San Dario and West Hillside Road
Laredo, Texas
The Texas border town of Laredo lies 140 miles southwest of San Antonio. The Gateway City's first major shopping facility, RIVER DRIVE MALL, was built in the downtown area and opened for business in 1970. The second shopping mall in Laredo was built on a 90-acre tract, located 2.6 miles north of the center city and 1 mile east of the Texas / Mexico border.
MALL DEL NORTE was designed by William Graves of Gordon Sibeck & Associates of Dallas. The single-level complex was developed by Enterprise-Laredo Associates. A formal grand opening was held on August 10, 1977. At this time, the shopping facility encompassed approximately 735,000 leasable square feet and contained fifty-six stores and services.
Original anchor stores were a 1-level (93,900 square foot) Sears and 1-level (30,700 square foot), Laredo-based Richter's. A 1-level (86,000 square foot) Dillard's debuted on September 29, 1977. A 2-level (112,700), Laredo-based Hachar's welcomed first shoppers on April 30, 1978. A 1-level (109,700 square foot) Montgomery Ward opened at around the same time.
Inline tenants included Bealls, GNC, Joe Brand, Mac's Toys, Chick-Fil-A, Zales Jewelers, County Seat, Sweeney & Company jewelers and the United Artists Cinema Del Norte. Originally a a twin-screen venue, it would eventually incorporate 4.
An interior face lift was done to MALL DEL NORTE in 1991, possibly converting the cinema space into a 9-bay Food Court. In 1994, a more ambitious project was undertaken which was to greatly expand the existing mall. A Northeast Wing was added, which extended beyond Montgomery Ward. Encompassing 445,600 leasable square feet and twenty-two inline stores, it was anchored by a 2-level (153,600 square foot) Dillard's and 2-level (126,200 square foot) J.C. Penney.
The new Dillard's welcomed first shoppers on March 9, 1994. J.C. Penney was dedicated on March 25, 1995. With its completion, MALL DEL NORTE enveloped approximately 1,180,600 leasable square feet and housed 125 stores. The original Dillard's was later sectioned into six retail spaces, with the largest being leased as an (81,300 square foot) Mervyn's.
Hachar's was rebranded by Houston-based Foleys in 1996. Richter's space re-opened as a Foley's Home Store. These were rebranded again on September 9, 2006. Foley's became a standard Macy's, with the Foley's Home Store morphing into a Macy's Home Store.
Meanwhile, ownership of the mall had changed. Chattanooga-based CBL & Associates Properties acquired the retail hub in November 2004. They initiated a small renovation, with a new exterior entrance added to the existing Food Court. Bealls also expanded (by 10,800 square feet) into adjoining mall space, with their store now encompassing 37,200 square feet.
Further modifications were done in the early 2000s. Montgomery Ward, which had been shuttered in March 2001, was gutted. A large portion was rebuilt into the Cinemark Mall del Norte megaplex. This 16-screen venue showed its first features on June 27, 2007. The remainder of the old Ward's was sectioned into Kool Smiles and a (21,800 square foot) Circuit City.
Hachar's was rebranded by Houston-based Foleys in 1996. Richter's space re-opened as a Foley's Home Store. These were rebranded again on September 9, 2006. Foley's became a standard Macy's, with the Foley's Home Store morphing into a Macy's Home Store.
Meanwhile, ownership of the mall had changed. Chattanooga-based CBL & Associates Properties acquired the retail hub in November 2004. They initiated a small renovation, with a new exterior entrance added to the existing Food Court. Bealls also expanded (by 10,800 square feet) into adjoining mall space, with their store now encompassing 37,200 square feet.
Further modifications were done in the early 2000s. Montgomery Ward, which had been shuttered in March 2001, was gutted. A large portion was rebuilt into the Cinemark Mall del Norte megaplex. This 16-screen venue showed its first features on June 27, 2007. The remainder of the old Ward's was sectioned into Kool Smiles and a (21,800 square foot) Circuit City.
This store opened in February 2006 and closed for good in March 2009. Mervyn's was shuttered in December 2008, with the store space re-opening -as a Forever 21- in March 2009. The existing Sears also added 31,900 square feet to its building, expanding its area to 125,700. With this enlargement, MALL DEL NORTE encompassed approximately 1,212,500 leasable square feet, with a tenant list of 105 stores, twenty-four kiosks and six outparcels
Sources:
Laredo Morning Times (Laredo, Texas)
In mid-2018, the mall's Joe Brand store went dark. It was replaced by the TruFit Athletic Club on May 30, 2019. Forever 21 temporarily shuttered their (81,300 square foot) unit in January 2019 and downsized into a (19,400 square foot) section.
The remainder of the building was reconfigured as a (61,800 square foot) Main Event Family Entertainment Center. This facility welcomed first customers on February 16, 2020. Within months, MALL DEL NORTE would loose two of its anchor stores. Bealls shut down in May 2020, with Sears closing for good in September.
Sources:
Laredo Morning Times (Laredo, Texas)
The Cotula Record (La Salle County, Texas), Texas)
http://www.cblproperties.com / CBL & Associates Properties
http://www.movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
http://web.archive.org/web/200107000738/www.generalgrowth.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
http://www.cblproperties.com / CBL & Associates Properties
http://www.movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
http://web.archive.org/web/200107000738/www.generalgrowth.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
https://www.lmtonline.com
"Mall Del Norte" article on Wikipedia
"Mall Del Norte" article on Wikipedia
