Wikipedia

Exton Square Mall

Exton Square Mallis ashopping malllocated in theExton, PennsylvaniainWest Whiteland TownshipinChester County,Pennsylvania.The mall features a parking garage and food court. It is located at the crossroads of Chester County at the intersection ofU.S. Route 30 BusinessandPennsylvania Route 100.The mall is anchored byMacy'sandBoscov'sretail stores and aRound One Entertainment,an arcade and bowling center.

Exton Square Mall
Exton Square Mall logo
Exton Square Mall interior, 2017
Map
LocationExton, Pennsylvania,United States
Coordinates40°01′53″N75°37′25″W/ 40.0314°N 75.6236°W/40.0314; -75.6236
Address260 Exton Square Parkway
Opening dateMarch 1973[1]
DeveloperThe Rouse Company
ManagementPREIT
OwnerPREIT
No. of stores and services15+
No. ofanchor tenants3
Total retail floor area1,086,859 sq ft (100,973 m2)[2]
No. of floors1-2
ParkingParking lot,parking garage
Public transit accessBus transportSEPTAbus:135,204at the Exton Transportation Center
Websiteextonsquare

The Exton Square Mall is shaped as a square with the southern half of the mall two floors and the northern half one floor. Macy's is located at the center of the mall while the other anchor stores and the food court are on corners of the mall. It is owned byPREIT.

As of 2023, the facility has been cited among lists of "dead malls"in Pennsylvania,[3]although the Exton Square Mall Carnival remains a popular event.[4]The mall is 62% occupied as of April 2024.[5]It contains a handful[dubious–discuss]of small stores and a food court, which only has two tenants remaining: Pennsylvania's firstChick-Fil-Aand a local pizza parlor.

PREIT is considering a sale of the dying shopping mall,[6]and has ceased investing in the "non-core" property. Plans for redevelopment have surfaced in recent months.[7]

Location

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Location of Exton Square Mall

The Exton Square Mall is located in the unincorporated community ofExtoninWest Whiteland Township, Pennsylvaniaat the northeast corner of the intersection between east-westUS 30 Bus.and north-southPA 100.[8]The intersection between US 30 Bus. and PA 100 is known as "the crossroads of Chester County".[9]The mall is located near theUS 30bypass of Exton, theUS 202expressway, and thePennsylvania Turnpike.[2]Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority(SEPTA) bus routes135and204stop at the mall at the Exton Transportation Center, providing access toWest Chester,Coatesville,Eagleview,andPaoli.[10][11]The mall is also near theExton stationthat is served by thePaoli/Thorndale LineofSEPTA Regional RailandAmtrak'sKeystone ServiceandPennsylvanian.[10]The Exton Square Mall has a market area that covers most of Chester County along with the western portion ofDelaware County,the western portion ofMontgomery CountynearPottstown,the extreme southern portion ofBerks County,and the extreme eastern portion ofLancaster County.[12]

History

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The Exton Square Mall was built byThe Rouse Companyand opened its doors in March 1973.[1]The mall had one anchor store,Strawbridge & Clothier,surrounded by a ring of smaller stores.[1][13]It was also home to Pennsylvania's firstChick-fil-Arestaurant which opened in 1973 and is part of the food court today.[14]In developing the Exton Square Mall, The Rouse Company was responsible for restoring theZook House,a historic 18th century farmhouse that existed at the site of the mall.[15]

By the 1990s, the mall, which had no major renovations, was starting to show its age, leading to plans for expansion.[13]In 1992, the mall proposed adding two anchor stores.[16]In 1995, plans were made by The Rouse Company to expand the Exton Square Mall, in which the size of the mall would be doubled. The Rouse Company purchased 12 acres near the mall to be used for the expansion.[17]Boscov'sandJCPenneysigned leases to open locations at the Exton Square Mall in 1996 withSearsfollowing in 1997.[18][19]In September 1997, West Whiteland Township supervisors approved the expansion of the Exton Square Mall.[20]

Food court entrance of Exton Square Mall in 2008

Groundbreaking for the expansion took place in December 1997.[13]In 1998, the Zook House, which had served as the mall management office, was relocated to make way for the new Boscov's store.[21]The expansion added three new anchor stores, a new food court, twoparking garages,and a completed second level.[1]The expanded mall was designed to reflect the agricultural heritage of Chester County.[13]In addition to expanding the mall, The Rouse Company improved US 30 Bus. and PA 100 near the mall at a cost of $3 million.[22]Boscov's, Sears, and the new food court opened in 1999.[23]Construction concluded in May 2000 with the opening of JCPenney and 48 new stores; a grand reopening was held to commemorate this. The expansion of the mall cost $125 million. The number of stores in the Exton Square Mall increased from 95 to 150 and retail space expanded from 435,000 square feet (40,413 m2) to 980,000 square feet (91,045 m2). The expansion turned the Exton Square Mall into the first regional mall in Chester County.[1]

In 2003, The Rouse Company sold the Exton Square Mall along with theCherry Hill Mall,Echelon Mall,Moorestown Mall,Plymouth Meeting Mall,andThe Gallery at Market Eastto PREIT for $548 million.[24]In 2005,Federated Department StorespurchasedMay Department Stores,the owners of Strawbridge's, and planned to convert several Strawbridge's locations toMacy's,including the store at Exton Square Mall. Strawbridge's became Macy's in 2006.[25]In January 2014,Main Line Healthopened a 32,000-square-foot (2,973 m2) healthcare facility on the first floor.[26][27]

On January 15, 2014, it was announced that the JCPenney store would be closing as part of a plan to close 33 locations nationwide.[28]With the closure of JCPenney, PREIT announced plans to reposition the Exton Square Mall. As part of the redevelopment, PREIT would take over theKmartoutparcel in 2016.[27]On July 29, 2015, PREIT announced that they would demolish the Kmart outparcel and replace it withWhole Foods Market.[29][30]Whole Foods Market opened on January 18, 2018.[31]In addition,Round One Entertainmentopened a bowling and entertainment center in the first floor of the former JCPenney on December 9, 2016.[32]In 2017, the Sears Auto Center closed. On July 14, 2019, it was announced that the Sears store would also be closing. The store closed in September 2019. On May 13, 2021, a COVID-19 vaccination clinic opened in the former Sears building.

