RIVER ROADS MALL
Jennings Station and Halls Ferry Roads
Jennings, Missouri

The second fully-enclosed shopping center in the Show-Me State, and the first in Metropolitan St. Louis, was developed by St. Louis-based Stix, Baer and Fuller and opened for business in the fall of 1961.

RIVER ROADS MALL sat on 55 acres, 8 miles northwest of the urban core. The original center was anchored by a 3-level (250,000 square foot) Stix store (the second suburban branch in the chain). The mall structure consisted of a main level of retail and service basement with a forty-two lane bowling alley.

At the time of the mall's completion, its 2-level (62,000 square foot) Woolworth was the largest shopping center location in the 2,200 store chain.

Inline stores in the circa-'61 RIVER ROADS included Singer Sewing Center, Hardy Shoes, Dandy's Men's Store and Walgreen Drug, as well as an S & H Green Stamps Redemption Center and Kroger supermarket.

There were also several sit-down restaurants in the mall. Woolworth operated a lunch counter and the Steamboat Room. Walgreen Drug had its Wag's Restaurant. Stix, Baer and Fuller featured the Pavilion, which overlooked a lavish sunken garden. There were also dining options at the restaurant and cocktail lounge in the basement bowling alley.

An expansion and renovation of the shopping center was done in 1970-'71. A 3-level (200,000 square foot) J.C. Penney was constructed on the north side of the complex and the mall's interior was redecorated in a Moorish Modern motif. With this renovation, the retail hub encompassed 600,000 leasable square feet.

The primary retail rival of RIVER ROADS had always been NORTHLAND CENTER (1955), also in Jennings. In addition, there were CROSS KEYS CENTER (1969) in Florissant and JAMESTOWN MALL (1977), near Florissant.

Anchor alterations at RIVER ROADS began in 1984. Stix, Baer and Fuller became Dillard's and J.C. Penney was demoted to the status of an Outlet Center. Kroger closed in 1986 and reopened as Food For Less. Dillard's shuttered their store in 1986, as well. Soon the mall was in a downward spiral exacerbated by the decline of the area around it.

Buffalo-based Benderson Development bought the mall in July 1988 and attempted to repositioned it as a regional discount outlet center, with varying degrees of success. By this time, the shopping center had become notorious as a haven for criminal activity.

A redevelopment / demolition plan was proposed in 1990, which was approved by the Jennings City Council in 1992. However, no progress was made beyond this point. The mall, experiencing more and more vacancies, began to deteriorate.

Woolworth was shuttered in 1991, with the J.C. Penney Outlet Center closing for good in May 1994. A proposed acquisition by the British-based Midland Group fell through at this time. The interior of the "vacant shell of a shopping center" shut down in June 1995, leaving only exterior-entranced stores in operation.

The complex, purchased by Raleigh, North Carolina-based Whichard Realty in 2000, was "flipped" by Whichard...with St Louis-based Taylor-Morley Homes becoming its new owner. Their redevelopment plan came to light in January 2001.

This deal fell through when the two families owning the Taylor-Morley organization split-up. St. Louis-based Pyramid development entered the picture. They proposed a 66 million dollar demolition and construction project, which was to include office space, residential units, retail stores and a new city hall for Jennings.

Demolition of RIVER ROADS MALL got underway in late 2006 and was completed in the summer of 2007. Only the Kroger / Food For Less and Penney's / Firestone Auto Center were left standing.

Pyramid Development shut down in May 2008. The newly-cleared mall site, now a gaping hole filled with rain water and breeding mosquitos, sits idle with no new construction taking place. Any further development appears unlikely at this time.

Sources:

"River Roads Mall" article on Wikipedia
www.umsl.edu
www.deadmalls.com
www.builtstlouis.net
Information from "Dan A2k"
www.slfp.com
www.undergroundozarks.com
www.cityofjennings.com
www.bizjournals.com / StLouis

A MALL-RELATED MOVING PICTURE:

St. Louis native "Dan A2k" recently recorded a video drive-by
at the RIVER ROADS MALL site. Click on the link below to
watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AF0Wg7cZLDI