Cincinnati's Swifton Center



A rendering of the the Queen City's first shopping mall.
All drawings and plans are from the Jonathan Woodner Company
Proposal, 1951 / Varady's Research Archive



A circa-1951 site plan of the shopping center and neighboring Swifton
Village Apartments. The residential complex (but not the shopping
center) was once owned by Donald Trump.

A plan for the Upper / Mall Level of the prospective retail center. The
layout was substantially altered for the project that was eventually
constructed in 1954-1956.

The original SWIFTON CENTER plan included an 11-story office
tower, to be built on a site south of the mall proper, on Langdon
Farm Road. The building and shopping complex were to be connected
via the elevated walkway seen here.



A storefront in the shopping-center-to-be.

An open court facing the "Supermart" supermarket.



A five-story office building, within the proposed shopping center
complex. This structure was omitted from the final plan.

A physical layout of SWIFTON CENTER, which opened

for business in October 1956. The open-air complex was

situated on two levels, with a single department store as

its anchor.

The mall, during its days as SWIFTON COMMONS.



The Allen Temple AME Church, at the newly-renovated JORDAN
CROSSING MALL.
Photo from Moody-Nolan, Incorporated website

SWIFTON CENTER TENANTS 1956-1976

MALL LEVEL:
ROLLMAN'S (1956-1962), MABLEY AND CAREW (1962-1975), ELDER BEERMAN (1975-1990) / S.S. KRESGE / G.C. MURPHY (with Lunch counter) / KROGER / LIBERAL / WALGREEN DRUG (with lunch counter) / The Colony Restaurant-Dragon Inn Chinese Restaurant / The Manor Cafeteria / Graeter's Bakery & Ice Cream Shoppe / The Honeycomb / Orange Julius / Maud Miller Candies / Franklin-Simon apparel / Lerner Shops / Lillian's ladies apparel / Casual Corner ladies apparel / Max's Gentry Shop mens apparel / Squire mens apparel / National Shirt Shop / Richman Brothers mens apparel / Garson's childrens apparel / Schiff Shoes / Florsheim Shoes / Thom McAn Shoes / Ludwig's Shoes / Baker's Shoes / Eppy's Jewelry / Singer Sewing Center / Fifth Third Bank / Carlson's Hardware / Wilson's Paints / Top Value Trading Stamps Redemption Center / Numark Melody Shop / Marlboro Books / Marx Toys / Radio Shack

LOWER LEVEL:
Pasquale's Pizza / Hill's Barber Shop / State Liquor Store / Social Security Administration offices / Electrolux offices / Professional offices


SWIFTON CENTER
Reading Road / US 42 and Seymour Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio

Planning for Cincinnati's first shopping mall was underway in 1950, with a prospectus being completed in April, 1951. In this proposal, a regional shopping center was to be built on a 34 acre site in the Bond Hill district, at what was then the geographic center of Cincinnati and its suburbs.

There was a 5-story office building incorporated into the proposed structure and another 11-story office tower to be built to the south, connected to the main shopping center by elevated walkway. In keeping with the times, a ten thousand person capacity bomb shelter was to be included on the Lower Level of the complex.

The SWIFTON CENTER eventually opened in October 1956 had most of these components, but the office buildings had been eliminated from the final plan. Upon its grand opening, SWIFTON was one of the largest shopping centers in the state of Ohio. There was 550,000 leasable square feet and a three thousand car parking area.

The 2-level, open-air shopping center, which was developed by the Jonathan Woodner Company, featured sixty-six retailers, including a 3-level (120,400 square foot) department store at the southern end. This was built for Cincinnati-based Rollman's, become a Cincinnati-based Mabley And Carew in the early 1960s and Dayton-based Elder-Beerman in the mid-1970s.

The Upper / Mall Level also featured G.C. Murphy and S.S. Kresge 5 and 10's, Kroger and Liberal supermarkets, a Walgreen Drug, Gentry Shop For Men and Lillian's ladies' apparel. A small kiddie ride amusement area was on the north concourse, across from the Murphy's 5 & 10.

On the Lower Level was a Pasquale's Pizza, state liquor store, Social Security Administration office, Electrolux office and practices for several dentists and physicians.

