2017.[12]
In December 2016, the Macy's site was purchased by the Clark County Land Reutilization Corporation, a land bank, for about $200,000.[13] In May 2018, the land bank purchased the rest of the site, exclusive of Sears, from its then-owner, Urban Retail Properties, for slightly more than $3 million.[14][15]
On December 28, 2018, it was announced that Sears, the last anchor at the mall, would be closing as part of a plan to close 80 stores nationwide. The store closed on March 10, 2019, leaving the mall with no anchors.[16][17][18]
It was reported in March 2019 (although not confirmed by Clark County) that Home Plate Sports Academy, an existing tenant, would expand and be part of the mall's redevelopment into a mixed-use sports complex including restaurants, retail, a hotel and a movie theater; the academy stated that it planned to complete the project in two years,[17] but nothing ever came of the plan.[19]
Victoria's Secret announced in January 2020 that it would close before the end of the month.[20]
On December 16, 2020, the Clark County Commission voted to allow the Clark County Combined Health District to use the former J. C. Penney store for three months for COVID-19 vaccinations and testing.[21] The clinic in fact operated until May 27, 2021.[22][23]
Closure and redevelopment
editOn April 15, 2021 it was announced that the mall would permanently close to the public on June 16, 2021.[24][25] County officials stated that the county had expected to only hold the property for a few months, pending a deal with a private developer which fell through. To date, the county has invested about $3.5 million into the mall. The mall's thirteen tenants, including Bath & Body Works; Spencer Gifts; GNC; Emporium, a local antique and consignment store; the Springfield Chess Club; and Mark Pi Express, a family-owned Chinese restaurant that was a 28-year tenant, were informed that they would have to vacate the mall by mid-June. The county reported that they had heard from potential buyers, and expected the mall property to be converted to mixed-use or light-industrial uses.[20][19][26]
On June 9, 2021, Clark County announced that it had reached an agreement to sell the mall and its 76.8-acre (31.1 ha) property to Ohio-based developer Industrial Commercial Properties (ICP) for $2.25 million. Pending ICP's due diligence, the deal is expected to close in fall 2021. ICP's plans are to convert the mall to a mixed-use business park. The company says it has a track record of such projects, having converted malls, big-box stores and retail power centers to business parks. ICP touts a successful redevelopment of Randall Park Mall in North Randall (suburban Cleveland), as well as its proposed redevelopment of Chapel Hill Mall in Akron.[27][28][26]
The mall closed as scheduled on June 16, 2021. On June 24, the county announced that it would donate any materials from the mall to the Clark County Heritage Center for historic preservation. Of particular note are the mall's Peanuts characters Christmas displays.[29]
References
edit- ^ "Chain Store Age: Executives edition". 1971.
- ^ "Woolworth store at mall to close at end of January". Springfield News Sun. September 13, 1991. pp. 1, 7.
- ^ Bohman, Jim (October 2, 1992). "Elder-Beerman opens 50th store". Dayton Daily News. p. 20. Archived from the original on June 26, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ Stafford, Tom (January 8, 2013). "More stores close at mall". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ Grieco, Lou (March 10, 2013). "Satellite branch could lead to additional museum growth". Springfield News-Sun. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
- ^ Cooper, Michael (March 25, 2016). "Boonshoft to close Springfield mall location". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
- ^ Sanctis, Matt (April 30, 2016). "Boonshoft's mall location hosts one final party before closing". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
- ^ Sanctis, Matt (June 27, 2014). "Bank files complaint seeking control of Upper Valley Mall". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 26, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ Sanctis, Matt (July 31, 2014). "Chicago-based firm now managing Upper Valley Mall". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 26, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ "List of Macy's stores closing nationwide by spring 2015". 8 January 2015.
- ^ "JCPenney's holiday sales up 3.7%, retailer closing 40 stores in 2015". 8 January 2015.
- ^ Sanctis, Mark (February 21, 2017). "Upper Valley Mall movie theater closes after decades". Springfield News-Sun. Springfield, Ohio: Cox Media Group. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ Sanctis, Matt (December 21, 2016). "Clark County land bank to buy old Macy's at Upper Valley Mall". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ Sanctis, Mark (May 2, 2018). "Hoping for 'a new vision': Clark County Land Bank buys Upper Valley Mall". Springfield News-Sun. Springfield, Ohio: Cox Media Group. Retrieved December 3, 2018.
- ^ Sanctis, Mark (May 3, 2018). "Could the Upper Valley Mall sale breathe new life into a once-thriving part of Springfield?". Springfield News-Sun. Springfield, Ohio: Cox Media Group. Retrieved December 3, 2018.
- ^ Thomas, Lauren (2018-12-28). "Sears is closing 80 more stores in March, faces possible liquidation". CNBC. Retrieved 2018-12-28.
- ^ a b Shively, Holly; Perry, Parker (March 6, 2019). "Last area Sears to close Sunday". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
- ^ Newton, Riley (March 12, 2019). "Springfield Dick's Sporting Goods: Answers elusive on why store is closing". Springfield News-Sun. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- ^ a b Newton, Riley; Schwartzberg, Eric (April 25, 2021). "Clark County leaders seek to reimagine Upper Valley Mall, a once bustling regional retail hub". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 13, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ a b Newton, Riley (April 16, 2021). "Clark County to 'explore other opportunities' after Upper Valley Mall closure". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on April 18, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Newton, Riley (December 16, 2020). "Coronavirus: Clark County gives health department temporary space at Upper Valley Mall for vaccinations". Springfield News-Sun. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- ^ Newton, Riley (May 15, 2021). "Clark County's vaccination clinic at Upper Valley Mall 'coming to a close'". Springfield News-Sun. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Newton, Riley (May 15, 2021). "Clark County's vaccination clinic at Upper Valley Mall 'coming to a close'". Springfield News-Sun. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Newton, Riley (April 15, 2021). "Upper Valley Mall in Springfield to close its doors for good in June". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on April 18, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Newton, Riley (April 15, 2021). "Upper Valley Mall in Springfield to close its doors for good in June". Springfield News-Sun. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ a b Karim, Hasan (June 13, 2021). "Final days: Upper Valley Mall closing after decades of business". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Karim, Hasan (June 9, 2021). "Developer to purchase Upper Valley Mall site". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Karim, Hasan (June 10, 2021). "Ohio developer wants to turn Upper Valley Mall into a business park". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Hoeferlin, Makenzie (June 24, 2021). "Clark County to donate parts of Upper Valley Mall to Heritage Center". Springfield News-Sun. Archived from the original on June 26, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2021.