Valley View Center

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Valley View Center
File:Valley View Center logo.png
Location 13331 Preston Road
Dallas, Texas 75240
USA
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Opening date August 1973[1]
Developer General Growth Properties
Management Beck Ventures
Owner Beck Ventures
No. of stores and services 130+[2]
No. of anchor tenants 2
Total retail floor area 1,635,449 sq ft (151,938 m2)[3]
No. of floors 3
Website ShopValleyViewCenter.com

Valley View Center is a super-regional shopping mall located at Interstate 635 and Montfort Road in north Dallas, Texas, USA.[4] The mall is owned and managed by Dallas-based Beck Ventures. The mall's current anchors are Sears and AMC Theatres.

Originally developed in 1973, the mall flourished and expanded in the 1980s but began to encounter financial difficulties in the 1990s. The Bloomingdale's anchor closed in 1990, which triggered a court battle when Montgomery Ward tried to buy the space, then sat empty until JCPenney opened in 1996. The mall's original movie theater closed in 1991, sat empty for a decade, and was replaced by radio stations KBFB and KSOC. A new, larger AMC movie theater opened in the mall in 2004.

The addition of the theater slowed but did not halt the falling fortunes of the rest of the mall. Two of the five anchor locations closed in 2008. A third closed in 2013. As of 2014, they remain vacant and the mall's parking deck has been fenced off. Sears and AMC Theatres are the two operating anchor businesses in the mall.

The 2010s have seen the mall change ownership and management several times. Demographic shifts and declining occupancy led the current owners to announce plans to redevelop the mall and surrounding property. In mid-2012, the mall began a new effort to create an artist's community. Dubbed "The Gallery at Midtown and Artists Studios", the three upstairs wings are occupied by local artists' studios, galleries, and other creative entities.

History

North entrance, June 2012

The mall was developed in 1973 when Homart Development Company, the real estate development subsidiary of Sears, Roebuck & Co.,[5] added a Sanger-Harris and several smaller stores to the existing Sears store that had been built in 1965.[1] In August 1973, as part of the mall's grand opening celebration, the Thom McAn Shoe Store in Valley View Center offered a free 8-ounce steak with any purchase of $5 or more.[6] The promotion drew local and national media attention.[6]

LaSalle Street Fund bought the mall in the early 1980s and oversaw continued expansion plus addition of a fourth anchor store.[7] September 1, 1985, marked the first legal Sunday shopping day in Texas.[8] Valley View Center, like other area malls, celebrated the end of the state's 24-year-old blue law with entertainment and special promotions. Some smaller retailers objected to the new hours but mall officials informed them in writing of their contractual obligations to operate while the mall is open.[9] January 1, 1987, was the first New Year's Day that the anchor stores of Valley View Center were open for business on the holiday.[10] Many smaller stores in the mall followed their lead although it would be a few years before every store would be obligated to be open on the first day of the new year.[10]

The Macerich Company, a Santa Monica, California-based shopping center operator, purchased Valley View Center in 1996 for a reported $85.5 million in cash and debt.[11] Since the 2000 census, the neighborhood around the mall has become younger, poorer, and more ethnically diverse. According to the 2010 census, the area is now 60% Hispanic with the percentage of white residents dropping from about 35% to just under 25%.[12] In 2010, LNR Partners, Inc., of Miami, Florida, took possession of the mall when Macerich defaulted on $125 million in debt.[13] Jones Lang LaSalle became responsible for mall management. With the 2012 change in ownership, Jones Lang LaSalle no longer manages the property, as Beck Ventures took management in-house.[14]

Anchor tenants

Sears

The 235,055 square feet (21,837 m2) Sears, Roebuck and Company anchor actually pre-dates the mall itself having been built in 1965.[15] This Sears was built as a freestanding store on what was then the far northern fringe of Dallas and the location was largely surrounded by pasture land.[1] It would be another eight years before the Homart Development Company would add a Sanger-Harris department store to the site and connect it to Sears with a corridor of specialty retailers to create Valley View Mall.[1]