By the time of SWIFTON CENTER'S tenth anniversary, there were three other shopping malls in Metro-Cincinnati; TRI-COUNTY SHOPPING CENTER (1960) [December 2006 archive], WESTERN WOODS MALL (1963) [July 2008 archive] and KENWOOD MALL (1966) [October 2006 archive]. These had been built farther out from the central city and drew a great deal of commerce away from the older center.

By the early 1980s, SWIFTON had become obsolete....a dead mall. At one time, there were only ten tenants in business in the center, which had space for almost seventy.

After sitting nearly vacant for several years, a 12 million dollar renovation was undertaken in the early 1990s. A newly-remodeled -and renamed- SWIFTON COMMONS MALL opened in 1994. An enclosed Food Court had been installed and the exterior was given a modernizing facelift.

This effort to revitalize the shopping center was a complete failure. Within two years, it was in foreclosure. The complex was sold in 1996, again in 1997, and -for a third time- in 2001.

The final purchase was made by the Allen Temple African Methodist Episcopal Church, who renovated the former SWIFTON COMMONS into an "informational and community service mall of the 21st century".

Now known as JORDAN CROSSING, it includes a branch of Wilberforce University, offices for the Cincinnati-Hamilton County Community Action Agency and thirty other retail tenants. In addition, a 23,630 square foot sanctuary, the Allen Temple AME Church, was built on a 4.5 acre section, at the northwest corner of the mall's parking lot. The 9 million dollar structure was dedicated in May 2004.

Sources:

Varady's Research Archive, Bond Hill / Jonathan Woodner Company Proposal (1951)
"Bud03", "Margi" and "LH Wildcat" Comments / City-Data Forum, Cincinnati
www.best-of-cincinnati.com
"Swifton Mall Orphaned Giant Searching For Market, Future" / Cincinnati Post / Cliff Peale, staff reporter
"Allen Temple To Build Impressive New Church At Swifton Mall, Evolves As Community Focus" / Cincinnati Inquirer / Allen Howard, staff reporter
www.pfbarchitects.com / "Swifton Commons - 1994 Renovation, Cincinnati, Ohio"

Cincinnati's Tri-County Center



The original -bi-anchor- Space-Age shopopolis. As one can see, in
1960, it was the only development in the surrounding area.
Photo From http://www.cincinnativiews.com/

Cincinnati's second shopping mall was named for its proximity to

three southwestern Ohio counties; Hamilton, Butler and Warren. The

center was adjacent to a newly-opened stretch of the Interstate 275 /

"Circle Freeway" and was officially dedicated in October 1960.

The newly-renovated mall, circa 1970. During a recent roofing
renovation, a Southeast Wing -and new Sears- were added. The
center became Metro-Cincinnati's fourth fully-enclosed and
climate-controlled shopping center.





Views of the mall's 2-level Fountain Court, focal point
of an early 1990s renovation.
Photos from "FTN 65"

A present-day site plan of TRI-COUNTY. The existing center was
double-decked in 1990-1991. The most recent renovation subdivided
the vacant Pogue's / Ayres / Penney's anchor store into new retail
and restaurants, with an indoor theme park on its top levels.



Dillard's acquired Mercantile Stores, based in nearby
Fairfield, Ohio, in 1998. Soon after, the Arkansas-based
chain rebranded the TRI-COUNTY McAlpin's, which
had opened in 1992.
Photo from Developers Diversified Realty website

The mall's new Krazy City indoor theme park opened in December
2007.
Photo from Kings Island Central Forums / "CoasterRZ"

TRI-COUNTY CENTER
Princeton Pike and Kemper Road
Springdale, Ohio

TRI-COUNTY CENTER was located in the Cincinnati suburb of Springdale, at the interchange of Ohio Route 747 / Princeton Pike and Interstate 275, 13 miles north of downtown Cincinnati.

The shopping venue was proposed in 1956 by Jeffrey Lazarus, who headed the Cincinnati-based Shillito's [pronounced "shil-uh-towz"] department store chain. Ground was broken for the 25 million dollar project in July 1959. The grand opening took place October 6, 1960.

TRI-COUNTY, developed by Joseph Meyerhoff, was a Googie-style, open-air mall anchored by two Cincinnati-based department stores. A 4-level (219,000 square foot) Shillito's stood on the north end of the complex, with a 3-level (160,300 square foot) H & S Pogue on the south. There was also an S.S. Kresge 5 and 10, Kroger supermarket and forty-eight inline stores.

