Cary Towne Center

Last updated
Cary Towne Center
Cary Towne Center Logo, October 2014.svg
Cary Towne Center
Location Cary, North Carolina, USA
Address1105 Walnut Street
Opening dateFebruary 21, 1979
Closing dateJanuary 31, 2021
DeveloperSeby Jones and J.W. York
Owner Epic Games
No. of anchor tenants 5 (all vacant)
Total retail floor area 1,004,210 square feet (93,294 m2). [1]
No. of floors1 (2 in former Belk, former Dillards, and former Macy's)
Parking4,868 spaces [2]
Website Archived official website at the Wayback Machine (archived January 30, 2021)

Cary Towne Center was an indoor shopping mall in Cary, North Carolina. It was anchored by Belk, Dillard's, Macy's, JCPenney, and Sears.

Contents

History

Cary Village Mall

Originally planned in 1972, the mall was first proposed as the adjacent Cary Village Mall and Cary Village Square projects, part of a $25 million Village Center by local developers Seby Jones (who built Crabtree Valley Mall and J.W. York (who built Cameron Village). Village Center was to be a 78-acre (320,000 m2), 75 store project including 3 office buildings as well as a (never built) motel. [1] Cary Village Center fills the intersection between Maynard Road (a loop around central Cary), Walnut Street, and Cary Towne Boulevard (originally Western Boulevard Extension), the latter two of which continue to nearby freeways. The enclosed mall was built on the eastern part of the site, with office buildings at the center and two open-air retail pavilions on the north, separated by Cary Towne Boulevard.

The request to rezone the area to allow construction of the mall drew much controversy from nearby residents calling themselves "Citizens for the Better Direction of Cary" who worried about increased traffic as well as the property's proximity to Cary High School, Henry Adams School, and East Cary School. The group hired an attorney and pressured the town council to closely monitor the development causing York to complain that everything had to be approved "10 times". [3]

Cary Village Mall opened on February 21, 1979, with 325,000 square feet (30,200 m2) of retail space anchored by Ivey's (purchased by Dillard's in 1990) and Hudson Belk (now Belk) as well as outbuildings occupied by Big Star Markets (later Harris Teeter). The mall's design was a modified pinwheel with four wings, three either parallel to or facing the three streets around it, and a fourth facing to the rear of the mall where additional land remained for future expansion. At the center of the pinwheel was a sunken, triangular food court. A large Southern Red Oak tree on the expansion land became an unofficial mascot of the mall, and was retained on a raised terrace at the considerable expense even after the mall parking area grew around it. [4] The tree died a few years later and its terrace was removed and the location added to the parking lot.

Expansion/Transition to Cary Towne Center

In 1988, the mall applied for a zoning change for a major expansion, [5] perhaps spurred by proposals for a "mega-mall" at Crossroads Plaza emerged only a mile away. [1] In 1991, the mall completed its expansion to 1.1 million square feet and was renamed Cary Towne Center by then-owners Richard E. Jacobs Group.

The new mall included a food court adjacent to the oak tree, a Center Court with palm trees, and three new anchors: Thalhimers, [6] JCPenney, and Sears. In 1992, Dillard's opened a new, larger store adjacent to its original building, which became inline shops. [7] That same year, Thalhimer's became Hecht's in 1992, which became Macy's in 2006.

In 1995, Barnes & Noble officially opened across the street from Cary Towne Center. [8]

In 2001, the mall was sold to CBL & Associates Properties as part of a portfolio of 21 properties in nine states. [9]

Changes in retail landscape

On November 6, 2013, Dave and Buster's opened in the mall. Harris Teeter moved across the street in October 2014 to a larger location, later replaced with Jumpstreet, an indoor trampoline, bounce house, and entertainment complex. Sears closed its Cary Towne location in January 2015, citing continual financial struggles on the corporate level. [10] In 2015, TopGolf sought zoning approval from the town to open in what had been the Sears space, however plans were later withdrawn due to concerns over lighting and noise issues with a nearby neighborhood. [11] [12] Macy's closed its location in early 2016 due to disappointing sales and earnings performance. [13] The Sears space was filled in May 2016 by a local furniture store, Cary Towne Furniture, which boasted itself to be the largest furniture retail store in the region. However, the store closed in December 2016. [14]

