Greenwood Mall (South Carolina)

Greenwood Mall, formerly Crosscreek Mall, is a regional shopping mall located in Greenwood, South Carolina, United States. The mall opened in 1979 and underwent a number of expansions and renovations throughout its history. The original anchor stores were Belk, JCPenney, and Meyers-Arnold, with H. J. Wilson Co. joining in the 1980s. The latter two stores became Uptons and Service Merchandise respectively in the 1980s. Following the closure of those stores, the mall was purchased by a new owner in 2000 and renamed three years later to Greenwood Mall. Renovations beginning in 2009 added The Shoe Dept., TJ Maxx, and Michaels among other stores. Despite these additions, the mall continued to struggle with vacancy, compounded by the closure of JCPenney in 2019. The remaining anchor stores are Belk and TJ Maxx. Hull Property Group owns the mall.

Greenwood Mall
LocationGreenwood, South Carolina, United States
Opening dateAugust 8, 1979 (1979-08-08)
Previous namesCrosscreek Mall
DeveloperJim Wilson and Associates
OwnerHull Property Group
No. of stores and services16 (2022)
No. of anchor tenants4 (2 open, 2 Vacant)
Total retail floor area350,000 sq ft (33,000 m2)[1]
No. of floors1
Websiteshopgreenwoodmall.com

History

Jim Wilson and Associates had first proposed to build a shopping mall in Greenwood, South Carolina in 1973 and acquired land for it that year. Although the firm had negotiated with Sears, that retailer decided against building a store in Greenwood and thus delayed plans. Despite this, Jim Wilson and Associates continued to develop the mall, which opened for business on August 8, 1979. Chosen as anchor stores for the mall were Belk, JCPenney, and Meyers-Arnold, a regional department store based out of Greenville, South Carolina.[2] Overall, the mall held space for over 38 stores in 350,000 square feet (33,000 m2) of retail space. It was the first major retail development along the Highway 72 bypass.[3] Among the original stores were Eckerd Drug, Waldenbooks, Thom McAn shoe store, Regis hair salon, Kay Jewelers, Baskin-Robbins, and Chick-fil-A.[2] In July 1981, Consolidated Theatres opened a movie theater within the mall.[4] This was followed two months later by the opening of H. J. Wilson Co., a catalog showroom chain which became the mall's fourth anchor store.[5] Despite having previously declined to build a store at the mall, Sears moved into Greenwood Mall in 1982 with a smaller format store which only featured appliances, home improvement items, and catalog sales. According to representatives of Sears, it was their first catalog store to be located within a mall in the Southern United States.[6]

The mall underwent two changes in anchor stores in the 1980s. H. J. Wilson chain was sold to Service Merchandise in 1985 and all stores converted.[7] Two years later, the Meyers-Arnold chain sold all of its stores to Uptons of Atlanta, Georgia.[8]

In 1999, the mall's then-manager, Gil Sampson, addressed concerns from tenants that the mall was experiencing high vacancy, particularly with the then-impending closure of Service Merchandise due to bankruptcy. At the time, he stated that most of the vacancies were smaller local tenants, and that the mall had recently gained national chain stores such as Bath & Body Works. A directory published the same year indicated eight vacant spaces out of forty-seven.[9] Uptons also went out of business in 1999, creating further vacancies at the mall.[10]

Hull Storey Gibson (now Hull Property Group) purchased the mall from Jim Wilson and Associates in January 2000.[11] Eckerd Drug closed a month later, indicating that chain's move toward free-standing locations.[12] Hull renamed the property to Greenwood Mall in 2003 and announced renovation plans that same year. These included the installation of new lighting fixtures and reconstruction of the entryways.[13] The former location of Service Merchandise remained vacant until 2009, when it was converted to a call center for Sykes Enterprises.[14] Further renovations in 2009 included demolition of the theater, which had been operated by Carmike Cinemas but closed for several years prior. This was due to the theater's smaller size and Carmike's withdrawal from the market.[15] By year's end, the former Uptons space was re-tenanted by The Shoe Dept., a division of Shoe Show.[16]