Macy's (closed)

The former Macy's (originally Sanger-Harris) in June 2012

The mall's second anchor (300,196 square feet (27,889 m2)[3]) opened in August 1973 as a Sanger-Harris department store as part of the original Valley View Center development.[1][16] Sanger-Harris was merged with Foley's and renamed in 1987[17] then the combined company was sold to May Department Stores in 1988.[16] The store was renamed Macy's in September 2006 as a result of Federated Department Stores' purchase of the May Company in 2005.[16] This location closed on March 15, 2008 and is, as of July of 2015, vacant.[18] The building's current owners, Monfort Mall LLC, announced plans in September 2011 to at least partially fill the building with a "general merchandise" retailer, although this plan has obviously never materialized.[19]

Dillard's (closed)

Dillard's department store, the mall's third anchor (302,268 square feet (28,082 m2)), was opened in 1979 as a two-level store accompanied by further expansion of the mall's interior.[7] In October 1985, Dillard's added a third floor to its Valley View Center store.[20] Linens, furniture, electronics and housewares were relocated to the new third level and several clothing departments on the original two levels were expanded.[20] At the same time, Dillard's added a candy and cookie department as well as a junior department.[20] In July 2008, Dillard's announced that it would close this location on August 30, 2008.[2]

JCPenney (closed)

JCPenney (originally Bloomingdale's) in June 2012

LaSalle Street Fund purchased Valley View Center in the early 1980s and expanded the mall again with more interior stores and a fourth anchor store, Bloomingdale's.[7] This (220,378 square feet (20,474 m2)) anchor location opened its doors in early 1983. On August 18, 1990, Bloomingdale's closed this location, citing declining sales and increased market competition.[21] After the store's closure, the mall, which identified store locations by anchor store quadrants, furnished the former Bloomingdale's corridor with a grand piano, added landscaping and artwork, and branded the area as "The Conservatory."[22] In August 1990, Montgomery Ward & Co. Inc. attempted to acquire the ground lease for this store from Federated Department Stores Inc. through the bankruptcy court.[23] If successful, the company planned to buy the 200,000-square-foot (19,000 m2) building for a new Montgomery Ward location. Valley View Center's owner, then the Chicago, Illinois-based LaSalle Street Fund Inc. of Delaware, objected in court.[24] In March 1991, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge in Cincinnati ruled that Federated could withdraw from its deal to sell the building in favor of a deal from the LaSalle Street Fund to "avoid further costs of litigation" and as it would be "a sound business decision."[25] The space would ultimately remain vacant until October 19, 1996 when JCPenney opened in that location.[26] At the time, it was the largest JCPenney location in the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex.[27] This store was also the planned location of the "secret" prototype. They closed off the 3rd level to the public and put a new logo on one side of the building. The "store of the future" prototype never opened.

On February 1, 2013, it was announced that JCPenney would be closing on May 1 on that year,[28] in April the store closed off the second floor to customers, and the store closed entirely on May 1 as planned.[29]

AMC Valley View 16

AMC 16 from the south side of the mall, June 2012

In 2000, as part of a general redevelopment of the mall, Valley View Center announced the addition of a 20-screen AMC movie theater as a fifth anchor.[30] After several delays, construction for a 16-screen theater began in June 2003.[31] The AMC Valley View 16 opened on May 14, 2004.[32] The grand opening was marked by a ceremonial "ticket-tearing" featuring Dat Nguyen and Jason Witten of the Dallas Cowboys.[33] The stadium-style seating theater complex was built on top of the Sears anchor store so that no parking or retail space would be given up for the addition.[30]

The Gallery at Midtown and Artists Studios

The Gallery at Midtown and Artists Studios, as of January 2014, comprise over 90% occupancy of three upstairs wings. Part of an on-going cultural experiment, Beck Ventures began talks with key local artists about creating a thriving artists community, along with North Texas' largest local artist cooperative gallery, The Gallery at Midtown, located at the center of the western hub of the mall. Surrounding the main gallery are many artist-run studios and showrooms, experimental galleries, private galleries, work spaces, a movie school, actor's studio and other creative entities. Every third Saturday of the month from 6pm to 10pm, all the artist studios and the Gallery at Midtown are open for their "Art Walk".[citation needed]