On January 31, 2019, JCPenney announced that they would close their Cary Towne Center location on May 3, 2019. It was included as part of a plan to close 27 stores by July 5, 2019, which the company announced in February 2019. [15] [16] On July 12, 2019, Dillard's announced it was closing its Cary Towne Center store by December, according to a notification filed with the State of North Carolina. [17]

Decline and transformation to Epic Games headquarters

Cary Towne Center (after closing) Cary Towne Center.jpg
Cary Towne Center (after closing)

Plans have been in the works to transform Cary Towne Center from a traditional mall to a mixed-used development for many years. Spurred on by an announcement made by IKEA to open a 350,000-square-foot store in 2020 where Sears and Macy's were once located, CBL began the rezoning process alongside the Town of Cary to redevelop the property. [18] The submitted mixed use proposal included retail (352,000 SF), residential (800 dwelling units), office (600,000 SF), hotel (600 rooms) and community spaces. [19] However, in late May 2018, IKEA reversed its earlier plans and publicly announced the retailer was no longer coming to Cary because of the retail apocalypse. [20] As a result, CBL announced that it had defaulted on the mall's mortgage and was going to sell the mall. [21] On January 31, 2019, Turnbridge Equities and Denali Properties announced they had purchased the mall. [22]

Turnbridge and Denali announced plans in October 2020 to close and demolish Cary Towne Mall to transform it into a mixed-use project called Carolina Yards, which would include retail, hotel, residential, and office space, along with plenty of open outdoor space for gatherings, recreation, and events. [23] [24] However, it was announced in January 2021 that Epic Games had acquired Cary Towne Center for $95 million from Turnbridge and Denali, with the goal of transforming the property into its new headquarters campus by 2024, including facilities for both office buildings and recreational spaces. [25] The mall closed permanently on January 31, 2021 with the exception of Dave & Buster's, which planned to remain in the new Epic headquarters campus, relocating to a new site. [26] As of January 17, 2022, Dave and Busters opened in its relocated site in the former JumpStreet trampoline park at 1111 Walnut Street. [27]

The demolition of Cary Towne Center began in March 2022. [28] [29] The News & Observer reported that since Epic Games' announcement of rezoning and redeveloping Cary Towne Center's land in 2021 for their new headquarters, the plans have stalled and there have been no updates from the company. As of January 2025, the site sits barren and untouched after the mall's demolition. [30]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolina Place Mall</span> Shopping mall in Pineville, North Carolina

Carolina Place is a shopping mall located in Pineville, North Carolina, a suburb of Charlotte. The 1,200,000-square-foot (110,000 m2) GLA mall, in the shape of a curve, is anchored by Belk, a Dick's Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy combo store, Dillard's, and JCPenney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crabtree (shopping mall)</span> Shopping mall in North Carolina, US

Crabtree is a regional shopping mall located in Raleigh, North Carolina. At 1,343,109 square feet (124,778.9 m2), it is the largest enclosed mall in the Research Triangle area. The mall features Macy's, Belk, and Belk Men's Store.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hanes Mall</span> Shopping mall in North Carolina, United States

Hanes Mall is a shopping mall located off I-40 via the Stratford Road and Hanes Mall Boulevard exits, on Silas Creek Parkway. Hanes Mall Boulevard, the road named after the mall, has become a very high traffic count area with over 250 businesses stretching over 2.9 miles. The mall has 1,435,164 square feet (133,331 m2) GLA and has 3 anchor stores and over 170 tenants in all.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cross Creek Mall</span> Shopping mall in North Carolina, United States