Around 1970, the mall's concourse -extending between Shillito's and Pogue's- was enclosed and climate-controlled. There was also a second (fully-enclosed) concourse added, with a 2-level (285,000 square foot) Sears at its end. With this renovation, the official name of the shopping center became TRI-COUNTY MALL.

Another major renovation occured in 1990-1991, following the opening of the much larger FOREST FAIR MALL, which was located only 4 miles away. At this time, the remaining, early-'60s "Space Age" architecture at TRI-COUNTY was torn out, and a second mall concourse level added on top of the first.

This renovation included a new Food Court and a Central Atrium, with a 2-tiered, waterfall fountain. Two multi-level parking garages were also built, along with a 3-level (236,000 square foot) department store, occupied by Cincinnati-based McAlpin's. This location opened in 1992 and reopened under the Little Rock-based Dillard's nameplate in 1998.

Shillito's had morphed into Shillito-Rike's in 1982 and became a Lazarus in 1986. It was rebranded as Lazarus-Macy's in 2003 and fully "Macy-ated" in 2005.

Pogue's had been absorbed into the Indianapolis-based L.S. Ayres chain in 1984, became a J.C. Penney in 1988 and was shuttered in 2005.

The vacant store structure was gutted in 2006. Its lower level was subdivided into a multi-story glass atrium, with an Ethan Allen Furniture, B.J.'s Restaurant and Brewhouse and seven inline stores.

The upper levels were renovated into a 50,000 square foot, Krazy City indoor theme park, including carnival rides, a mini-golf driving range and go-kart track. The new additions to the mall opened in late 2007 and early 2008.

The present-day TRI-COUNTY MALL encompases 1,349,000 leasable square feet and features one hundred and forty-eight stores. It was previously owned by New York City-based Thor Equities Corporation.

In May 2006, a majority interest in the shopping center was acquired by Beachwood, Ohio-based Developers Diversified Realty and New York City-based Coventry Real Estate Advisors. Thor Equities retained a small ownership interest in the shopping venue.

Sources:

Personal Recollection Of The Author
Tom Allen / Tri-County Mall Blog Comment
http://www.tricounty.com/
http://www.thorequities.com/
City Of Springdale "History On-Line" website
http://www.ddr.com/

Dallas' Big Town Mall



The first enclosed and air-conditioned shopping mall in the Texas
Metroplex, as well as in the entire Southwest.
Photo From Malls Of America Blogspot.

Dallas' BIG TOWN opened in 1959 with much media fanfare. At
the time, an enclosed shopping mall was a BIG deal.

The single-screen Big Town Cinema was added as an outparcel to the
mall in the early 1960s.

The mall's northwest corner, in the mid-1980s. The Sanger-Harris
anchor store is in the background.

BIG TOWN MALL
US 80 East and Big Town Boulevard
Mesquite, Texas

Ground was broken for the first enclosed shopping mall in the Southwest in August 1957. The mall-to-be was built on an 80 acre tract, located 7 miles east of downtown Dallas, in the suburb of Mesquite. Known as BIG TOWN MALL, it was developed by Colorado's Gerri Von Frellick [January 2008 archive] and opened February 26, 1959.

The shopping complex encompassed 581,500 leasable square feet and had seven thousand parking spaces. It featured over sixty-five retailers and was anchored by a 3-level -Dallas-based- Sanger Brothers. This stood at the north end of the mall. There was a 2-level (165,000 square foot) Montgomery Ward -with outparcel Auto Center- at the south end and a 1-level (38,000 square foot) J.C. Penney, occupying the northwest corner.

In addition, there were an F.W. Woolworth 5 and 10, Wyatt's Cafeteria, six hundred-seat "Town Hall" auditorium, "Kiddieland Arcade" cartoon theater / mini-amusement park and Wrigley's supermarket. A nine hundred-seat, single-screen cinema and a bowling alley were added as outparcels to the main structure in the early 1960s.

The malling of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex intensified after the completion of NORTHPARK CENTER [September 2007 archive], in 1965. This retail complex was located 8 miles to the northwest of BIG TOWN. In 1971, TOWN EAST MALL opened, only 4 miles east, which was also within the city limits of Mesquite.

