Birmingham's Eastwood Mall

"A masterpiece of shopping luxury never before seen in the Deep South," so proclaimed the headlines commemorating the official dedication of EASTWOOD MALL. The complex opened, in the summer of 1960, as the second fully-enclosed mall in the South (the first being CHARLOTTETOWN MALL, in North Carolina).

In August 1960, EASTWOOD MALL covered around 320,300 leasable square feet, with thirty-five stores and services. Free parking was provided for 2,200 autos. 

EASTWOOD MALL TENANTS 1960:

J.C. PENNEY / J.J. NEWBERRY 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / S.S. KRESGE 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / KROGER supermarket) / COLONIAL STORES supermarket /  24-Hour Coin Laundry / ABC State Liquor Store / Aladdin Cleaners / Beauty Unlimited Salon / Bell Brothers Shoes / City Federal Savings & Loan / Duane's Shoes / Eastwood Barber Shop / Eastwood Community Auditorium / Exchange-Security Bank / Friend Sisters ladies' wear / Gordon's Jewelers / Happy House Shops / Jones-Lawless men's wear / Kinney Shoes / Lace & Fabric Mart / LaGrove Seed & Pet Shop / Lerner Shops ladies' wear / Liggett Rexall Drug (with luncheonette) / Mall Cafe / Mall Record Shop & Appliance Center / Mazer's for Modern Furniture / Michael's-in-the-Mall restaurant / Olan Mills Studio / Riddle's ladies' & children's apparel / The Gold Bow / Top Value Stamps Redemption Center / Wendy's Sportswear / Western Auto 

OUTPARCELS:

Eastwood Bowling Center / Eastwood Mall go-kart track / Kiddieland amusement area

1. EASTWOOD MALL (August 25, 1960) Birmingham 

2. DUNNAVANT'S MALL (November 29, 1963) Huntsville

3. THE MALL (March 2, 1966) Huntsville

4. HEART OF HUNTSVILLE (November 1 1961, enclosed in 1966) Huntsville

5. BEL AIR MALL (August 16, 1967) Mobile

6. SOUTHGATE MALL (August 14, 1968) Muscle Shoals

7. McFARLAND MALL (February 19, 1969) Tuscaloosa

An interior view of the original EASTWOOD shopping concourse. In the foreground is a bird aviary, which was something of a standard fixture in America's first enclosed shopping centers.

Photo from the Alabama Post Card Company

The Eastwood Mall Theatre, which was the first addition to the retail hub. The single-screen venue opened on Christmas Day 1964.

EASTWOOD MALL, as it was configured after two additions. The shopping center, enlarged on its east and west sides, now encompassed over 650,000 leasable square feet and housed seventy stores under one roof. It was promoted as the largest fully-enclosed shopping mall in the South.

A two-page spread announces the grand opening of the EASTWOOD Pizitz, which anchored the mall's mid-'60s expansion. The store held its grand opening in August 1966. 

Advert from Pizitz, Incorporated

EASTWOOD faced its first major competitor when CENTURY PLAZA opened, in August 1975. The shiny new mall was built directly across the boulevard from EASTWOOD and -in 1976- snatched its 16-year-old J.C. Penney.  

EASTWOOD circa-1981. Although the complex has not been physically expanded since 1966, much interior space has been reconfigured. The supermarkets are gone, along with Pizitz and Penney's. The movie house was twinned in 1974. The retail facility now houses fifty-nine stores and services, with thirteen businesses in its periphery.

EASTWOOD MALL TENANTS 1981:

