South Missouri Avenue and Lakeview Road
Clearwater, Florida
On September 18, 1967, ground was broken at a 45-acre parcel, located 1.8 miles southwest of downtown Clearwater. SUNSHINE MALL, the Pinellas Peninsula's second mall-type shopping center, was being developed by the New Haven, Connecticut-based Gambest Corporation. The structure was designed by Clearwater's Frank R. Mudano.
An official dedication was held on September 26, 1968. In its original state, SUNSHINE MALL encompassed approximately 345,000 leasable square feet and contained seventy-two stores and services. The complex was anchored by a 2-level (135,000 square foot) J.C. Penney.
Charter inline stores included Fremacs for Men, Stuarts Ready-to-Wear For Ladies, a Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio, SupeRx Drugs, Pantry Pride supermarket and J.G. McCrory 5 & 10. At the center of the center was a large court area with two water-less Wonderfall Fountains. There was also a smaller court area, on the north end of the complex, facing the McCrory dime store.
A 1968 account of the shopping center's grand opening mentions that H. Everett Hougen (Mayor of Clearwater) and Sheri Kooken, "Miss Clearwater 1968," were on hand to cut a ceremonial ribbon. It goes on to say that "mini-skirted cowgirls" operated a shopper's shuttle between the parking lot and mall entrances and that traffic was backed up on South Missouri Avenue for 10 miles.
The Trans-Lux Theatre, a freestanding structure north of the mall proper, showed a first feature on December 20, 1968. The cinema was sold to ABC Florida State Theatres in December 1974. They divided it into a 2-screen venue, with the Sunshine Mall I & II making its debut on December 14, 1977. Plitt Theaters eventually bought the movie house. A 3-screen addition was built. The Sunshine Mall 5 opened for business on May 30, 1986. After briefly operating under the Carmike banner, the theatre closed for good on November 12, 1995.
A 1968 account of the shopping center's grand opening mentions that H. Everett Hougen (Mayor of Clearwater) and Sheri Kooken, "Miss Clearwater 1968," were on hand to cut a ceremonial ribbon. It goes on to say that "mini-skirted cowgirls" operated a shopper's shuttle between the parking lot and mall entrances and that traffic was backed up on South Missouri Avenue for 10 miles.
The Trans-Lux Theatre, a freestanding structure north of the mall proper, showed a first feature on December 20, 1968. The cinema was sold to ABC Florida State Theatres in December 1974. They divided it into a 2-screen venue, with the Sunshine Mall I & II making its debut on December 14, 1977. Plitt Theaters eventually bought the movie house. A 3-screen addition was built. The Sunshine Mall 5 opened for business on May 30, 1986. After briefly operating under the Carmike banner, the theatre closed for good on November 12, 1995.
Meanwhile, a southward expansion of SUNSHINE MALL was in the planning stages even before the mall's 1968 grand opening. In December 1969, it was announced that a 110,000 square foot Britts department store would be added to the mall. However, these plans fell through. Ground was broken for a Miami-based J. Byron in June 1970.
This 1-level (60,000 square foot) store was built south of the mall proper. It was officially dedicated on November 18, 1970, in conjunction with a J. Byron at St. Petersburg's GATEWAY MALL. Soon after, ownership of SUNSHINE MALL changed. The New Haven, Connecticut-based Fusco Corporation acquired the complex in March 1972.
Work began on the long-awaited mall addition in April 1972. The freestanding J. Byron was connected to the mall with a 52,000 square foot extension of the shopping concourse. Twelve stores were added to the directory, which now listed eighty-four. The mall now encompassed approximately 457,000 leasable square feet.
SUNSHINE MALL prospered, as the only enclosed shopping center in Clearwater, for nearly 5 years. CLEARWATER MALL {3.6 miles east, in Clearwater} opened in August 1973. An even larger venue, COUNTRYSIDE MALL {5.2 miles northeast, in Pinellas County}, was dedicated in September 1975. BAY AREA OUTLET MALL-CROSSROADS MALL {4.4 miles southeast, in Largo} debuted in September 1984.
In an attempt to keep SUNSHINE MALL competitive, a small face lift was done to the interior during 1981. Vacant space on the South Mall was refashioned into The Boardwalk, a 16-booth bazaar. A Community Room on the North Mall became The Marketplace, which housed 10 booths. Mirrored ceilings were installed along the shopping concourse. New stores were also signed, such as Toy King, Foster's Exotic Pets, Clearwater Sports Unlimited and Captain Tom's Restaurant.
The renovation failed to halt the mall's decline. By the early 1990s, it was a dilapidated, virtually vacant property. The Fusco Corporation proposed a retail-centered redevelopment in early-1995. However, their big box-based plan did not pan out. The shopping center was shuttered and demolished in July 1998. Four residential complexes were built on the site, along with three restaurants and two small office buildings.
Sources:
St. Petersburg Times
The Evening Independent (St. Petersburg, Florida)
Lisa Mudano-Dalton and George R. Miller
http://www.clearwater-fl.com / City of Clearwater, Florida (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
https://www.cinematreasures.org
In an attempt to keep SUNSHINE MALL competitive, a small face lift was done to the interior during 1981. Vacant space on the South Mall was refashioned into The Boardwalk, a 16-booth bazaar. A Community Room on the North Mall became The Marketplace, which housed 10 booths. Mirrored ceilings were installed along the shopping concourse. New stores were also signed, such as Toy King, Foster's Exotic Pets, Clearwater Sports Unlimited and Captain Tom's Restaurant.
The renovation failed to halt the mall's decline. By the early 1990s, it was a dilapidated, virtually vacant property. The Fusco Corporation proposed a retail-centered redevelopment in early-1995. However, their big box-based plan did not pan out. The shopping center was shuttered and demolished in July 1998. Four residential complexes were built on the site, along with three restaurants and two small office buildings.
Sources:
St. Petersburg Times
The Evening Independent (St. Petersburg, Florida)
Lisa Mudano-Dalton and George R. Miller
http://www.clearwater-fl.com / City of Clearwater, Florida (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
https://www.cinematreasures.org