Former features

Valley View Cinema 1 & 2 (1975–1991)

In 1975, a twin-screen movie theater owned and operated by General Cinema Corporation was added to the northeast corner of the mall.[32] The theater, known as Valley View Cinema 1 & 2,[34] closed in 1991. The facade of the movie theater was boarded up and the interior furnishings were stripped out.[35] The 13,240 square feet (1,230 m2) space remained empty until it was renovated in late 2001 by Radio One to house radio stations KBFB and KSOC.[36] Renovation included leveling the sloping floors in the theater and installing new air-conditioning and heating units.[35] Officially opened in January 2002, the broadcast studios, located on the mall's second level, are in what used to be the theater projection rooms.[35] The area that housed the ticket counters became the reception desk and part of one movie theater was retained as a 150-seat auditorium.[36] The facility also includes a small basketball court,[37] two production studios, a mix room, a newsroom, and office space.[38]

Smart Shoppers Club (1994–2000)

In April 1994, Valley View Center added a frequent-shopper rewards program called the Smart Shoppers Club.[39] Mall management said they planned to spend roughly $500,000 over the first two years of the program in a bid to increase mall traffic while collecting invaluable demographic data about mall shoppers.[40] Within five months, 9,000 shoppers had joined the club and the mall announced a goal of 20,000 members by the end of 1994.[40] Shoppers logged their visits by swiping their membership card and entering a personal identification number at one of the mall's three touch-screen kiosks.[41] Member benefits included special discount coupons, free gifts, and the chance to win prizes.[41] Club members also received a periodic Shopping Smart newsletter, a Valley View Center shopping bag, plus a birthday card and gift. The Smart Shoppers Club was terminated in late 2000 when it was replaced by a cardless web-based system called Centerlinq.[42] Customers were then able to redeem their old Smart Shoppers Club cards at the mall's customer service desk for a Valley View Center t-shirt.

Dallas Children's Museum (2000–2006)

Originally opened in August 1998 at the Inwood Village shopping center,[43][44] the Dallas Children's Museum relocated to Valley View Center in June 2000.[45] The new museum, double the size of the previous location, was located on the second level of the mall between JCPenney and the Disney Store.[46] For six years the museum hosted both touring cultural exhibits and permanent features including a play hospital and kid-sized grocery store.[45] In September 2006, the Museum of Nature & Science and the Dallas Children's Museum announced their merger and closed the Valley View Center location.[47] The museum reopened in Fair Park as the Children's Museum at the Museum of Nature & Science in October 2006.[48]

Future development

In 2011, efforts to coordinate the redevelopment of the mall and the surrounding real estate were being coordinated by the North Dallas Chamber of Commerce.[19] In April 2012, new owners Beck Ventures announced a $2 billion redevelopment plan for the mall and surrounding property dubbed "Dallas Midtown" that will include retail, condominiums, and a "five star" hotel.[13][49] To fill vacant spaces, jewelry stores have been converted into artist studios and a gallery, a mercado is being constructed in cooperation with a local Spanish-language radio station, and the food court will become home to test kitchens for local food trucks.[14]

Honors and awards

In November 2007, the International Council of Shopping Centers presented a Maxi award in the Community Relations category to Valley View Center for work with the Tejas Council of Girls Scouts.[50]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ http://bizbeatblog.dallasnews.com/2013/02/valley-view-centers-j-c-penney-is-closing-by-may-1-as-the-company-uses-the-space-to-build-its-store-of-the-future.html/
  29. ↑ http://bizbeatblog.dallasnews.com/2013/04/j-c-penneys-valley-view-center-store-closes-on-sunday.html/
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  49. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  50. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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