Savannah Mall

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Savannah Mall
Savannah Mall (7965787120).jpg
Entrance to Savannah Mall, September 2012
LocationSavannah, Georgia, United States
Coordinates31°59′02″N 81°10′19″W / 31.98384°N 81.17191°W / 31.98384; -81.17191Coordinates: 31°59′02″N 81°10′19″W / 31.98384°N 81.17191°W / 31.98384; -81.17191
Opening dateAugust 29, 1990
DeveloperHocker and Associates, Inc. and R.F. Coffin Enterprises, Inc.
OwnerKohan Retail Investment Group[1]
No. of stores and services110
No. of anchor tenants5 (3 open, 2 vacant)
Total retail floor area962,529 sq ft (89,421.9 m2) (GLA)
No. of floors2
Parking3,783 spaces
Websitesavannahmall.com
Interior view of Savannah Mall, September 2012

Savannah Mall is an enclosed super-regional shopping mall on the southside of Savannah, Georgia, that opened August 29, 1990. Anchor stores include Target, Bass Pro Shops, and Dillard's. There are 2 vacant anchor stores that were once Montgomery Ward and Burlington Coat Factory.

History[]

The land the mall sits on was originally subdivided in the 1940s as Forest River Farms (named for the nearby river) and was a swampy lowland of nearly 80 acres. It was proposed to be a residential subdivision in then-rural, unincorporated Chatham County. This never came to fruition.[2]

In the 1970s, Abercorn Expressway (Georgia State Route 204) was extended down to Interstate 95.[3] Subdivisions were sprouting up nearby and by the mid 1980s, the only remaining tract of land was the Forest River Farms subdivision. By 1988 the land had been rezoned commercial and a development plan for the Savannah Mall was approved by the Metropolitan Planning Commission.[4] Real Estate developers David Hocker Associates and R.F. Coffin Enterprises began construction in early 1989.[5] The architect was Birmingham, Alabama based Crawford, McWilliams, Hatcher Associates, Inc. Civil engineering and Land Surveying were provided locally by EMC Engineering.[6]

When Savannah Mall opened on August 29, 1990, it was expected to succeed Savannah's older Oglethorpe Mall. Savannah Mall was considered upscale and featured stores exclusive to the market like Abercrombie & Fitch, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, United Colors of Benetton, and The Disney Store. It also contained many duplicate stores already found in Oglethorpe Mall such as GAP, The Limited, Lerner Shops, B. Dalton, Spencer's Gifts, and other common mall shops in that era.[7]

Belk, J.B. White, Miller & Rhoads, and Jordan Marsh were the original anchors.[8] Belk (the third in Savannah at the time) and J.B. White opened with the mall in August 1990. Miller & Rhoads filed for bankruptcy during the mall's construction,[9] and subsequently went out of business before ever opening. Jordan Marsh already operated a store at Oglethorpe Mall and scrapped plans for a new store when parent company Allied Stores filed for bankruptcy in 1990.[10] Parisian and Montgomery Ward backfilled Miller & Rhoads and Jordan Marsh respectively. They opened in 1991.[11]

The area around the mall also began to develop. In 1990, construction began across the street from Savannah Mall on the very first Publix outside the state of Florida.[12] Kroger and Wal-Mart were also developed by David Hocker across Abercorn Expressway and opened in 1991.[13]

Montgomery Ward pulled out of the mall in 1998.[14] Later that year Dillard's acquired J.B. White parent company Mercantile Stores Company, Inc. and rebranded the store.[15] Parisian and Belk both left the mall in early 2003.[16] At this point, many stores were leaving the mall and by 2005, there were more than 20 vacancies, with some stores relocating to Oglethorpe Mall, and others exiting the Savannah market altogether.

In August 2003, Bass Pro Shops opened in the space vacated by Parisian.[17] Target opened its first Savannah area store in the mall in October 2004. Target demolished the Belk building to construct a new 213,735-square-foot (19,856.6 m2) building. Target occupies the second level, and Burlington Coat Factory took the ground floor and remained in this location until relocating across town in 2020.[18] Steve & Barry's opened in 2004 in the former Montgomery Ward, and closed in 2009.[19] A.C. Moore opened as a junior anchor in 2007 and lasted until 2019.[20]

In 2008, the mall's owners undertook multimillion-dollar renovations with improvements focused on energy conservation, lighting and additional ADA access. The mall also received a new logo and modern features like Wi-Fi.[21]

Today[]

As of 2021, the mall has about 19 businesses remaining. Aside from the anchors, remaining national retailers include Bath & Body Works, Champs Sports, Cato, It's Fashion, Rainbow, Glamour Nails, Hibbett Sports, and China Max. The rest are either regional or mom-and-pop operations [22]

References[]

  1. ^ Savannah, Business in (September 7, 2016). "Savannah Mall sold to New York developer". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  2. ^ "Recombination of Former Lots 91 and 92". Chatham County Subdivision Map Book. 5S: 80. 1946. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  3. ^ "Interstate 95 in Georgia". Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  4. ^ "Resubdivision of lots 70 through 81 and parts of lots 82 through 95". Chatham County Subdivision Map Book. 9S: 53. October 17, 1990. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  5. ^ "Developed Properties". David Hocker & Associates, Inc. David Hocker Associates, Inc. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  6. ^ "Site Plan - Savannah Mall". Chatham County Subdivision Map Book. 10P: 47. October 13, 1988.
  7. ^ "Savannah Mall". DeadMalls.com. DeadMalls.com. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  8. ^ "Site Plan - Savannah Mall". Chatham County Subdivision Map Book. 10P: 47. October 13, 1988.
  9. ^ "Giving Customer What They Want". Washington Post. Washington Post. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  10. ^ "Giving Customers What They Want". Washington Post. Washington Post.
  11. ^ "Savannah Mall". DeadMalls.com. DeadMalls.com. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  12. ^ "Back in Time: Publix in the 1990s". The Checkout. Publix. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  13. ^ "Developed Properties". David Hocker & Associates, Inc. David Hocker Associates, Inc. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  14. ^ "Montgomery Ward to Close 9 Stores". AP. May 29, 1998. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  15. ^ Robert W. Dalton (May 19, 1998). "Dillard's to buy JB White". GoUpstate.
  16. ^ "Savannah Mall". DeadMalls.com. DeadMalls.com. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  17. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-04-10. Retrieved April 8, 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. ^ "Savannah Burlington store relocating in spring 2020". Fox 28 Savannah. Sinclair Broadcasting Group, Inc. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  19. ^ "Steve & Barry's to close all stores". Savannahnow.com. Savannah Morning News.
  20. ^ Kelly Tyko (November 25, 2019). "A.C. Moore Store Closings". USA Today. USA Today. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  21. ^ Lauren Nardella (April 2, 2008). "Capital Improvements Started at Savannah Mall". Savannahnow.com. Savannah Morning News. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  22. ^ "Savannah Mall Directory". Savannah Mall. Savannah Mall. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
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