Springfield's White Oaks Mall



An aerial of the capital city's newly-completed shopping mall. Sears is seen in the foreground. Veterans Parkway (on the right) is yet to be completed and extends only a small distance north of the Iles ["iy-elz"] Avenue intersection.
Photo from http://www.springfieldrewind.com / Sangamon Valley Collection

At the time of a circa-1977 layout, WHITE LAKES MALL mall covered approximately 896,000 leasable square feet and contained nearly ninety stores and services. Free parking was provided for 4,500 autos. The complex was promoted as the largest fully-enclosed shopping center in Downstate Illinois.

WHITE OAKS MALL TENANTS 1977:

BRESSMER'S / FAMOUS-BARR (with Budget Store, restaurant and beauty salon) / MONTGOMERY WARD (with Buffeteria snack bar and freestanding Auto Center) / MYERS BROTHERS / SEARS (with Coffee House and attached Auto Center) / Air Step / Aladdin’s Castle video arcade / Baker's Shoes / Bresler’s 33 Flavors Ice Cream / Brooks Fashion / Buster Brown Shoes / Byerly Music / Carousel snack bar / Casual Corner / Circus World Toys / Claire's Boutique / Edward's Keepsake Diamond Center / Endicott Shoes / Florsheim Shoes / Flowerama / Foxmoor Casuals / GNC / Gallery Sea Food / Gingiss Formalwear / Gordon's Jewelers / Hanover Shoes / Helzberg Diamonds / Herndon’s / Hickory Farms of Ohio / Hotdog on a Stick / Illinois Sporting Goods / IPCO Optical / J. Riggings / Jean Nicole ladies' wear / Jo-Ann Fabrics / Just Pants / Keepsake Photos / Kinney Shoes / Kirlin’s Candies / Life Stride / Lober’s / Lowery Organ / Luca Pizza / MCL Cafeteria / Maling Shoes / McDonald’s / Mermod, Jaccard & King / Merry-Go-Round / Motherhood Maternity / Murray Shoes / Musicland / National Shirt Shops / Nobil Shoes / Orange Julius / Oriental Gifts / Osco Drug / Paul Harris / Petrie's ladies' wear / Printer’s Ink Bookstore / Roberts Brothers / Service Optical / Shaver’s World / Silverman’s / So-Fro Fabrics / Spencer Gifts / Star of India / Susie's Casuals / Swiss Pretzel Shop / Tanneberg & Sandorwitz Delicatessen / The Book Market / The Bottom Half / The Children’s Shop / The Cookie Factory / The County Seat / The Hub / The Ranch / Tinder Box Tobacconist / Topps & Trousers / Union Jack / Wag’s Restaurant / Waldenbooks / White Oaks Mall Cinema I-II-II / Winston’s / Zales Jewelers

We now begin a series of black & white Polaroid shots that were taken by the Sangamon County Assessor's Office in 1977. These show WHITE OAKS MALL as it looked when brand new. Above, we see the mallway entrance of Myers Brothers. This nameplate was short-lived, as it would be replaced by a Bergner's brand in 1983.
Photo from Sangamon County, Illinois 

A vintage view of Center Court at WHITE OAKS, with the nameplate of Sears, the mall's north anchor, visible in the distance.

Photo from Sangamon County, Illinois 

A very '70s looking Spencer Gifts.
Photo from Sangamon County, Illinois 

Edward's Keepsake Diamonds Center, one of many original stores no longer in business at WHITE OAKS MALL.
Photo from Sangamon County, Illinois 

An early 1994 snapshot showing the east entrance of Famous-Barr. The store was in the middle of an expansion, which would add approximately 26,000 square feet.
Photo from Sangamon County, Illinois

Another snapshot was taken some months later, after the expansion was completed. The store now encompassed 162,000 square feet.

Photo from Sangamon County, Illinois 

 

WHITE OAKS MALL was given a major renovation in 1993-'94. Bergner's and Famous-Barr were enlarged, the shopping concourse remodeled and a food court built in a vacant Kohl's space. When construction dust settled, the mall covered approximately 945,300 leasable square feet. 

An early 2000s view of Center Court. The carousel was replaced by a single-tiered model in 2011.
Photo from www.eyecorp.com

In a circa-2006 plan, we see the original reconfiguration of Montgomery Ward, which had been vacated in 2001. The store was divided three ways, with Linens 'n Things and Cost Plus World Market sharing the first level and Dick's Sporting Goods occupying the second. The two bottom floor tenants closed in 2008 and would be replaced by hhgregg (2012) and LA Fitness (2013).