Cross Creek Mall is a regional shopping mall located in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on the 401 Bypass between Morganton Road and the All-American Freeway. The mall contains over 150 stores and covers over 1,000,000 sq ft (93,000 m2). of retail space. Its anchors include Belk, Macy's, and JCPenney. The mall is owned by CBL & Associates Properties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volusia Mall</span> Shopping mall in Florida, United States

Volusia Mall is a super-regional shopping mall located in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the largest retail shopping center in the Volusia-Flagler market. Opened on October 15, 1974, the mall comprises more than 120 stores on one level, as well as a food court. Anchor stores are JCPenney and three Dillard's locations. The mall is owned and managed by CBL & Associates Properties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Citadel Mall</span> Shopping mall in South Carolina, United States

Citadel Mall is a regional 1,138,527 square feet (105,773 m2) shopping mall located in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. It opened on July 29, 1981 and is located at the intersection of Sam Rittenberg Boulevard and I-526. The mall features more than 100 stores. On September 1, 2013 the mall went into foreclosure after then owner CBL & Associates Properties defaulted on mortgage payments, and it was purchased at auction by the lender in January 2014. After the auction, the mall was placed under the ownership of a holding company formed by the lender, 2070 Sam Rittenberg Boulevard Holdings LLC and as of January 2017 was under contract to be sold to an undisclosed buyer. The anchor stores are Target, Belk, Dillard's, Mixed Bag Productions, and Medical University of South Carolina.

CoolSprings Galleria is an enclosed super-regional shopping mall in the Cool Springs commercial and residential corridor between Franklin and Brentwood, Tennessee, 15 miles (24 km) south of Nashville. Opened in 1991, it features 150 stores. The anchor stores are JCPenney, 2 Belk stores, H&M, American Girl, Ulta Beauty, Dillard's, Forever 21, and Macy's. The major tenant is The Cheesecake Factory. CBL Properties developed the mall in a joint venture with the Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation, and has owned it since its opening; CBL also owns an adjacent power center called CoolSprings Crossing which was developed simultaneously.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Columbia Place</span> Shopping mall in South Carolina, United States

Columbia Place is one of South Carolina's largest shopping malls, with nearly 1,100,000 square feet (100,000 m2) of retail space. The mall is located just off Interstate 20 and Interstate 77 on Two Notch Road in Columbia, South Carolina. The mall's current only anchor store is Macy's.

Sarasota Square Mall, formerly Westfield Shoppingtown Sarasota Square and Westfield Sarasota Square, is a shopping mall in Sarasota, Florida. Its anchor stores are Costco and JCPenney

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jefferson Mall</span> Shopping mall in Louisville, Kentucky

Jefferson Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Louisville, Kentucky, the largest city in Kentucky. The mall is located near the intersection of Interstate 65 and Outer Loop in southern Louisville. Jefferson Mall is the only major mall in southern Jefferson County, and the only of Louisville's six regional shopping centers serving the south and west county; the others are located in the east county.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acadiana Mall</span> Shopping mall in Lafayette, Louisiana

Acadiana Mall is an enclosed regional shopping mall in the city of Lafayette, Louisiana, located at the intersection of Johnston Street and Ambassador Caffery Parkway. It opened in 1979 and was developed by Robert B. Aikens & Associates, but is now owned by Namdar Realty Group. Currently, Acadiana Mall houses three department store anchors. In 2015, Sears Holdings spun off 235 of its properties, including the Sears at Acadiana Mall, into Seritage Growth Properties. Sears closed in September 2017 leaving its site vacant. On June 4, 2020, it was announced that JCPenney would be closing as part of a plan to close 154 stores nationwide. However this store was removed from the closing list on July 13, 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knoxville Center Mall</span> Mall in Knoxville, Tennessee

Knoxville Center Mall, originally known as East Towne Mall, was a shopping mall located in North Knoxville, Tennessee. It was in operation from 1984 to January 2020 and was demolished in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwoods Mall (North Charleston, South Carolina)</span> Shopping mall in South Carolina, United States

