Gessner Road and Katy Freeway / Interstate 10
Houston, Texas
Houston's seventh shopping mall was developed on a 111-acre site, located 11 miles northwest of the Central Business District, in the Spring Branch-Memorial section of the city. The fully-enclosed complex was developed by the Bayou City's MetroNational Corporation.
Construction of the first retail structures commenced in October 1963. A Weingarten's supermarket and 2-level (218,400 square foot) Sears were built. These stores were dedicated in the fall of 1964. In 1965, construction of a fully-enclosed shopping center got underway. This was added to the north side of Sears and took in the existing Weingarten's. Encompassing over 516,500 leasable square feet, MEMORIAL SHOPPING CITY was officially dedicated on August 25, 1966.
Sources:
The Brookshire Times (Brookshire, Texas)
http://www.memorialcitymall.com
http://www.metronational.com
https://www.cinematreasures.org
http://www.movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/15748-memorial-city-mall
http://nreionline.com
At this time, five stores and services were already in operation; Sears, Weingarten's, American Savings, Al's Formal Wear and the RKO-Stanley-Warner Memorial Theatre . This venue had showed its first feature on June 23, 1966. Thirty-six additional stores opened their doors as part of the August 1966 dedication. These included Walgreen Drug, Hardy Shoes, Florsheim Shoes, Orange Julius, Golden Needle Fabrics, The Woman's Store, Record Town, Margo's La Mode, Thom McAn Shoes, an S.H. Kress 5 & 10 and Piccadilly Cafeteria.
The focal point of MEMORIAL SHOPPING CITY was its "Wonderfall" fountain, located at the center of Center Court. This simulated water feature extended 35 feet from floor-to-ceiling. It consisted of strands of nylon, on which drops of glycerin descended.
The mall's first expansion added an extended North Wing of stores and a 2-level (183,400 square foot) Montgomery Ward. These were completed in 1972. The shopping complex now enveloped around 700,000 leasable square feet and contained over eighty stores.
A second expansion was finished 2 years later, when an East Wing was added. Its anchor, a 1-level (263,000 square foot), Houston-based Foley's, began business on February 21, 1974. The new wing included J. Riggings, Albert's Hosiery, Casual Corner, Hickory Farms of Ohio, a York Steakhouse and 1-level (47,000 square foot), Houston-based Battelstein's.
The focal point of MEMORIAL SHOPPING CITY was its "Wonderfall" fountain, located at the center of Center Court. This simulated water feature extended 35 feet from floor-to-ceiling. It consisted of strands of nylon, on which drops of glycerin descended.
The mall's first expansion added an extended North Wing of stores and a 2-level (183,400 square foot) Montgomery Ward. These were completed in 1972. The shopping complex now enveloped around 700,000 leasable square feet and contained over eighty stores.
A second expansion was finished 2 years later, when an East Wing was added. Its anchor, a 1-level (263,000 square foot), Houston-based Foley's, began business on February 21, 1974. The new wing included J. Riggings, Albert's Hosiery, Casual Corner, Hickory Farms of Ohio, a York Steakhouse and 1-level (47,000 square foot), Houston-based Battelstein's.
In 1977, a 2-level (120,300 square foot) Lord & Taylor was added to the west side of the shopping venue. MEMORIAL CITY now enveloped 1.3 million leasable square feet and contained 126 stores. Major retail hubs in the vicinity included SHARPSTOWN CENTER (1961) {5 miles southeast, in Houston}, NORTHWEST MALL (1968) {4.9 miles northeast, in Houston} and WEST OAKS MALL (1984) {6.8 miles southwest, in Harris County}.
By the 1980s, the official name of the northwest Houston retail complex had morphed to MEMORIAL CITY MALL. Its primary retail rival was now TOWN & COUNTRY MALL {.9 miles west, in Houston}, a 1983 redress of the circa-1969 TOWN & COUNTRY CENTER. The new TOWN & COUNTRY MALL included upscale retailers such as Neiman Marcus and Marshall Field's. With new commercial clout, it began to usurp MEMORIAL CITY MALL.