WHITE OAKS MALL received an indoor-outdoor face lift in 2011 and 2012.
Drawing from www.simon.com / Simon Property Group

During the refurbishment project, new mall entrances, flooring, lighting and landscaping were installed. The Food Court and Center Court were also rebuilt.
Drawing from www.simon.com / Simon Property Group

WHITE OAKS MALL, circa-2025. A restaurant row along the southern flank has been expanded with new Panda Express, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chick-fil-A and Mission BBQ stores. Inside the mall, hhgregg went dark in mid-2017. Bergner's and Sears closed in August and September of 2018, respectively, and were replaced by state offices and an indoor theme park. Macy's has just closed their 18-year-old store.

WHITE OAKS MALL

Wabash Avenue / US 36 and South Veterans Parkway
City of Springfield, Illinois

The first -and only- shopping mall in Illinois' capital city was developed by a joint venture of Indianapolis-based Melvin Simon & Associates (today's Simon Property Group), the Springfield-based Park Realty Company and Chicago-based Arthur Rubloff.

Originally envisaged as WESTROADS MALL, the prospective complex was renamed WHITE OAKS MALL in honor of the Illinois State Tree. Occupying an 80-acre plot, located 3.3 miles southwest of the Illinois State House, the complex would span 896,200 leasable square feet and eventually contain 120 stores and services.
 

A 2-level (143,500 square foot) Montgomery Ward was dedicated, along with fifty-nine inline stores, on March 31, 1977. A 2-level (117,300 square foot), Springfield-based Myers Brothers debuted on August 2nd. St. Louis-based Famous-Barr inaugurated their 2-level (104,200 square foot) store on August 6th.
 

On August 27, 1977, WHITE OAKS MALL was officially dedicated . A 2-level (186,000 square foot) Sears opened its doors and a hot air balloon race was held. Ed McMahon, co-host of NBC-TV's "Tonight Show With Johnny Carson," served as Master of Ceremonies. Participating in the celebration were athletes Artis Gilmor, Bruce Jenner and Bobby Riggs. Celebrities and government officials included Billy Carter, brother of President Jimmy Carter, William Tedford (Mayor of Springfield) and Nancy Rae Beatty, "Miss Illinois 1978." 

Among the mall's eighty-six charter stores were Osco Drug, Topps & Trowsers, Bresler's 33 Flavors Ice Cream, an MCL Cafeteria and 2-level (60,000 square foot), Springfield-based Bressmer's. The General Cinema Theatres White Oaks Mall Cinema I-II-III showed first features on June 17, 1977. The in-mall venue was divided into a 5-screen house in the early 1980s. It was sold to the Kerasotes chain in 1988 and shuttered in September 2008.

Meanwhile, the first nameplate conversion at WHITE OAKS MALL had taken place in 1979, when Bressmer's was rebranded by St. Louis-based Stix, Baer & Fuller. The Stix store would be short-lived. It was shuttered on July 31, 1982, with the space assumed by Wisconsin-based Kohl's on November 1st. In 1983, the Myers Brothers store was rebranded by Bergner's, then based in Peoria.

A 14 million dollar mall renovation began in January 1993, with the interior given an upscale update. Several decorative features were installed, such as skylights, Doric columns, pink neon signage, Lebanese black olive trees and ceramic tile flooring. All common area stairways were replaced by escalators and an open-air elevator now operated in Center Court.

Moreover, store space in the southeast corner of the complex was repurposed. The area had been vacated in 1992, when Kohl's relocated into WHITE OAKS PLAZA (a strip center located across Veterans Parkway from the mall). Lower Level space was divided into inline stores. 

An 8-bay Food Court was built in Upper Level space. Its six initial vendors were The Great Steak & Potato Company, Villa Pizza, A & W Hot Dogs & More, Tasty Basket, Mandarin Express and Filia's Greek cuisine. The renovation was officially dedicated on October 15, 1993. New inline stores included Victoria's Secret, Petite Sophisticate, The Disney Store, Deck the Walls and Lane Bryant.

Two WHITE OAKS MALL anchor stores were also enlarged as part of the remodeling. Bergner's was expanded, by 25,000 square feet, into a 129,200 square foot unit. Famous-Barr's addition increased its area to 162,000 square feet. This store held its grand re-opening on August 12, 1994.