PARISIAN-EAST / PARISIAN'S YOUNG WORLD / SERVICE MERCHANDISE / BLACH'S / YIELDING'S / J.J. NEWBERRY 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) /  Alabama Farm Bureau Insurance / Aland's / Aland's Shoes / Baskin-Robbin's Ice Cream / Big Al's Machine Shop / Birmingham Coin & Stamp / Book World / Burch & Tant - June's Brides / Chancey's Bakery / City Federal Savings & Loan / Cobb Travel Services / Deb's Hallmark / Dick Reese's Piano & Organ Salon / Eastwood Mall Beauty Shop / Eastwood Mall Coin-Op Laundry / Eastwood Mall Shoe Repair / Eastwood Mall Style Shop / Eastwood Mall Theatre (twin-screen) / Eastwood Portrait Artists / Eckerd Drugs / Flowers III (kiosk) / First Alabama Bank / Friend Sisters / Good Housekeeping / Goodyear Tire & Auto / Household Finance Corporation / Jefferson Home Furniture / Jones-Lawless men's wear / Kinney Shoes / Lerner Shops / Lorch's Jewelry / Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio / Mr. Gatti's Pizza / Olan Mills Studio / Optician's Incorporated (kiosk) / Opus II / Oz Records / Pasquale's Pizza / Pioneer Cafeteria / Rosenberger's Birmingham Trunk / Saxton's Candy (kiosk) / Simmons' Personnel / Singer Sewing Center / Star Hardware / Storkland / Sumo's Japanese Steakhouse / Terry Town / The Fireplace / The Leather Shack / Wendy's sportswear / Wrangler Wranch  

OUTPARCELS:

Aeromarine / Arby's restaurant / Birmingham National Bank / Eastwood Mall Bowling Center / Jack's restaurant / Kelly's Hamburgers restaurant / Krispy Kreme Doughnuts / Shoney's Big Boy restaurant / McAdams Carpet / McDonald's restaurant / T.P. Crockmier's

A fountain stands at the Parisian East mall entry, in this 1977 photo. The store, which moved into EASTWOOD MALL in October 1969, took space previously leased by an S.S. Kresge 5 & 10.

Photo from https://www.al.com / Jeremy Gray

A shiny new mega mall opened in the vicinity of EASTWOOD in 1986. As a keeping up with RIVERCHASE GALLERIA measure, EASTWOOD was substantially renovated between 1989 and 1990. A new Parisian was built -diagonally- into the 1960 part of the mall.

The sun-drenched Food Court at EASTWOOD was built into the center of the center and featured 10 vendors. 

Photo from Russell Wells

The Food Court video wall, composed of eighty-seven individual TV screens, was a very '90s shopping mall feature!

Photo from Russell Wells

Competition from RIVERCHASE GALLERIA, THE SUMMIT lifestyle center, and other B'ham area malls, eventually took a toll on EASTWOOD. After struggling for some years, it was shuttered in August 2004 and bulldozed in June 2006. The historic shopping hub was replaced with the EASTWOOD VILLAGE power center in 2007.

Photo from Eastwood Village Flyer / Retail Specialists

EASTWOOD MALL

Crestwood Boulevard / US 78 and Oporto Avenue (Oporto Madrid Boulevard)

Birmingham, Alabama

The first fully-enclosed shopping center in the Southeast, North Carolina's CHARLOTTETOWN MALL, opened for business in October 1959. EASTWOOD MALL, the Southland's second enclosed retail complex, was officially dedicated in August 1960.

In retrospect, Alabama's "Magic City" seemed more progressive than Atlanta, Georgia, which did not have an enclosed mall until 5 years later. Moreover, by opening a climate-controlled shopping center as early as 1960, Birmingham jumped ahead of mega-cities such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, DC; all of whom dedicated their first enclosed malls between 1962 and 1967.

EASTWOOD MALL was situated on a 55-acre tract, located 4 miles east of downtown Birmingham. This million dollar "merchandising city of the future" was envisaged by local drive-in theater operator Newman H. Waters. The complex was designed by Willard Lien Thorsen, of Minneapolis, who would also envisage the Twin Cities' APACHE PLAZA (1961).

The official dedication of EASTWOOD MALL was held on August 25, 1960. In attendance were John Malcolm Patterson (D) (Governor of Alabama), James Morgan (Mayor of Birmingham), Newman H. Waters and singer Vaughn Monroe. A ceremonial ribbon was cut by Lois Jean Jolly, granddaughter of Mr. Waters. 

EASTWOOD originally encompassed approximately 320,300 leasable square feet and housed thirty-five inline stores. The mall was anchored by a (35,000 square foot) J.C. Penney. There were also Kroger and Colonial supermarkets, a Liggett Rexall Drug, ABC State Liquor Store, (29,100 square foot) S.S. Kresge and (34,800 square foot) J.J. Newberry.

The shopping facility was situated on a single level, but included a 200-seat auditorium on a small upper level. The J.C. Penney and J.J. Newberry stores also had small upper floors, which were not used as retail space. A Kiddieland amusement area, go-kart track and Space Age Eastwood Bowl bowling alley were outparcels of the original mall.

