FRANDOR CENTER
North Clippert and East Saginaw Streets
Ingham County (Lansing), Michigan

Greater Detroit's NORTHLAND CENTER opened, in March 1954, as the first regional shopping center in Michigan. The Wolverine State's second regional-class facility was built on a 55-acre site, located 2.3 miles east of the Michigan State House, in an unincorporated section of Ingham County. The parcel, which had contained the 9-hole Glenmoor Golf Course, was eventually annexed into the city limits of Lansing.

FRANDOR CENTER was developed by Lansing's Francis "Jake" Corr, Junior. Its name was an amalgamation of FRANcis and his wife DORothy. The complex consisted of the East Mall, a linear strip center, the open-air Mall Court, at the center of the CENTER, and a basement level Concourse. This housed a barber shop, beauty salon, dental practice and public restrooms.

A (19,200 square foot) Kroger supermarket became the first operational FRANDOR store, on November 2, 1954. A (9,600 square foot) F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10 debuted on November 4th. The 1-level (175,200 square foot) Sears welcomed its first shoppers on November 18th. This store was a freestanding structure, not technically part of the shopping hub, which served as its "shadow anchor."

Store inaugurations continued into 1955. A 2-level (19,600 square foot) Wrigleys Super Market began business March 29th. A 1-level (75,000 square foot) Federal department store was officially dedicated, as the twenty-first location in the Dearborn-based chain, on March 30th. A 2-level (14,000 square foot) S.S. Kresge 5 & 10 opened on the same day.

When completed, the 14 million dollar FRANDOR CENTER encompassed approximately 500,000 leasable square feet, with a tenant list of fifty stores and services. These included Tie Rak, Three Sisters ladies' wear, Grinnell's Music, Green's Apparel, Holden-Reid Clothiers For Men & Boys, Peter Pan Snack Shop and a Michigan National Bank.

Kiddieland, a children's amusement area, featured several "mini" rides, including a ferris wheel, roller coaster, airplanes, merry-go-round and Turnpike. Terrace Putt-Putt Golf was situated on the northwest corner of the mall superblock.

The National General Corporation Spartan Twin Theatre showed its first features on October 11, 1967. The venue was built on the Terrace Putt-Putt Golf site. It re-opened, as the Mann Theatres Spartan 3 Theatre, on October 20, 1978 and was permanently shuttered in February 1994. Kiddie Land was dismantled in 1981.

Kroger moved out of the East Mall, into a freestanding (24,700 square foot) store, on March 26, 1962. Soon after, FRANDOR CENTER faced two major competitors; LANSING MALL {6 miles west, in Eaton County} and MERIDIAN MALL {4.3 miles southeast, in Ingham County}. Both complexes opened for business during 1969.

As a keeping up measure, a plan to enclose the FRANDOR East Mall was drawn up. First announced in November 1970, the 250,000 dollar project would not be completed until November 1972. A 20 foot by 900 foot concourse was added to existing store fronts. Flooring was of carpet and polished concrete. The Mall Court, at the center of the CENTER, remained open-air. It was enclosed, with a skylight roof, and re-dedicated in May 1977.

In spite of these improvements, FRANDOR lost its prominence as the area's foremost shopping complex. By the mid-1990s, it had become a dilapidated eyesore. A redevelopment project was initiated by a joint venture of the original developer, Lansing's Frandorson Properties, Farmington Hills, Michigan-based Lormax Stern and First Chicago NBD Real Estate Services.

Demolition commenced in March 1998. The Mall Court area was razed, along with the enclosed concourse. The old twin cinema building was also knocked down. Construction was underway by June 1998. The remaining East Mall structure was returned to its original, open-air format, with new Post Modern storefronts constructed. A power center was created which surrounded a central parking area.

Four big-box stores were added north and south of the existing Kroger. These were a (30,000 square foot) Office Depot, (33,000 square foot) Linens 'n Things, (18,500 square foot) Cost Plus World Market and (27,600 square foot) CompUSA. Office Depot became the first to open, on June 7, 1999. CompUSA became the last, on August 19th. FRANDOR now spanned approximately 435,000 leasable square feet and housed fifty-eight stores and services. A formal opening was held on September 16, 1999. 

Linen's 'n Things went out of business in late 2008. Its space at FRANDOR sat vacant for over 4 years. It re-opened, as a Guitar Center, on February 7, 2013. CompUSA also went bust in 2008. Its space was assumed by A.J. Wright discount apparel in April 2010. This store was short-lived. It was shuttered in February 2011 and re-opened, as a HomeGoods, in March of the same year.

Sources:

The Lansing State Journal
www.lostlansing.com
www.waterwinterwonderland.com
www.shopfrandor.com
www.cinematreasures.org
www.movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
www.lansingbusinessmonthly.com
www.allbusiness.com