The shuttering of Montgomery Ward, on March 4, 2001, created a vacancy that would not be filled for 3 years. Dick's Sporting Goods opened, in the upper level, on July 28, 2004. Later in the year, Linens 'n Things and Cost Plus World Market dedicated their stores, which occupied the first floor of the building. A second anchor rebranding at the mall was completed on September 9, 2006, when Famous-Barr became a Macy's.

The Great Recession contributed to the shutterings of four WHITE OAKS MALL stores. Linens 'n Things and Cost Plus World Market went dark in 2008. Borders Express and FYE (For Your Entertainment) pulled up stakes in 2009.

In the 2010s, WHITE OAKS MALL was 81-percent Simon-owned. It encompassed approximately 945,300 leasable square feet, with 110 store spaces. A multi-million dollar face lift got underway in August 2011 and was completed in May 2012.

Bergner's anchored the shopping hub for 23 years. The chain became a division of Pennsylvania's Bon Ton Stores conglomerate in 2006. As a result of the bankruptcy of Bon Ton Stores, Bergner's locations were shuttered on August 29, 2018. Sears presided over the north end of the shopping hub for over 40 years. This store closed for good in September 2018. 

 

The abandoned Sears was purchased by the State of Illinois who converted it into offices for the Department of Innovation, Pollution Control Board and Environmental Protection Agency. The Bergner's building was reconfigured as a Malibu Jacks indoor theme park, which opened on November 3, 2023. Another anchor vacancy was created when Macy's shuttered their store in March 2025.

Sources:

The Illinois Times (Springfield, Illinois)
The State Journal-Register (Springfield, Illinois)

The Herald & Review (Decatur, Illinois)

https://www.springfieldrewind.com

https://business.simon.com / Simon Property Group
https://tax.co.sangamon.il.us / Sangamon County, Illinois
https://www.waymarking.com
https://www.springfield.il.us

Peoria's Northwoods Mall

The second mall in -or around- The River City opened for business in August 1973. Above, we see the original logo of the Downstate Illinois shopping center. This trademark was re-created by -and for- the Mall Hall of Fame. Remember, you saw it here first, lol. 

In 1975, NORTHWOODS MALL spans around 750,000 leasable square feet, with free parking for 3,700 autos. Upon its dedication in 1973, the 25 million dollar complex was anchored by Carson, Pirie Scott and Montgomery Ward. J.C. Penney joined the tenant list in January 1974. One of the original features was Piccadilly Circle, a Lower Level mall-within-a-mall. It contained thirteen boutique-type tenants.

NORTHWOODS MALL TENANTS 1975:

CARSON PIRIE SCOTT (with Nordic House restaurant) / MONTGOMERY WARD (with Buffeteria snack bar and freestanding Auto Center) / J.C. PENNEY (with Coffee Shop, Beauty Salon and freestanding Auto Center) / Adelyn's ladies' wear / B. Dalton Bookseller / Bacharach's / Baker's Shoes / Book Market / Brooks / Brown's Sporting Goods / Burton’s Shoes / Byerly Music Center / Campus Music Shop / Caren Charles / Casual Corner / Chadband's Keepsake Diamonds / Chess King / Claire’s Boutique / Coach House Gifts / Construction Equipment Credit Union / Cutlery World / Diamond Dave's Taco Company / Dipper Dan Ice Cream Shoppe / Elliot's Children's World / Energy Alternatives / Evenson’s Hallmark / Father & Son Shoes / Federal Travel / Ferdinand's Wigs / Foxmoor Casuals / Frontier Fruit & Nut / Gallenkamp Shoes / GNC / Grizzley's / Hardee's / Helzberg Diamonds / Household Finance Corporation / J.R.'s Music Shop / Jade East / Jeans West / Johnson's / Just Pants / Karmelkorn / Kay-Bee Toy & Hobby Shop / Kinney Shoes / Kirlin's / LeCart Goumet / Life Stride Shoes /  Maurice's / McQuellon's Imports / Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio / Moeckel's Adidas / Money Center 24 / Motherhood Maternity / Moore's Jewelers / Musicland / National Shirt Shops / Naturalizer Shoes / Noah's Ark / Orange Bowl snack bar / Orange Julius / Otto Matik / Paul Harris / Photo Finish / Pines / Radio Shack / Realty Center / Red Cross Shoes / Regal Shoes / Richman Brothers men's wear / Schradzki's / Security Savings / Seno & Sons Formal Wear / Service Optical / Singer Sewing Center / Skewer Inn restaurant / So Fro Fabrics / Space Age Travel / Stride Rite Shoes / Stuarts Ready-To-Wear For Ladies / Suns of Britches / Susies Casuals / Swiss Colony / Talman Home Federal Savings / Tandy Brass / Things Remembered / Thom McAn Shoes / Tiffany Bakery / Tinder Box Tobacconist / Ups & Downs / Wicks 'N Sticks / Worth's / Zondervan Books

