But we enjoyed it and loved all the different stores and restaurants. The number of dead malls has increased significantly because the economic health of malls across the United States has been in decline, with high vacancy rates in many of these malls.
Table of Contents. In , the Marshall Field's store was rebranded Macy's. The makeover consists of an updated grand court, taking away the bricks. The renovation also includes new flooring for both lower and upper levels, and also new elevators, including a 3rd one. The renovation was predicted to be finished by the end of the year. Woodfield Mall Woodfield Mall. Woodfield Mall interior shot. Woodfield Mall another interior shot. Chicago Tribune. February 24, Retrieved March 14, It is now the 9th largest mall in America.
October 15, Daily News Record. December 23, Malcolm October 17, The New York Times. Retrieved Schaumburg, Illinois. Simon Property Group. Blue sky can be seen above the clouds, covering the very top of the bowl.
The former theater area was converted into an Improv Comedy Club in , the first location in Illinois. The fourth cinematic venue in or around the mall replaced all of the previous movie houses.
In September , the Marshall Field's location at the mall was rebranded as Macy's after the acquisition of Marshall Field's. On November 1, , Akira opened in the Nordstrom Wing. On June 29, , Woodfield renovated their McDonald's , which opened in Also, that same year, Pink By Victoria's Secret opened to the public. On October 1, , Longhorn Steakhouse opened on the northeast corner outside of the mall. In , a portion of the second level of the Sears was subleased to Level , a Pac Man-themed restaurant.
Along with a major renovation, Zara , Timberland, Foot Locker and rue21 opened. Kinfork BBQ opened in December of the same year. In , Victoria's Secret had a massive remodel. That same year, a 4th elevator was added. In January , The Clubhouse Restaurant, which opened in , closed its doors. In mid-June, Blocks To Bricks, which is a hybrid between a store and museum dedicated to Legos and other construction toys, opened to customers. In July , Chevys Fresh Mex , which opened in , closed permanently.
In December 19, , it was announced that the Rainforest Cafe in Woodfield Mall is scheduled to be closing due to the natural lease expiration to make way for Peppa Pig World of Play amusement center, set to open in The GLA of the mall today is 2,, square feet , m 2 , making it the fifth largest shopping mall in the U.
The mall is a highly visited tourist destination in the Chicago metropolitan area, with about 27 million annual visitors. Woodfield is often used as a test market for retailers; a recent example was the opening and nationwide debut of Ruehl No. The store closed on December 29, In the s, Woodfield closed the "underground" food court in the main courtyard of the mall.
At first it closed off the opening to the lower eating area and stairway. The removal left a large open area that for a few years people could see the tile outlining the former opening to the food court below. This floor outline was eliminated in renovating the courtyard.
She was very gracious in providing information and, between us, we managed to uncover the connection linking her, Tamara Thomas and Alfred Taubman. Thank goodness, she remembered Ms. The lower photo is from Chicago Magazine. Are you interested in a few more photos of opening day at Woodfield? How about football practice at Schaumburg High School from ?
Well, the Daily Herald opened up their archives and allowed us to take a look at a selection of local photos. Check them out here. The Woodfield photos are largely of celebrities Carol Lawrence and Vincent Price who were on hand for the festivities on September 9, The first photo shows the two of them surrounded by other dignitaries that included Mayor Bob Atcher, first from the left in the photo above, and Al Taubman who is second from the left and was the developer of the mall.
Price was an art collector himself and purchased much of the art that Sears sold and even commissioned artists such as Salvador Dali to create art for the program.
But, why was Carol Lawrence there? The best we could figure is that, not only was she from the Chicago area, having been born in Melrose Park, but she and her husband, Robert Goulet, were also performing at the Mill Run Theater in Niles the following week from September Would there have been another reason they tapped her?
Notice all of the people in the background. Woodfield was not completely finished on opening day so anyone and everyone who was around would have been interested in taking a look at the celebration. As for the football photos, you can find them at the bottom of the page. Schaumburg High School had opened the prior year in and it is evident in the photos. Not only are there open spaces as far as the eye can see, but there is also no foliage—tree, bush or otherwise—that had yet to be planted around the building.
Local history is always enhanced when older photos become available. Not only do they trigger memories but they help fill in the gaps in our history. A big thank you to the Daily Herald for sharing them with us! Less than two months after the mall opened in September , an ice skating rink was already being considered by mall management as a unique attraction for their customers.
As part of the Phase II construction, an additional , square feet of space was in the works. This would create another entire wing at Woodfield for the nearly full mall. Interestingly enough, at that time, the Taubman Company also operated additional skating rinks at some of its other malls in California! Tom Muru, a former Montreal junior hockey player, served as manager. Figure skating lessons for children 3 years through adults were given by Ice Follies performers Mike and Lois McMorran.
Hockey lessons were also offered, and figure and hockey skating clubs were formed. Viewing windows between the mall and the rink allowed shoppers to watch the skaters. Later advertisements that appeared in the March 17 and April 21, issues of the Daily Herald highlighted the fact that the Woodfield Ice Arena was the only indoor skating rink in the Chicago area located in a shopping center.
Public skating sessions were offered every day of the year as well as classes. Lessons culminated that year in a gala Ice Show with a western theme. The Club featured a half hour lesson followed by coffee and donuts. In addition, they also advertised their group rates for all types of parties. Unfortunately, the fun on the ice did not last much longer. In a Daily Herald article from September 3, , it was announced that the Ice Arena would close on October 19 after 11 years in operation.
The rink had been doing poorly for its last few years of operation so it was only a matter of time. The large space, however, was too valuable to go unused for long. Less than a year later, the Woodfield Mall Theaters opened on June 21 and featured five new theaters run by Plitt Theaters. From a bright, wide open ice rink to five dark movie theaters, the venue definitely changed its theme in a matter of eight months! The new screens opened with area premiers of five movies. Can you guess the names from these clues?
The photo of the ice rink was used courtesy of the former Profile Publications of Crystal Lake. Skip to content Woodfield Mall was a game changer for Schaumburg Township when it opened in October 23, Ray Charles performs at Grand Court. Photo courtesy of biography. May 2, The Sears store becomes the last full-line Sears in Illinois. September 9, Woodfield Mall celebrates its 50th anniversary!
It was a wild day. Wild and crazy. May 6, Ann Taylor The Gap, an ever popular casual, sporty clothes store for the whole family, entered the Woodfield arena from the time the mall opened in and remained through or so.
The Gap If you have any Woodfield Mall gift boxes at home that vary from the ones shown here, please send a picture to jrozek stdl. An ice rink in a mall? Where else but Woodfield?
0コメント