In 2011, Hull renovated the mall even further. The Shoe Dept. relocated into the JCPenney wing, displacing several smaller stores and re-branding as Shoe Dept. Encore in the process. In addition, the previous location of The Shoe Dept. became TJ Maxx, while The Children's Place, rue21, and a Michaels craft store were also added.[17] Despite these additions, the mall continued to experience a number of vacancies. In particular, Chick-fil-A relocated out of the mall in 2015 in favor of a standalone location in the parking lot. Hull Property Group covered up vacant storefronts with murals featuring pictures of the area, and representatives noted they were undergoing studies for the mall's long-term viability.[18]

Further closures ensued in the 2010s. Sykes closed its call center at the mall in 2018.[19] A year later, the JCPenney at Greenwood Mall was one of twenty-seven closed that year by the chain due to unprofitability.[20] At the same time, other tenants within the mall noticed a decline in traffic, particularly due to the departure of JCPenney and the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.[21] Michaels closed in 2021, increasing vacancy even further.[22] In August 2022, Greenwood Charter Academy purchased the former Sykes Enterprises location with the intent of converting it to a charter school.[23]

References
  1. Directory of major malls. MJJTM Publications Corp. 1990. p. 562.
  2. Leslie Brooks (August 7, 1979). "Crosscreek Mall will open Wednesday". The Index-Journal. pp. 1, 2. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  3. "Crosscreek Mall is home for 38 stores". The Index-Journal. August 7, 1979. p. 18. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  4. "Film-cutting at theater complex". The Index-Journal. July 17, 1981. p. 24. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  5. "Wilson's opens store in Crosscreek Mall". The Index-Journal. September 24, 1981. p. 15. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  6. "Sears to open new store in Crosscreek Mall Thursday". The Index-Journal. February 6, 1982. p. 6. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  7. Kellerhalls, Merle D. (May 15, 1985). "Service Merchandise buys Wilson's". The News and Courier. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  8. "Meyers-Arnold sales pending". The Index-Journal. June 7, 1987. pp. 5C. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  9. Charlee Marshall (August 25, 1999). "Measuring the mall: Occupants' feelings are mixed". The Index-Journal. pp. 1C, 2C. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  10. Bob Simmonds (December 17, 1999). "Mall trying to fill voids". The Index-Journal. pp. 1A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  11. "Crosscreek Mall has new owners". The Index-Journal. January 12, 2000. pp. 1A, 4A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  12. Bob Simmonds (February 23, 2000). "Eckerd closing Crosscreek Mall store". The Index-Journal. pp. 1A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  13. "Greenwood Mall facing many changes". The Index-Journal. November 18, 2003. pp. 2A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  14. Chris Trainor (August 7, 2009). "Sykes set to expand". The Index-Journal. pp. 1A, 9A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  15. Jennifer Colton (June 5, 2009). "New businesses on the way to mall". The Index-Journal. pp. 3A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  16. "The Shoe Dept. opens this week at mall". The Index-Journal. July 28, 2009. pp. 3A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  17. Chris Trainor (March 22, 2011). "TJ Maxx coming to mall". The Index-Journal. pp. 1A, 4A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  18. Mary Kate McGowan (October 9, 2015). "Mall's empty stores don't discourage owners". The Index-Journal. pp. 1A, 4A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  19. "Sykes of Greenwood is closing". Greenwood Calendar. July 17, 2018. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  20. Adam Benson (February 28, 2019). "JCPenney to close Greenwood location". The Index-Journal. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  21. James Hicks (July 20, 2020). "Mall stores see dropoff in business after face mask requirement". The Index-Journal. pp. 1A, 4A. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  22. "Michaels in Greenwood closing". The Index-Journal. February 12, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  23. Lindsey Hodges (August 25, 2022). "Greenwood Charter Academy purchases property at Greenwood Mall". The Index-Journal. Retrieved November 17, 2022.

34.21°N 82.18°W / 34.21; -82.18

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