PICCADILLY CIRCLE:
Aladdin's Castle video arcade / B.J. & Company On Hair / Children's Photographer / Crazy Top Shop / Fannie Mae Candies / Flowerama / Garcia's Pan Pizza By The Slice / Garrot Jewelers / Holmes Florsheim Shoes / Midwestern Surveys / Tobin Hughes Jewelers / Wedding Boutique 

But would it play in Peoria? This sculpture was a centerpiece of the original mall's Center Court. The glulam (glued laminated wood) abstract form was created by Los Angeles' Jan de Swart.
Photo from Peoria Public Library / Jennifer Ross 

The mirrored clock tower on the left was also an original Center Court fixture. Notice the sign pointing the way to the Piccadilly Circle mini-mall.
Photo from Peoria Public Library / Jennifer Ross

The Carson's store at NORTHWOODS MALL was shuttered in 1983. It sat vacant until late 1985, when a Famous-Barr opened in the space.
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way" 

In a late 1990s site plan, the mall is essentially the same as in the circa-1975 version. However, a small addition has been built onto the east anchor (in gray). Moreover, two department store nameplates have changed. Carson's morphed into the aforementioned Famous-Barr and Montgomery Ward has been proceeded by Sears. At this juncture, NORTHWOODS MALL covers approximately 760,000 leasable square feet.

By the dawn of the 21st century, NORTHWOODS MALL had triumphed over its nearby rival PEKIN MALL, leaving that complex decaying in the dust. Unfortunately, a more formidable competitor soon arrived on the scene. THE SHOPPES AT GRAND PRAIRIE, an open-air lifestyle center, was officially dedicated in 2003.
Photo from http://www.dmassociates.com  / DMS Development Management Associates

As a "keeping up" measure, NORTHWOODS MALL was given a 20 million dollar face lift during 2005.
Photo from www.simon.com / Simon Property Group

As the refurbishment proceeded, original seating areas and fountains were removed. A 10-bay Food Court was installed, along with new lighting and interior decor.
Photo from www.simon.com / Simon Property Group

 

 

In 2009, NORTHWOODS MALL houses over ninety inline stores. Anchor-wise, J.C. Penney was still in business on the south end of the complex, with Sears operating on the north. The east anchor, Famous-Barr, was "Macy-ated" in late 2006.

A circa-2013 snapshot shows the J.C. Penney mall entrance. 

Photo from http://triptothemall.blogspot.com

A second image from 2013 shows the Sears that would anchor the north end of NORTHWOODS for nearly 22 years.

Photo from http://triptothemall.blogspot.com

The mall's Macy's did an "anchors away" in early 2016. The space wasn't vacant for long. Round 1 Bowling & Amusement leased the vacant Lower Level, with TheRoomPlace furniture moving into the Upper.
Graphic 1 from http://www.round1usa.com
Graphic 2 from https://www.theroomplace.com

A circa-2020 layout shows new Round One & RoomPlace stores. However, there is an now an empty north anchor, as Sears pulled up stakes in February. 

NORTHWOODS MALL
West War Memorial Drive / US 150 and West Scenic Drive
City of Peoria, Illinois

The first fully-enclosed shopping center in Greater Peoria was officially dedicated in September 1972. Encompassing approximately 500,000 leasable square feet, PEKIN MALL was located in an unincorporated section of Tazewell County known as Pekin Heights.

At the time that PEKIN MALL was being completed, a second mall was under construction on a 56-acre site, lying 3.4 miles northwest of downtown Peoria. NORTHWOODS MALL was being developed by a joint venture of Chicago's Carson Pirie Scott (a.k.a. Carson's), Montgomery Ward and J.C. Penney. The complex was designed by Chicago's Sidney H. Morris & Associates.

Plans for a northern Peoria shopping hub had been conceived by Carson Pirie Scott, who had purchased land -which eventually became the NORTHWOODS MALL site- in 1961. Soon after, Ward's and Penney's committed to the project, with Development Control Corporation selected as the official name of the joint venture. 

Construction would be delayed by litigation instigated by center city Peoria merchants in 1965. The lawsuit was settled in 1969 and the City of Peoria approved construction of the mall in 1970. The first shovel of earth was turned on October 26, 1971. The 25 million dollar NORTHWOODS MALL was officially dedicated on August 16, 1973. 

