Forest Mall
Forest Mall was an enclosed shopping mall in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, USA. Opened in 1973, the mall closed and was demolished in 2020.
 2020 shortly before demolition. | |
| Location | Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 43.78633°N 88.47693°W |
| Address | 835 W. Johnson St. |
| Opening date | 1973 |
| Closing date | January 2020 |
| Developer | Melvin Simon & Associates |
| Owner | ATR Corinth Partners[1] |
| Total retail floor area | 500,000 sq ft (46,000 m2)[2] |
| No. of floors | 1 |
| Public transit access |  Fond du Lac Area Transit |
| Website | forestmall |
As of April 2023, The Former Pranges/Younkers building is still standing and Kohl’s and TJ Maxx continue operations
History
Melvin Simon & Associates, now known as Simon Property Group, first announced plans for Forest Mall in 1964.[3] The mall opened in September 1973, featuring Montgomery Ward, J. C. Penney, H. C. Prange Co., Prange Way and G. C. Murphy.[4] A Copps Department Store was also located nearby. Of these stores, Montgomery Ward, J. C. Penney and Prange had relocated from downtown Fond du Lac.[5] The Montgomery Ward space was later taken over by Kohl's, the Prange Way space by Sears and Prange's became Younkers.
Simon renovated the mall in 1998, adding skylights and new flooring.[6] In 2006, several new stores opened at the mall, although most were local retailers.[7]
In May 2014, JCPenney closed. It was the last of the original anchors in the mall.[8] Sears closed on November 2, 2014, as did the Forest Mall Cinema. As a result, many retailers in the mall, local and national such as American Eagle, Aeropostale, Pac Sun, and Victorias Secret closed too.
In 2014, Simon Property Group spun off its underperforming malls, including Forest Mall, into an investment group known as WP Glimcher. In early 2016, Simon's investment group officially sold the mall to ATR Corinth Partners, a Dallas-based investment.[1] Simon had developed the mall and owned it for more than 40 years.
Younkers closed in 2018.[9]
By 2020, the mall had no internal tenants and was closed. Kohl's and Staples remained in operation, but had closed their mall entrances. In July 2020, demolition began. Staples closed too, and the mall and all anchors were demolished, with the exception of Kohl's, which remains open as a freestanding store. A Meijer store is set to be built on the site of the mall.[10]
References
- Nate Beck (5 February 2016). "Forest Mall sold to Texas developer". Fond du Lac Reporter. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
- "Leasing information". Simon Property Group. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
- "Wisconsin". Chain Store Age. Lebhar Friedman: E–70. 1964 – via Google Books.
- "Wisconsin". CSA Super Markets. Lebhar Friedman: 100. 1973 – via Google Books.
- Burayidi, Michael (2001). Downtowns: Revitalizing the Centers of Small Urban Communities. p. 50. ISBN 9780815333616 – via Google Books.
- King, Jenny (1 September 1997). "Adaptability is key in the hardy Midwest". Retail Traffic Mag. Archived from the original on 28 October 2007. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
- Stanek, Heather (9 October 2006). "Mall populated with variety of new retailers". The Reporter. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
- Davidson, Paul (14 January 2014). "JCPenney closing 33 stores, laying off 2,000". USA Today. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
- "Yonkers Fond du Lac". Yonkers. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- Sharon Roznik (16 September 2020). "Demolition continues at Fond du Lac's Forest Mall, Staples to close next month". Fond du Lac Reporter.