The Waters Theatre Company Eastwood Mall Theatre was the first structure added to the complex. This single-screen venue opened on December 25, 1964 and was the first phase of a 100,000 square foot, west end mall expansion. Completed in December 1965, the addition included a cafeteria, furniture store and Goodyear Tire & Appliance Center, as well as a second level of leased office spaces.

As the western addition was nearing completion, a 200,000 square foot expansion of the east end of the mall got underway. This would house twelve stores and services. A 2-level (89,700 square foot), Birmingham-based Pizitz was dedicated on August 18, 1966. With completion of the east end enlargement, EASTWOOD MALL encompassed over 650,000 leasable square feet and contained sixty-three stores under its roof.

The adjacent Starlite Drive-In Theatre closed in 1968. Its 14-acre site was redeveloped as EASTWOOD PLAZA, a strip center anchored by Kmart. As this new discount store opened, the existing S.S. Kresge in EASTWOOD MALL was shuttered. The vacant 5 & 10, and adjacent store space, were gutted. A (35,000 square foot), Birmingham-based Parisian East department store was created, which opened for business on October 30, 1969.

The mall's Colonial supermarket had been rebranded as a Hill's Food Store in late 1960. By 1969, it was operating as a Winn-Dixie. 1969 also brought the completion of Birmingham's second enclosed shopping hub, WESTERN HILLS CENTER {11.6 miles southwest, in Fairfield}.

In 1970, the interior of EASTWOOD MALL was given a face lift. A suspended ceiling was installed in the main corridor, sealing off the original clerestory windows. Carpet was also laid in all common area. The Kroger supermarket closed in 1971, with its space being used for an expanded furniture store. The theater was divided into a twin-screen multiplex in 1974.

Between 1973 and 1975, two new enclosed shopping centers opened in Greater Birmingham; BROOKWOOD VILLAGE CENTER {4.6 miles southwest, in Homewood} and CENTURY PLAZA {.1 mile northwest, in Birmingham}. The EASTWOOD J.C. Penney relocated to CENTURY PLAZA in 1976. The old Penney's space was leased as Parisian Young World, a boutique selling children's apparel.

In March 1980, Pizitz vacated EASTWOOD, moving into the former Loveman's anchor spot at CENTURY PLAZA. Service Merchandise opened, in the vacant EASTWOOD Pizitz, in September of the same year.

Montgomery-based Jim Wilson & Associates acquired EASTWOOD MALL in September 1984. At this time, the company was developing RIVERCHASE GALLERIA {11.1 miles southwest, in Hoover}. This 1.2 million square foot, superregional center opened in February 1986 and immediately put the hurt on all existing Magic City malls.

In order to keep their EASTWOOD property competitive, Wilson & Associates embarked on an 8 million dollar renovation in June 1989. The middle section of the mall was gutted and rebuilt as a 2-story Food Court. Moreover, a 2-level (130,000 square foot) Parisian was built -diagonally- into the existing structure. The exterior was also updated. The revitalized, 750,000 square foot, EASTWOOD MALL was re-dedicated in late 1990.

Unfortunately, the renovation failed to halt the mall's decline. This was exacerbated in October 1997, with the completion of THE SUMMIT {5.3 miles southwest, in Birmingham}. By the dawn of the 21st century, EASTWOOD MALL was virtually vacant. Its shopping concourse closed on August 1, 2004. Six stores with outside access remained in business.

Parisian was one of the last to go. This store, which was only 14 years old, closed in January 2005. By mid-2006, EASTWOOD MALL was being demolished. Within months, the nation's fifth fully-enclosed, regional-class shopping mall was a pile of rubble.

Construction began on a new EASTWOOD VILLAGE in November 2006. This open-air power center, built by Birmingham-based MAP Development, was anchored by a 1-level (195,800 square foot) Wal-Mart SuperCenter. This store opened on October 22, 2007. Other tenants in the 50 million dollar retail venue included Old Navy, Ross Dress For Less and a Ruby Tuesday restaurant.

Sources:

http://www.mywebpages.comcast.net / "Eastwood Mall" / Russell Wells

http://www.birminghamrewound.com

www.bplonline.org / resources / "Digital Project Eastwood Mall" / Birmingham Public Library

"50 Million Project Half Leased" / Birmingham News / June 29, 2006 / Michael Tomberlin, staff writer

www.bizjournals.com

"Eastwood Mall" article on Wikipedia 

Birmingham's Century Plaza

CENTURY PLAZA opened, in 1975, as the Magic City's second 2-level shopping center. In its heyday, the interior was decorated in high-end '70s mod style.