This situation was exacerbated in 1988, when San Antonio-based Frost Brothers (a 1980 rebranding of Battelstein's) closed their MEMORIAL CITY location. Lord & Taylor shuttered their mall store in February 1989. Lord & Taylor's vacant store re-opened, as a Mervyn's, on August 15, 1989.
In an attempt to regain market share, the owners of MEMORIAL CITY MALL started a major refurbishment in early 1989. The 6 million dollar project was centered around Fame City, a family entertainment center which was installed in three areas of the mall's interior space.
The largest Fame City section filled the vacant Battelstein's / Frost Brothers. The Memorial Theater, shuttered in 1985, was sectioned into 2 levels; with a video arcade installed on the first and teen disco on the second. In another section of the mall, a mini-raceway and roller rink were built. These attractions were dedicated on June 17, 1989. This grand opening was followed by the inauguration of the Loews Memorial City 8 megaplex. This in-mall venue, built in the Southwest (Sears) Wing, showed its first features on September 29, 1989.
In the end, Fame City was not successful. The facility was rebranded as Exhilerama on December 11, 1993 and permanently dismantled in the early 2000s. Meanwhile, TOWN & COUNTY MALL was faltering. Construction of the western leg of the Sam Houston Tollway had nearly blocked off all access to that complex. Shoppers avoided the mall in droves, patronizing MEMORIAL CITY MALL instead.
During all of its late 1980s renovations, MEMORIAL CITY MALL had not been physically expanded. By the mid-1990s, plans for a large-scale renovation and enlargement were being devised. Michigan's Taubman Centers came on board to oversee the project in November 1996.
The deal fell through in December 1999, with Chicago's General Growth Properties taking the helm in May of the year 2000. A pact was signed with luxury retailer Nordstrom to build a store at MEMORIAL CITY. This deal collapsed in 2001. Likewise, a plan for a Neiman Marcus to relocate from TOWN & COUNTRY MALL to MEMORIAL CITY never came to fruition.
In spite of all of these setbacks, ground had been broken in late 2000 for a major reconfiguration of the shopping hub. Costing upwards of 300 million dollars, the renovation would replace two anchors, add another, reconfigure much of the existing facility and construct three parking garages. A 2-level (294,600 square foot) Foley's opened in November 2001. Lord & Taylor returned to MEMORIAL CITY MALL, following a 13-year hiatus. Their 2-level (140,600 square foot) store was dedicated on March 1, 2002.
The North (Wards) Wing of the mall was also modified at this time. Montgomery Ward had been shuttered in March 2001. Mars Music opened in the building, but closed in late 2002. The structure was torn down and replaced by a 1-level (142,000 square foot) Target, which began business on October 12, 2003.
Foley's original store (now vacant) was bulldozed. An extended East Wing was built, which was anchored by a 2-level (249,200 square foot) Dillard's. The Little Rock retailer closed their TOWN & COUNTRY store and re-opened, at the new MEMORIAL CITY location, on October 22, 2003. Mall common area was given a thorough makeover. Various storefronts were redone with faux 2-story facades, assuming the look of an indoor lifestyle center. The Food Court was also expanded to 14 bays and a Venetian Carousel installed as its focal point. Lastly, the indoor Ice Skate USA rink opened on November 21, 2003.
As a facet of the expansion, new stores were signed, such as Z Gallerie, J. Jill, Coach, Sephora and Build-A-Bear Workshop. With all remodeling completed, MEMORIAL CITY MALL encompassed 1.7 million leasable square feet and housed over 140 stores and services.
Mervyn's closing, in January 2006, created a sizable vacancy, as did the shuttering of Lord & Taylor. The latter re-opened, as a J.C. Penney, which was another defection from TOWN & COUNTRY MALL. The new Penney's welcomed first shoppers on February 5, 2006. Foley's was "Macy-ated" on September 9, 2006. The Mervyn's building was simply knocked down.