Northwoods Mall is a 101-store super-regional 833,833-square-foot (77,465.6 m2) indoor shopping mall located in North Charleston, South Carolina. It is the second largest indoor shopping mall in the Tri-County area next to Citadel Mall. Built in 1972, the mall is located at the intersection of Rivers Avenue, Ashley Phosphate Road and Interstate 26. Northwoods Mall was the first regional indoor shopping mall constructed in the South Carolina lowcountry and featured Belk, Sears, and the locally owned Kerrison's department stores as its original anchor tenants. A food court offers options such as Charleys Philly Steaks and Sbarro. The mall's anchor stores are Dillard's, Belk, JCPenney and Burlington. Northwoods Mall also features Books-A-Million and Planet Fitness as inline junior anchors.

Parkdale Mall is a regional shopping mall located in Beaumont, Texas, serving the Golden Triangle area. The mall is managed by CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. and is anchored by Dillard's, JCPenney, XXI Forever, Five Below, HomeGoods, and Dick's Sporting Goods. There are three empty anchors that once housed Macy's, Stage, and Sears.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regency Mall (Richmond, Virginia)</span> Shopping mall in Virginia, United States

Regency Mall is an enclosed shopping mall outside of Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County, Virginia, United States. Opened in 1975 as Regency Square, the mall features a food court and more than 60 tenants, currently with no anchors. Macy's, which had two locations at Regency Square, closed in spring 2016, Sears closed in summer 2017, and JCPenney closed in fall 2020. Forever 21 closed in early 2020 as part of that brand's restructuring plan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South County Center</span> Shopping mall in St. Louis, Missouri

South County Center is a shopping mall located in Mehlville, Missouri, at the intersection between Interstate 55, Interstate 255, and U.S. Route 50. It opened on October 17, 1963 and was designed by Victor Gruen. it included a dome-roofed Famous-Barr, which became Macy's in 2006, a National Supermarket occupying the basement floor, which closed in 1973, and later JCPenney as anchors. Stix, Baer & Fuller,, was added in 1973 along with a new wing of stores. A Sears, a food court, and additional mall stores were added in 2001. In 2004, Several stores and restaurants were added that could be accessed from outside the mall including Qdoba, Applebee's, Noodle's and Company, and Borders. The anchor stores are Macy's, Dillard's, and JCPenney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mid Rivers Mall</span> Shopping center in St. Peters, Missouri, U.S.

Mid Rivers Mall is a shopping center in St. Peters, Missouri, just off Interstate 70. The mall opened in 1987 and has since grown to be St. Charles County's largest shopping center. Mid Rivers Mall includes over 140 shops. The anchor stores are Macy's, Dillard's, H&M, JCPenney, Marcus Theatres, Vintage Stock, and Dick's Sporting Goods. There is one vacant anchor store that was once Sears. The mall is owned by CBL Properties, which acquired the property in 2007 from the Westfield Group.

Greenbrier Mall is a nearly 900,000 sq ft (84,000 m2) regional mall in Chesapeake, Virginia, United States in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. The mall has a hillside terrain, with entries on both upper and lower levels. It serves communities on the east coast in the states of Virginia and North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chesterfield Towne Center</span> Shopping mall in Chesterfield County, Virginia

Chesterfield Towne Center is an enclosed shopping mall located in the Richmond, Virginia metropolitan area in unincorporated Chesterfield County, Virginia. It opened in 1975 and features five anchor stores: At Home, JCPenney, Macy's, and a combination TJ Maxx/HomeGoods, with one vacant anchor last occupied by Sears.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Clair Square</span> Shopping mall in Fairview Heights, Illinois