Photo from "Patriarca12"

Sears anchored the west end of the mall for over 33 years. In fact, it was the first store to open at CENTURY PLAZA (in 1975)...and the last to shut down (in 2009).

Drawing from Sears, Roebuck & Company

The east end of CENTURY PLAZA was anchored by Loveman's of Alabama. The store, which held its grand opening in August 1975, was the 6th branch of the B'ham-based chain and the last Loveman's of Alabama store to be built.

Photo and graphic from the City Stores Company

A circa-1976 layout shows the original orientation of the four anchor stores and various peripheral structures. The retail facility encompassed 746,300 leasable square feet and (at the time of this depiction) contained around seventy-five stores and services. In later years, the mall would house around ninety. The bi-level parking lot had room for 4,050 autos.

CENTURY PLAZA TENANTS 1976:

SEARS (with Coffee Shop and freestanding Auto Center) / LOVEMAN'S OF ALABAMA (with Beauty Salon) / J.C. PENNEY (with Coffee Shop, Beauty Salon & freestanding Auto Center) / RICH'S / Alabama Outdoors / Aladdin's Castle video arcade / Anderson-Little men's wear / B. Dalton Bookseller / Baker's Shoes / Baskin-Robbins ice cream / Bathique / Body Shop / Bookland / Bromberg's / Brook's Fashion Store / Butler's Shoes / Camelot Music / Carousel Snack Bar / Casual Corner ladies' wear / Central Bank / Chess King / Chick-fil-A / City Federal / County Seat / Fashion Post / First National Bank / Florsheim Shoes / Foxmoor Casuals / General Nutrition Center / Gifts By Bess / Giftwick / Gingiss Formal Wear / Gordon's Jewelers / Hanover Shoes / Hardy Shoes / Hickory Farms of Ohio / Hot Sam pretzels / J.T. Morley / Jarman Shoes / Jeans West / Jewelry Jungle / Jobe-Rose / Kalso Earth Shoe / Karmelkorn / Kinney Shoes / Lynn's Hallmark / McDonald's / McMillan's Big & Tall men's wear / Merry-Go-Round ladies' wear / Morrison's Cafeteria / Morrow's Nut House / Mother-To-Be ladies' wear / Pearle Vision Center / Radio Shack / Dick Reese's Hammond Organ / Sandwich Shop / Shoney's Coffee Shop / Size 5-7-9 Shops ladies' wear / Spencer Gifts / Sports Edition / Stag Shop men's wear / Stride-Rite Shoes / Stuarts Ready-To-Wear For Ladies / Tinder Box Tobacconist / Tricks N Treats / Ups 'N Downs / Thom McAn Shoes / Toy City / Village Bootery / Webster Men's Wear / Wide World of Music / York Steakhouse (outparcel) / Zales Jewelers   

Another vintage interior view of CENTURY PLAZA.

Photo from https://www.bhamwiki.com / Rolf Hans Müller

In this drawing we see the close proximity of B'ham's two Across the Street malls. This too-close-for-comfort configuration was not unique to the Magic City. It was also seen in locales such as Mobile (the SPRINGDALE and BEL AIR malls), Atlanta (LENOX SQUARE and PHIPPS PLAZA) and Greater Los Angeles (DEL AMO CENTER and BULLOCK'S FASHION SQUARE).

CENTURY PLAZA peaked during the 1980s. By the time of this circa-2003 layout, the complex was on its last legs. Rich's-Macy's would bow out in mid-2004. McRae's (formerly Loveman's and then Pizitz) would be "Belked" and then close for good in mid-2006. Penney's would pull their proverbial plug soon after.

This image, and the two that follow, were taken at the CENTURY PLAZA Center Court in the the early 2000s. Here we see the glass-enclosed elevator that connected the two levels of the mall.

Photo from www.ggp.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

The Center Court fountain is seen in this image.

Photo from www.ggp.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

Jarman Shoes, an Upper Level store, appears in the background of this snapshot. 