The Loews 8-plex closed in 2001. It was replaced with the state-of-the-art Cinemark Memorial City Mall 16, which showed its first features on May 25, 2007. As this was playing out, an adjacent 200 acre area went through a large-scale redevelopment, with new office towers, a "Class A" Westin Hotel, residential units and lifestyle-type retail facilities being built.
In fact, the massive mall renovation did not conclude in 2003, but extended to the end of the decade and beyond. The site where Lord & Taylor-Mervyn's once stood became part of a west-facade Streetscape. An adjacent Skybridge now connected the mall with the Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center, on the opposite side of Gessner Road.
New sit-down restaurants were built. California Pizza Kitchen made its debut on November 11, 2003. The Cheesecake Factory relocated from an in-mall store on February 7, 2011. Maggiano's Little Italy welcomed first diners on August 29, 2016. These bistros surrounded a new public green space, designated as The Square. This facility was officially dedicated on November 11, 2016.
These festive grand openings and dedications were followed by the somber shuttering of the mall's first operational store. Sears closed for good on November 25, 2018. Sears' demise gave the MetroNational Corporation the impetus to embark on a major mall face lift and redevelopment of the store's site. Fort Worth's Trademark Property Company was hired in May 2019 to conceptualize the reinvention.
By the 1980s, the official name of the northwest Houston retail complex had morphed to MEMORIAL CITY MALL. Its primary retail rival was now TOWN & COUNTRY MALL {.9 miles west, in Houston}, a 1983 redress of the circa-1969 TOWN & COUNTRY CENTER. The new TOWN & COUNTRY MALL included upscale retailers such as Neiman Marcus and Marshall Field's. With new commercial clout, it began to usurp MEMORIAL CITY MALL.
This situation was exacerbated in 1988, when San Antonio-based Frost Brothers (a 1980 rebranding of Battelstein's) closed their MEMORIAL CITY location. Lord & Taylor shuttered their mall store in February 1989. Lord & Taylor's vacant store re-opened, as a Mervyn's, on August 15, 1989.
In an attempt to regain market share, the owners of MEMORIAL CITY MALL started a major refurbishment in early 1989. The 6 million dollar project was centered around Fame City, a family entertainment center which was installed in three areas of the mall's interior space.
The largest Fame City section filled the vacant Battelstein's / Frost Brothers. The Memorial Theater, shuttered in 1985, was sectioned into 2 levels; with a video arcade installed on the first and teen disco on the second. In another section of the mall, a mini-raceway and roller rink were built. These attractions were dedicated on June 17, 1989. This grand opening was followed by the inauguration of the Loews Memorial City 8 megaplex. This in-mall venue, built in the Southwest (Sears) Wing, showed its first features on September 29, 1989.
In the end, Fame City was not successful. The facility was rebranded as Exhilerama on December 11, 1993 and permanently dismantled in the early 2000s. Meanwhile, TOWN & COUNTY MALL was faltering. Construction of the western leg of the Sam Houston Tollway had nearly blocked off all access to that complex. Shoppers avoided the mall in droves, patronizing MEMORIAL CITY MALL instead.
During all of its late 1980s renovations, MEMORIAL CITY MALL had not been physically expanded. By the mid-1990s, plans for a large-scale renovation and enlargement were being devised. Michigan's Taubman Centers came on board to oversee the project in November 1996.
The deal fell through in December 1999, with Chicago's General Growth Properties taking the helm in May of the year 2000. A pact was signed with luxury retailer Nordstrom to build a store at MEMORIAL CITY. This deal collapsed in 2001. Likewise, a plan for a Neiman Marcus to relocate from TOWN & COUNTRY MALL to MEMORIAL CITY never came to fruition.