Consisting of 2 retail levels, NORTHWOODS MALL encompassed approximately 750,000 leasable square feet and housed over 100 stores and services. The initial complex was anchored by a 2-level (155,500 square foot) Carson's and 2-level (149,800 square foot) Montgomery Ward. J.C. Penney's 2-level (156,400 square foot) store commenced operation on January 2, 1974.
 

Charter tenants included Radio Shack, Seno & Sons Formal Wear, Campus Music Shop, Jeans West, Petrie Shoes, Brown's Sporting Goods, Lane Bryant, Orange Bowl, Singer Sewing Center, Foxmoor Casuals, Musicland, a Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour and Peoria Inn Restaurant. The mall's interior decor included sunken seating areas, a 40-foot-high Center Court sculpture and 4-faced Center Court clock tower.

Anchor rebrandings began early on. Carson's closed in 1983, with a St. Louis-based Famous-Barr opening for business on October 3, 1985. The Ward's store became the next anchor to change nameplates. It was shuttered November 15, 1997 and re-opened, as a Sears, September 19, 1998.

Meanwhile, ownership of the mall had changed. Carson's sold their 33 percent interest to Cleveland's Richard E. Jacobs Group in May 1983. Montgomery Ward sold their share to Melvin Simon & Associates (today's Simon Property Group) in October of the same year. Eventually, Simon would establish full ownership of the property.

The mall's position as preeminent retail venue in the area had been threatened in 1988, when a downtown mall was proposed for Peoria's center city. This project was eventually abandoned. Plans for RIVER CITY GALLERIA, which was to be built in the city's northwestern environs, were announced in May 1997. This project became a hotly-contested issue for years to come.

Meanwhile, Simon was wanting to expand its NORTHWOODS property. They were thwarted by the city government, who felt that the mall site was not large enough to accommodate any substantial enlargement. However, a small addition to Famous-Barr, increasing its area to 165,500 square feet, had been allowed in the early 1990s.

By 1998, plans for RIVER CITY GALLERIA had been scraped and replaced with designs for an open-air facility, tentatively named THE PROMENADE. After years of failed attempts, a retail rival for NORTHWOODS MALL opened for business in April 2003. THE SHOPPES AT GRAND PRAIRIE was built on the prospective GALLERIA-PROMENADE site, which was located 3.3 miles northwest of NORTHWOODS MALL. The new retail complex encompassed 490,000 leasable square feet and contained seventy stores and services.

To keep NORTHWOODS MALL competitive, a 20 million dollar renovation was undertaken in 2005. A 10-bay Food Court was installed at the Upper Level Main Entrance. Moreover, 1970s-vintage seating areas and fountains were removed, with new lighting installed throughout the complex. Soon after the renovation was completed, Famous-Barr was rebannered. The store opened with a Macy's nameplate on September 9, 2006.

In May 2014, the Simon Property Group created a spin-off Real Estate Investment Trust, known as the Washington Prime Group,. This entity assumed ownership of forty-four of Simon's "Grade B" malls, including NORTHWOODS. In January 2015, Washington Prime Group merged with Columbus, Ohio's Glimcher Realty Trust. Between 2015 and 2016, the company would be known as WP Glimcher. Its name reverted back to Washington Prime Group in September 2016.

Meanwhile, Macy's had pulled the proverbial plug on their NORTHWOODS store in March 2016. The vacant building was repurposed with two retailers. A (50,000 square foot) Round 1 Bowling & Amusement Center occupied Lower Level space. The facility was dedicated on November 18, 2017. The Upper Level was reconfigured as a (62,000 square foot) TheRoomPlace furniture store, which welcomed first shoppers in mid-2018. 

 

With these modifications, NORTHWOODS MALL housed approximately 760,000 leasable square feet and contained over ninety inline stores. Three of these would soon be shuttered. Sears closed on February 12, 2020. The Round One and TheRoomPlace stores followed suit. Round One went dark on May 21, 2023, with TheRoomPlace initiating a liquidation sale on April 4, 2024. 

 

NORTHWOODS MALL had changed hands in the early 2020s. The Washington Prime Group sold the complex; this transaction excluding the Sears and J.C. Penney buildings. Summit Properties USA became the new proprietor. 

 

This entity is a subsidiary of Summit Properties, Limited, whose corporate headquarters is located on Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands off the coast of Normandy, France. Although a "British Crown dependency," Guernsey is not part of the United Kingdom. Details are sketchy, but it appears that NORTHWOODS MALL was acquired sometime in 2021.