St. Clair Square is a shopping mall in Fairview Heights, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1974, the mall features Macy's, Dillard's, and JCPenney as its anchor stores. It is managed by CBL & Associates Properties. The mall formerly had a Sears, which closed in 2019.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Byrd, Tom (1994). Around and About Cary (2nd ed.). Ann Arbor, MI: Edwards Brothers. pp. 140–143. OCLC   32207886.
  2. ↑ "Mall Statistics". CBL and Associates Properties. Archived from the original on 31 October 2009. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
  3. ↑ "Group Opposes Mall Development". The Cary News. Apr 17, 1974. p. 1.
  4. ↑ Cary, Town of (1990). "Cary Village Mall Zoning Conditions" (PDF). p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  5. ↑ Town of Cary. "Cary Village Mall - 0105". Site/Subdivision Plans. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  6. ↑ "Thalhimers to become Hecht's". News & Observer. November 13, 1991. pp. C9.
  7. ↑ Town of Cary. "Cary Village Mall – Dillard's".
  8. ↑ "Barnes & Noble Cary, North Carolina grand opening". The News and Observer.
  9. ↑ "CBL Shareholders Approve Jacobs Purchase". Business Wire, via The Free Library. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  10. ↑ "Sears in Cary to close in January". WRAL.com. October 16, 2014. Retrieved October 16, 2014.
  11. ↑ Specht, Paul (20 March 2015). "Cary Towne Center seeks path for TopGolf". The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.). Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  12. ↑ Trogdon, Kathryn (17 August 2015). "TopGolf no longer pursuing Cary Towne Center plans". The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.). Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  13. ↑ "Macy's to close its store at Cary Towne Center". The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.). 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  14. ↑ Papich, Michael (May 23, 2016). "Biggest Furniture Store Comes to Cary Towne Center". CaryCitizen. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  15. ↑ "JCPenney to close store at Cary Towne Center". WRAL-TV. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  16. ↑ Peterson, Hayley. "JCPenney is closing 27 stores — see if your local store is on the list". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  17. ↑ "Dillard's store in Cary Towne Center closing". WRAL.com. Retrieved 2019-07-12.
  18. ↑ "Ikea to catalyze Cary Towne Center's change to mixed-use, company says". CBS 17. 22 May 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  19. ↑ "Cary Rezoning proposal phase 2". Town of Cary. 31 August 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  20. ↑ "IKEA announces it is no longer coming to Cary Towne Center". WRAL-TV. May 23, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2017.
  21. ↑ Graham, Ben (October 31, 2018). "CBL reveals timeline for Cary Towne Center sale". Triangle Business Journal. Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  22. ↑ Quigley, Colleen (2019-02-01). "Cary Towne Center has a new owner despite JC Penney closing location". WNCN . Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  23. ↑ "Cary Towne Center to be rebuilt as Carolina Yards, a facility with shops, homes, offices". abc11.com. October 2, 2020. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Plans call for overhauling Cary Towne Center with a new look and a new name". The News & Observer. October 2, 2020. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  25. ↑ Harshberger, Caleb (January 3, 2021). "Big shift for Cary Towne Center as Epic Games buys site for $95M for headquarters campus". Triangle Business Journal . Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  26. ↑ Prosser, Faye (January 29, 2021). "Cary Towne Center closing Sunday". WRAL News . Capitol Broadcasting Company . Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  27. ↑ "Dave and Buster's to reopen at new location in Cary :: Out and About at WRAL.com". www.wral.com. 6 January 2022. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
  28. ↑ Dolder, Lars (March 12, 2022). "Say goodbye: Cary Towne Center mall is finally coming down after more than a year". News & Observer. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  29. ↑ Leah, Heather (March 11, 2022). "Onlookers say goodbye as demolition begins at Cary Towne Center mall". WRAL . Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  30. ↑ Gordon, Brian (2024-03-28). "Epic Games leaves Cary waiting and wondering on new HQ at old Cary Towne Center". The News & Observer.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

35°46′23″N78°45′33″W / 35.773153°N 78.759087°W / 35.773153; -78.759087

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.