In spite of all of these setbacks, ground had been broken in late 2000 for a major reconfiguration of the shopping hub. Costing upwards of 300 million dollars, the renovation would replace two anchors, add another, reconfigure much of the existing facility and construct three parking garages. A 2-level (294,600 square foot) Foley's opened in November 2001. Lord & Taylor returned to MEMORIAL CITY MALL, following a 13-year hiatus. Their 2-level (140,600 square foot) store was dedicated on March 1, 2002.
The North (Wards) Wing of the mall was also modified at this time. Montgomery Ward had been shuttered in March 2001. Mars Music opened in the building, but closed in late 2002. The structure was torn down and replaced by a 1-level (142,000 square foot) Target, which began business on October 12, 2003.
Foley's original store (now vacant) was bulldozed. An extended East Wing was built, which was anchored by a 2-level (249,200 square foot) Dillard's. The Little Rock retailer closed their TOWN & COUNTRY store and re-opened, at the new MEMORIAL CITY location, on October 22, 2003. Mall common area was given a thorough makeover. Various storefronts were redone with faux 2-story facades, assuming the look of an indoor lifestyle center. The Food Court was also expanded to 14 bays and a Venetian Carousel installed as its focal point. Lastly, the indoor Ice Skate USA rink opened on November 21, 2003.
As a facet of the expansion, new stores were signed, such as Z Gallerie, J. Jill, Coach, Sephora and Build-A-Bear Workshop. With all remodeling completed, MEMORIAL CITY MALL encompassed 1.7 million leasable square feet and housed over 140 stores and services.
Mervyn's closing, in January 2006, created a sizable vacancy, as did the shuttering of Lord & Taylor. The latter re-opened, as a J.C. Penney, which was another defection from TOWN & COUNTRY MALL. The new Penney's welcomed first shoppers on February 5, 2006. Foley's was "Macy-ated" on September 9, 2006. The Mervyn's building was simply knocked down.
The Loews 8-plex closed in 2001. It was replaced with the state-of-the-art Cinemark Memorial City Mall 16, which showed its first features on May 25, 2007. As this was playing out, an adjacent 200 acre area went through a large-scale redevelopment, with new office towers, a "Class A" Westin Hotel, residential units and lifestyle-type retail facilities being built.
In fact, the massive mall renovation did not conclude in 2003, but extended to the end of the decade and beyond. The site where Lord & Taylor-Mervyn's once stood became part of a west-facade Streetscape. An adjacent Skybridge now connected the mall with the Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center, on the opposite side of Gessner Road.
New sit-down restaurants were built. California Pizza Kitchen made its debut on November 11, 2003. The Cheesecake Factory relocated from an in-mall store on February 7, 2011. Maggiano's Little Italy welcomed first diners on August 29, 2016. These bistros surrounded a new public green space, designated as The Square. This facility was officially dedicated on November 11, 2016.
These festive grand openings and dedications were followed by the somber shuttering of the mall's first operational store. Sears closed for good on November 25, 2018. Sears' demise gave the MetroNational Corporation the impetus to embark on a major mall face lift and redevelopment of the store's site. Fort Worth's Trademark Property Company was hired in May 2019 to conceptualize the reinvention.
Sears fell to a wrecking ball in August 2020. In April 2022, a project plan was formally announced. The first phase of a new Memorial Town Square would encompass ten structures housing 190,000 square feet of retail stores and restaurants. These would surround a half-acre greenspace. Eventually the development could include office and residential components. Ground was broken in late 2023, with the first businesses possibly opening their doors in 2025.
Sources:
The Brookshire Times (Brookshire, Texas)
http://www.memorialcitymall.com
http://www.metronational.com
https://www.cinematreasures.org
http://www.movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/15748-memorial-city-mall
http://nreionline.com
https://www.mallscenters.com
https://therealdeal.com
https://wolffcompanies.com
"Memorial City Mall" article on Wikipedia
"Memorial City Mall" article on Wikipedia