In order to compete with the malls that were springing up all over the region, BIG TOWN underwent a major renovation in 1975. A second remodel was done in 1988.

Unfortunately, the mall was soon in a state of decline. The Sanger Brothers department store, by then operating under the Sanger-Harris nameplate, was merged into the Houston-based Foley's chain. The store closed for good in 1989. The Woolworth folded in 1993, with Montgomery Ward following in 2001.

By the turn of the century, BIG TOWN was a delapidated, nearly vacant, shopping center. Demolition plans were finalized in early 2006. By September of the year, BIG TOWN and some of its outparcels were a pile of rubble.

The present redevelopment scenario, put forth by developer Kent Jones, consists of building a sports and entertainment complex on the site. This would encompass baseball fields, soccer fields, an ampitheater and an indoor training facility, with additional space for lodging, restaurants and retail.

Sources:

"Big Town" article on Wikipedia
"Sanger Brothers" article on Wikipedia
Dallas History Message Board / "Big Town Shopping Center" comment / September 28, 2003 / Posted By Don Davis
www.city-data.com / Dallas Forum / "Mesquite's Big Town Mall" thread/ Mike Cochran comment
Dallas Morning News / Friday July 28, 2006 / "Mall Was The Place To Be" / Karin Shaw Anderson
Dead Malls.com / "Big Town Mall" Commentary / David Avery
www.msnbc.com

Phoenix's Chris-Town Mall

The Googie-style Court Of Fountains, a stunning example of
early '60s space-age design. The area was at the center of
the one thousand foot long shopping complex.
Photo by Kind Permission Of John Bueker

Circa-1961 site plan of Arizona's first "refrigerated mall".



A circa-'61 store map, showing all of the charter tenants
within the mall proper. There was also an outparcel
structure in the southeast parking area, which housed an
El Rancho supermarket. In another peripheral structure,
in the northeast parking area, was a Piccadilly Cafeteria.

The Court of Birds, at the west end of the mall. The ceiling-
suspended cages contained a variety of feathered creatures.
Photo By Kind Permission Of John Bueker



The Court Of Flowers, focal point of the mall's east end. The
area featured lush tropical vegetation, and a papier mache'
bull, known as Ferdinand.
Photo By Kind Permission Of John Bueker



The 90,000 square foot Korrick's anchor store, in the original
CHRIS-TOWN. The location was reopened under the Los
Angeles-based The Broadway nameplate in 1966.
Photo By Kind Permission of John Bueker

The Chris-Town Theatre, originally a single-screen venue, opened (as
a mall outparcel) in 1967. It was twinned in the '70s, quaded in the '90s
and razed in May 2007. The new Harkins Chris-Town 14 opened, at the
recently-reconfigured shopping center, in July 2007.
Photo by kind permission of John Bueker

CHRIS-TOWN MALL in the early '80s, following the renovation /
expansion of the '70s...and before anchors began pulling out in the
'90s. The mall's second theatrical venue, the mall-accessed UA Chris-

Town Cinemas 6, occupied an upper level in the new Southeast Wing.

A contemporary site plan of the re-renovated mall. Validating the

adage that everything old is new again, the shopping center

has assumed its original name, "CHRIS-TOWN". Moreover, one of
its brand-new anchors is none other than J.C. Penney, who vacated
the mall for a space at Phoenix's METROCENTER in 1997.

A July 2006 view of the Main Entrance at PHOENIX SPECTRUM
MALL.
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"



What was the CHRIS-TOWN MALL Court Of Fountains; in
this 2006 photo, it was the PHOENIX SPECTRUM Central Court.
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"



Another view of the Central Court and the Costco anchor store.
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"



A view of a mall concourse.
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"

Phoenix finally opened a light rail system in December 2008. The 19.7
route mile, Valley Metro "starter line" connects the southeast and
northern environs of the city, with the station stop seen above (19th
Avenue & Montebello) accessing the CHRIS-TOWN SPECTRUM center.
Photo from Wikipedia / Lxnayonthetimmay"

CHRIS-TOWN MALL
West Bethany Home Road and North 19th Avenue
Phoenix, Arizona

Arizona's first enclosed shopping center -the tenth regional-class, interior mall in the nation- was built on an 86 acre tract, located 3 miles north of downtown Phoenix. Originally known as CHRIS-TOWN MALL, the center was so named because the land had been previously owned by Chris Harri, a Swiss-born farmer.