Photo from www.ggp.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

  

A Bing's-eye aerial view of the eastside shopopolis, which officially closed in May 2009. Over its 30+ years in business, the mall was never expanded. Likewise, its exterior was never renovated...which made it a pristine example of '70s mod architecture. The historic structure was demolished in late 2020 and has been replaced by an Amazon facility.

Photo from www.bing.com

CENTURY PLAZA

Crestwood Boulevard / US 78 and Oporto Avenue (Oporto Madrid Boulevard)

Birmingham, Alabama

 

BROOKWOOD VILLAGE CENTER, the Magic City's first 2-level shopping mall, opened in 1973. 2 years later, a second double-decked retail center was dedicated. CENTURY PLAZA was developed by the Engel Realty Company and designed by Birmingham's Crawford, Giattina & Mitchell firm.

Built on a 34-acre plot, located 4.2 miles northeast of the center city, CENTURY PLAZA encompassed 746,300 leasable square feet and eventually housed ninety stores and services. The complex was built across US Highway 78 from EASTWOOD MALL (1960), which had been the first interior mall in the state.

The first operational CENTURY PLAZA store was a 2-level (152,300 square foot) Sears, which began business September 25, 1974. An official mall dedication was held August 4, 1975, when a 2-level (125,100 square foot), Birmingham-based Loveman's of Alabama welcomed its first shoppers.

By early 1976, a 2-level (149,500 square foot) J.C. Penney and 2-level (70,000 square foot), Atlanta-based Rich's were also in operation. Charter inline stores included Morrison's Cafeteria, Camelot Music, Wide World of Music, Chick-fil-A, Hickory Farms of Ohio, Karmelkorn, Foxmoor Casuals and Bookland.

At the center of Center Court was a 2-level island structure with a grouping of small boutiques on the bottom and performance stage on top; this on the same level as the second floor of the shopping complex.

Other malls in the CENTURY PLAZA trade area included the aforementioned EASTWOOD MALL {.1 mile southeast, in Birmingham} and BROOKWOOD VILLAGE CENTER {4.7 miles southwest, in Homewood}. There was also WESTERN HILLS CENTER (1969) {11.9 miles southwest, in Fairfield}.

These venues coexisted through the 1970s and into the mid-1980s. All were bested by the superregional RIVERCHASE GALLERIA {11.2 miles southwest, in Hoover}, which was dedicated in February 1986. The region's first lifestyle center, THE SUMMIT {5.4 miles south,  in Birmingham} brought additional commercial competition with its October 1997 grand opening. 

By this time, CENTURY PLAZA was in decline. Interior face lifts performed in 1988 and 1994 had failed to curtail its downward spiral. Anchor rebrandings had begun in March 1980, when the Loveman's store morphed into a Birmingham-based Pizitz. This store was rebranded as a Jackson, Mississippi-based McRea's in September 1987 and was Belk-branded on March 8, 2006. Belk lasted only a few months and ended up closing for good in July 2006.

Rich's had morphed into a Rich's-Macy's on February 2, 2003. It did not continue the logical progression to a full-fledged Macy's but was shuttered on April 11, 2004. Its space was temporarily tenanted by 99-Cent Spot, which opened in July 2004 and closed soon after.

J.C. Penney became the next store to pull out of CENTURY PLAZA, closing on September 30, 2006. Its space was never retenanted. Sears was the final operational anchor. It went dark on June 14, 2009.

Chicago-based General Growth Properties, who had acquired CENTURY PLAZA in April 1997, closed the complex on May 31, 2009. As a result of GGP's early 21st century bankruptcy, the mall became a holding of the Howard Hughes Corporation, a real estate development arm of GGP. It was placed on the open market.

Pelham, Alabama's Lumpkin Development acquired the facility in December 2017. They installed a Metro Mini-Storage facility in the former Sears. The remainder of the complex was rented to various office, call center and light manufacturing firms, until the complex was re-sold in November 2020.

Amazon.com, Incorporated acquired CENTURY PLAZA and wasted no time before starting its demolition. The entire structure was razed between November 2020 and January 2021, with a new Amazon Fulfillment Center being built on the site.  

Sources:

The Birmingham News

https://birminghamrewound.com

www.georgiaretailmemories.blogspot.com / "J.T" webmaster

www.ggp.com

Jefferson County, Alabama property tax assessor website

http://www.al.com

"Century Plaza" article on Wikipedia