After years of obsolescence and decline, Greater Macon's beleaguered shopping mall was not quite down for the count. A New York company invested 12 million dollars into a conversion of WESTGATE CENTER into an office and warehouse facility. Known as the Middle Georgia Industrial Park, the 390,900 square foot facility opened for business in 2020.
Drawing from Ultimate Realty
WESTGATE CENTER
Eisenhower Parkway / US 80 and Pio Nono [piy-oh noh-noh] Avenue / US 41
Bibb County (Macon), Georgia
Looking back over 60 years, it seems odd that the Atlanta metropolis would not have had Georgia's first enclosed shopping mall. Such is the case, however. The first enclosed and air-conditioned retail complex in Georgia was developed near a smaller city 75 miles to the south.
WESTGATE CENTER was built on a 30-acre parcel, located 2 miles southwest of center city Macon, in an unincorporated section of Bibb County. Encompassing approximately 175,000 leasable square feet, the single level facility was developed by the Macon-based Fickling & Walker Company, under the auspices of their Westgate Shopping Center, Incorporated subsidiary. The mall was designed by Macon's Bernard A. Webb, Junior.
An official dedication was held on September 24, 1961, with twenty-five initial stores. A ceremonial ribbon was cut by Ed Wilson (Mayor of Macon). Several door prizes were awarded to mall shoppers. In its original state, WESTGATE CENTER had no large, department store anchors. Its major tenant was a 1-level (55,100 square foot) J.J. Newberry 5 & 10.
Two (18,000 square foot) supermarkets flanked the mall; Big Apple on the north and Colonial Stores on the south. Among thirty-one charter stores and services were Butler's Shoes, Sherwin-Williams Paints, Hefner's Bakery, an F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10, G & M Cafeteria and Liggett-Lane Rexall Drug. A single-screen cinematic venue, the Georgia Theatre Company Westgate Theater, was added as a northwest outparcel. It would operate as the Westgate Triple Cinema and Westgate 6 Cinemas before being permanently shuttered in January 1996.
Meanwhile, the shopping hub had morphed into WESTGATE MALL by 1972. Three years later, it was in decline; this a result of competition from the new MACON MALL {1.5 miles northwest, in Bibb County (Macon)}. As a keeping up measure, the interior of WESTGATE was given a 50 thousand dollar face lift in mid-1976, with carpet installed along its shopping concourse. Surfaces were also painted and the roof repaired.
Fickling & Walker sold the mall in December 1982. The new owner was Westgate Mall Associates, a joint venture of Atlanta's George M. Logan, William H. Merrill, William H. Luesing and Charles L. Hood. A management entity known as Commercial Real Estate Services, Incorporated was created.
At this time, most of the major stores had gone through permutations. Woolworth's was shuttered on December 24, 1971. Colonial Stores shut down in July 1976. Big Apple morphed into a Piggly Wiggly in February 1969 and moved out of the mall in March 1986. Liggett-Lane Drug was rebranded by Eckerd Drugs in April 1974, with that store pulling up stakes in July 1976.
In August 1978, a new marketing plan and name were implemented. WESTGATE OUTLET WORLD would serve as an off-price outlet and specialty mall. New stores were signed. J.J. Newberry was shuttered on May 31, 1978 and was followed by the Key Catalog Showroom. This store welcomed first shoppers on October 1, 1978. Other new low price-point stores included Carter's Factory Outlet, Ashley Outlet, The Tog Shop Outlet and The Way Station (a ladies' wear retailer).
Unfortunately, the transition into an outlet mall was not entirely successful. WESTGATE MALL had been reinstated as the center's official name by the late 1980s, when an expansion project was underway. The vacant supermarket on the north end was razed and replaced by a 1-level (57,500 square foot) Scotty's Home Improvement Center. This store held its grand opening on June 22, 1987.
Arkansas' Wal-Mart chain acquired a 7.9-acre parcel on the south end of the mall site. A 1-level (82,000 square foot) discount store was constructed, which opened for business on November 17, 1987. The new Wal-Mart was joined to the existing mall by an extended South Wing, which included 15,000 square feet of new store space.
As new stores were completed, the existing shopping concourse was give a face lift. This added ceramic tile flooring, seating, lighting, landscaping and awnings. The Main Entrance was also rebuilt. The final mall modification was the dedication of a 1-level (50,000 square foot) Burlington Coat Factory, which opened -in the Key Catalog Showroom space- on November 4, 1988. When all construction dust settled, WESTGATE MALL housed approximately 332,500 leasable square feet and contained thirty-one stores under its roof.
By the early 1990s, the center was in another downward spiral and was virtually vacant. An 8 million dollar demalling plan was envisaged in March 1993. The Macon-Bibb County Planning & Zoning Commission granted approval for a wrecking ball renovation in January 1994. Half of the remaining mall stores had been shuttered by October.
Construction of a 1-level (75,000 square foot) Burlington Coat Factory was already underway. This store was being built, in the rear parking area, along the western boundary of the mall site. The existing store inside the mall moved to its new freestanding building on March 31, 1995. A dozen inline stores relocated to new power center units soon after. Now totally abandoned, the 32-year-old mall was demolished. Wal-Mart, and three adjacent stores, were left standing.
By the fall of 1994, the new WESTGATE CENTER was nearing completion. A (49,000 square foot) Media Play opened its doors on October 13th. A1-level (108,000 square foot) Home Depot welcomed first shoppers on October 26th. PetSmart and Shoe Carnival were inaugurated in November. The new -completely open-air- power center covered approximately 411,100 leasable square feet. There were twenty tenant spaces.
This version of WESTGATE was successful for 6 years. However, it took a direct hit from a new power center, known as EISENHOWER CROSSING {2.6 miles northwest, in Macon}. The first stores in this complex were dedicated in August 2001. Soon, the Wal-Mart at WESTGATE had been replaced by a new EISENHOWER CROSSING SuperCenter. Further expansion at EISENHOWER CROSSING would snatch several remaining WESTGATE stores. Home Depot defected in 2005, followed by PetSmart and Shoe Carnival, in 2006.
Atlanta's Safeway Group acquired the struggling WESTGATE CENTER. A short-lived name change, to THE SHOPS AT INTERNATIONAL PLACE, did not improve its fortunes. The shuttering of Burlington (Coat Factory), in the fall of 2015, left the shopping center with no functioning anchor store. In the early 2020s, the abandoned retail hub was reconfigured as the Middle Georgia Industrial Park, a 391,000 square foot office and warehouse facility.
Sources:
The Atlanta Constitution
The Telegraph (Macon, Georgia)
The Macon News
Bibb County, Georgia tax assessor website
www.safewaygrp.com / Safeway Group, Incorporated
Comment post by Scott McElheney
"Westgate Mall" article on Wikipedia