The mall, designed by Welton Becket and Associates and developed by the Phoenix-based Del Webb Construction Company, was situated on a single level, with a small mezzanine at its center. The parking area had space for over five thousand three hundred cars.

CHRIS-TOWN opened August 24, 1961, with fifty-five inline stores. It was originally anchored by a 1-level (dry goods only) J.C. Penney, 2-level Montgomery Ward and 2-level (Phoenix-based) Korrick's.

There were also F.W. Woolworth and S.S. Kresge 5 and 10's, a Walgreen Drug, Hanny's men's apparel, Guggy's Coffee Shop and five shoe stores. The Chris-Town Theatre opened, as a southwest parking area outparcel, in 1967.

The mall was based around three attractively-appointed areas. J.C. Penney faced onto the Court Of Fountains, at the center of the complex.

Montgomery Ward, at the mall's west end, opened onto the Court Of Birds, which featured several brightly-colored cages, suspended over an area of tropical foliage. On the east end, spanning Korrick's main entrance, was the lush, Court Of Flowers, with its sidewalk cafe.

Business at CHRIS-TOWN was negatively affected in 1973, when METROCENTER [August 2007 archive] opened, 4 miles northwest. The proximity of this newer and larger superregional shopping center prompted the owners of CHRIS-TOWN to begin a large-scale renovation and expansion project.

Two new wings were added to the existing mall, nearly doubling its leasable square footage. The new southwest wing included a Los Angeles-based Bullock's department store, which opened in 1975. A United Artists Theatre was a feature of the southeast wing.

In addition to these additions, the original Penney's was expanded into a full-line store. The 1979 completion of PARADISE VALLEY MALL, located 8 miles northeast of CHRIS-TOWN, caused additional loss of sales at the older mall. This resulted in a general decline of CHRIS-TOWN during the 1980s and '90s, with several long-time tenants vacating the center.

Bullock's closed in 1985, with its space being occupied by Dillard's. The old Korrick's, which had been leased by Los Angeles-based The Broadway in 1966 (coming under the Phoenix-based Broadway Southwest banner in 1979), was vacated and torn down in 1994. A 1-level (125,000 square foot) Wal-Mart was built in its space, which opened in 1995.

J.C. Penney moved on in 1997. Its former store sat vacant until it was bulldozed and replaced by a 1-level (149,000 square foot) Costco in 2002. Montgomery Ward went bust in 2001. Its space was divided into four individual stores, one of which, Ross Dress For Less, opened in 2002.

The 40 year-old shopping center was given a 10 million dollar facelift in 2001, and renamed PHOENIX SPECTRUM. Still, the mall was in a state of decline. The floor area of the existing Wal-Mart was doubled -making the store into a 251,000 square foot SuperCenter- during a 2003 expansion. Dillard's moved out in 2004.

The entire 1,145,000 square foot mall complex was sold, in a joint venture, to Beachwood, Ohio-based Developers Diversified Realty and New York City-based Coventry Real Estate Advisors. The former owner, Phoenix-based Grossman Company Properties, retained a small share.

Plans to renovate the shopping venue -once again- were announced in 2006, with nearly half of the remaining, original mall structure being razed. The refurbished shopping center, christened CHRISTOWN SPECTRUM, debuted in the summer of 2007.

New tenants included a 1-level (98,000 square foot) J.C. Penney and Harkins 14 multiplex. A 1-level (173,000 square foot) SuperTarget opened for business October 10, 2007.

The newest thing at CHRIS-TOWN these days is the Valley Metro 19TH AVENUE & MONTEBELLO station, which opened -near the southwest parking area- December 27, 2008.

Sources:

"Chris-Town / Phoenix Spectrum" article on Wikipedia
"Chris-Town Retrospective" website / John Bueker, webmaster
"Phoenix Spectrum Mall" article on Labelscar: The Retail History Blog
"Bullock's" article on Wikipedia
"Metrocenter Mall" article on Wikipedia
"Paradise Valley Mall" article on Wikipedia
http://www.valleymetro.org/