The community-class mall's original, 1955 footprint. There were thirty-
six retail spaces in the fully-leased complex.



The shuttering of Grant's in 1976 created a major vacancy. This was
filled when an expansion was done in 1978-1979. A new Kohl's and
Kohl's Foods were built on the east end of the existing structure, with
the Grant's space being expanded and refitted with twenty inline
stores. A tri-plex cinema was also added to the south side of the mall.
VALLEY FAIR CENTER now featured fifty-five stores and services.



An exterior view of the abandoned shopping center. This was taken the
year before the mall had its August 2007 destiny date with the wrecking
ball.
Photo from Wikipedia / "Royalbroil"


VALLEY FAIR CENTER
South Memorial Drive and West Calumet Street
Appleton, Wisconsin

Where was America's first fully-enclosed, climate-controlled shopping center? Most mid-20th century historians would cite SOUTHDALE CENTER [May and August 2008 archives], in Edina, Minnesota, as the nation's first interior mall. This complex opened for business October 8, 1956.

However, a little-known retail establishment in Wisconsin's "Fox Cities" area could actually qualify as the first. VALLEY FAIR opened March 10, 1955, well over a year before business began at Minnesota's SOUTHDALE.

This mid-sized center, technically a "neighborhood mall", was situated on a 42 acre site, located 1 mile south of Appleton, Wisconsin's downtown area.

The single-level complex was originally within the city limits of Menasha, but was eventually annexed into Appleton. It opened with eighteen stores. There were an additional eighteen spaces along the enclosed corridor and Center Court, which were leased over the following year.

The 1 million dollar shopping complex was designed by George Narovec and developed by Hoffman Shopping Centers, Incorporated. It had parking space for 1,500 hundred cars, and was anchored on the west end by a 1-level (20,000 square foot) Krambo Foods supermarket and a 1-level (20,000 square foot) W.T. Grant variety store on the east.

There were also a Walgreen Drug, F.W. Woolworth 5 and 10, and hardware store, as well as several apparel shoppes, two shoe stores, a furniture outlet, bakery, dry cleaner, beauty salon and liquor store.

An addition was built on the mall's east end in 1978-1979. This incorporated the Grant's (shuttered in 1976) and included a 1-level (78,000 square foot), Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin-based Kohl's department store and 33,000 square foot Kohl's Foods supermarket.

Twenty new retail spaces were created in the old Grant's space. Moreover, a 3-screen cinema was built onto the south side of the mall. This was made into a 6-plex venue in the 1980s.

The first competition to VALLEY FAIR came when NORTHLAND, a strip shopping center in the area, was renovated into an enclosed mall in 1983.

The opening of the superregional FOX RIVER MALL, in 1984, resulted in an even greater loss of business -and tenants- for the 29 year-old complex. It was bought and sold several times over the next 15 years.

By the late 1990s, VALLEY FAIR was in serious trouble. The Kohl's anchor store had gone out of business. Likewise, several slots in the mall were sitting vacant. A plan to energize the aging center was undertaken in 2002.

A non-profit organization, known as Youth Futures, sought to reinvent VALLEY FAIR as a "youth mall". The old Kohl's stores were divided into an indoor skateboarding track and live band venue, and local "family-oriented" retailers were contracted to fill the remaining retail spaces within the 265,400 square foot mall.

Unfortunately, this initiative was unsuccessful. Youth Futures sold its interest in the complex to Wisconsin-based VF Partners in February 2006. VF Partners, a joint venture between Commercial Horizons, Rollie Winter Associates and Bomier Properties, demolished the mall in August 2007, leaving only the cinema and Kohl's stores standing.

The plan was to redevelop the site as a mixed-use office and retail complex, tentatively named VALLEY FAIR CENTER. Thus far, only one new structure has been built.

Sources:

Appleton Post Crescent / "18 Stores In Valley Fair's Biggest Preview Starting Thursday" / March 9, 1955
"Valley Fair" article on Wikipedia
"Kohl's" article on Wikipedia
http://www.commercialhorizons.com/
Appleton Post-Crescent / "Valley Fair Redevelopment Plan Announced, Good Portion Of The Building To Come Tumbling Down In July" / Maureen Wallenfang, staff writer / June 9, 2006