Sources:

The Peoria Chronicle
The Suburbanite Economist (Chicago, Illinois)

https://www.centralillinoisproud.com
https://www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"
http://www.simon.com / Simon Property Group
http://www.eyecorp.com
https://propertytax.peoriacounty.gov / Peoria County, Illinois 
http://www.dmassociates.com / DMS Development Management Associates

https://www.northwoodsmall.net 

https://wpgus.com / Washington Prime Group

www.summit-properties.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

https://www.summit-us.com / Summit Properties, Limited

"Northwoods Mall" and "Guernsey" articles on Wikipedia

Rockford's The Mall At CherryVale

A vintage logo of the Forest City retail venue. Although its official name was THE MALL AT CHERRYVALE, it was commonly referred to as "CHERRYVALE MALL." In fact, this was eventually adopted as its official name.
Graphic from the CherryVale Development Company

Greater Rockford's THE MALL AT CHERRYVALE, as it was configured in late 1973. Enveloping approximately 713,900 leasable square feet, the bi-level complex houses an initial fifty stores and services. Eventually, there will be over 120.

MALL AT CHERRYVALE TENANTS 1973:

SEARS (with Coffee House, beauty salon and freestanding Auto Center) / MARSHALL FIELD & COMPANY (with The Fountain View Room restaurant, Bake Shop, Delicatessen, beauty salon and Budget Floor) / Anger's Fine Jewelry & Gifts / Atlanta Wig Boutique / Baker's Shoes / Carousel snack bar / Casual Corner ladies' wear / Chess King men's wear / Claire's Boutique ladies' wear / Disc Records / Don Di Fashions / Dutch Mill Candies / Evanson Card Shops / Fannie May Candies / Florsheim Shoes / Flower Island, Incorporated / Foxmoor Casuals ladies' wear / Fred Frank, Limited / Froelich Shoes / Hallmark Cards / Hanover Shoes / Hickory Farms of Ohio / House of Schiller / Hughes & Hatcher / Jeans West / Just Pants / Kings Row Fireplace Shop / Kroch's & Brentano's Booksellers / Lind Gallery, Limited / Lindstrom Travel Service / Mr. Steak of CherryVale / National Uniform Shops / Naturalizer Shoes / O'Connell's Restaurant / Page Jewelers  / Pet World / Printer's Ink / Regal Shoes / Seno & Sons Formalwear / Silverman's / Singer Sewing Center / Sporting World / Tie Rak / Tinder Box Tobacconist  / The Drye Look / The Eye Glass Place / The Limited ladies' wear / Things Remembered / Thom McAn Shoes / Treasure House Casuals / Vanguard / Wicks 'N Sticks / Williams Joyce-Selby

Sears became the first operational CHERRYVALE tenant, in September 1973. The second department store to open its doors was Marshall Field & Company. This store made its debut in November of the same year.

Photo from Wikipedia / "LongLiveRock"

Wisconsin's H.C. Prange ["prang-ee"] became the fourth anchor of MALL AT CHERRYVALE in 1974. Prange-way, a discount division of Prange's, also opened at the mall in 1974. This store was divided between two locations. Prange-way I was installed in the Upper Level of the existing Prange's store. Prange-way II was adjacent to the Grand Court area. 

Graphics from the H.C. Prange Company   

A MALL AT CHERRYVALE logo montage is comprised of trademarks of stores that operated in the shopping center during the 1970s and '80s.

Anger's Fine Jewelry & Gifts was a charter CHERRYVALE tenant.

Photo from Color-View, Incorporated

By 1993, the complex is known as CHERRYVALE MALL. A  4-plex was installed in Lower Level space (it operates in conjunction with a freestanding tri-screen venue). The closing of Prange-Way II, in the late '80s, provided space for the Pavilion Food Court. The Prange's department store was rebranded by Younkers in 1992. With these improvements, the mall houses 132 stores, with free parking for 3,800 autos.

A fourth CHERRYVALE anchor had been on the drawing board for several years. This finally came to fruition in August 2004, when J.C. Penney opened a store at the mall. The single-level structure connected into the Upper Level. 

Photo from http://triptothemall.blogspot.com

A circa-2004 rendering, showcasing a remodeled Southwest Entrance. This area was refurbished again when the lifestyle-like THE DISTRICT AT CHERRYVALE addition was built.
Drawing from http://www.herschmanarchitects.com / Herschman Architects