Decline and redevelopment

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Lower hallway, August 2024

In recent years, the Exton Square Mall has seen an increase in the vacancy rate, due to declining mall traffic and ongoing competition from the largerKing of Prussiamall located 14 miles (23 km) away. Some former stores and tenants such as LensCrafters, Banana Republic, and Saladworks moved to Main Street at Exton, a nearby open-air shopping mall. Other tenants such as CharlotteRusse, Zumiez, H&M, and all but two food court tenants have departed from the mall. In 2019, the non-anchor occupancy rate at Exton Square Mall was 65.1%. Many of the stores in the mall are non-traditional tenants such as medical offices, a chess club, an art studio and gallery, and a chamber of commerce office.[33]In Spring 2022, it was announced that a store-within-a-store styleToys R Uswill open on the lower level of Macy's, but these plans never materialized.

It was announced on March 15, 2022 that PREIT will sell the Exton Square Mall to raise money to pay down their debt.[34]The sale to Brandywine Realty Trust subsequently fell through, for unknown reasons.

The mall has multiple major roof leaks, particularly by the lower Macy's entrances. Buckets and cones can be found throughout the facility, and mold is to be seen on decaying ceiling panels and around air vents. Additionally, the building's central air conditioning system appears to have broken sometime in July 2024, as the temperature within the mall reflects the exterior climate. Plug-in industrial fans are seen circulating air throughout the complex, though particularly in the food court area. There do not appear to be any plans to repair or restart the mall's HVAC equipment.

Main staircase with water buckets visible in the background, August 2024
Water buckets above a major roof leak, August 2024

As of August 2024, additional stores have departed from the mall, many of which still contain trace amounts of inventory and other miscellaneous items. Multiple storefronts have lights on and signs up, but no merchandise within. Additionally, the first floor seating area and Community Room by the Boscov's are in disarray, with planters in random locations by the former service desk and random miscellaneous items such as Elevator Closed signs and a Sears shopping cart filled with fire extinguishers inside of the Community Room.

Stores and facilities

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Exton Square Mall interior in 2024

The Exton Square Mall contains threeanchor stores.The largest isMacy's,which is 181,200 square feet (16,834 m2) in area and opened with the mall in 1973 as Strawbridge & Clothier (laterStrawbridge's) before becoming Macy's in 2006.[2][13][25]The second largest isBoscov's,which is 178,000 square feet (16,537 m2) in area and opened in 1999 as part of a mall expansion.[2][23]The third largest a vacant anchor spot last occupied bySears,which is 144,301 square feet (13,406 m2) in area and also opened in 1999 as part of the mall expansion.[2][23]Sears closed in September 2019. There is also a 118,000-square-foot (10,963 m2) anchor spot used byRound One Entertainmentsince 2016.[32]It originally opened asJCPenney2000 as part of the mall expansion, but closed in 2014.[1][2][28]Round One only occupies the lower level and the upper level remains vacant.

In addition to the anchor stores, the mall has dozens of smaller stores.[35][2]The mall also contains afood courtwith 13 spaces. The mall is shaped as a square, with the first floor looping around the southern half of the mall and the second floor looping around the whole mall. Macy's is located in the center of the square, with the former Sears at the northwest corner, the food court at the northeast corner, Boscov's at the southwest corner, and Round One Entertainment at the southeast corner.[35]

The Exton Square Mall complex also contains several facilities including theChester County Libraryat Exton, theExton Transportation Centerwith connections to theKing of Prussiamall, and medical facilities. TheMain Line Healthat Exton Square is located within the mall betweenMacy'sandBoscov's.[36]The design of the facility is similar to buildings where physician practices are grouped together.[37]

Anchors and stores

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Anchors

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Current stores

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Former Anchors

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Former Stores

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Economic impact

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The opening of the Exton Square Mall coincided with rapid growth in West Whiteland Township, with the population increasing from 7,900 in 1973 to over 16,000 by 2000. Since the opening, many shopping centers and office parks have been built in the township. Following the opening of the mall, the West Whiteland Township Police Department was created to patrol the township as the demand from the mall would be too much for thePennsylvania State Policeto handle.[9]When the Exton Square Mall first opened, several stores in downtown West Chester closed.[38]In 2011, the Exton Square Mall sawsales per square footof $332.

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On September 10, 2015, directorKevin Smithannounced that the Exton Square Mall would be used in the filming ofMallBrats,the sequel to his 1995 filmMallrats.MallBratswas originally intended to be filmed at theGranite Run Mall,but the plan fell through due to that mall's impending demolition.[39]In February 2017, plans for filmingMallBratswere cancelled.[40]

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  • The food court
  • The playground in front of the former Sears
  • The water fountain in front ofMacy's
  • Boscov's main entrance
  • Round One EntertainmentandMain Line Healthoccupies the area close to the formerJCPenneystore
  • Section of the mall that expanded in 1997-1999 from one to two levels. The old layout only had a lower level with the escalators going up to a higher one-level section. After 1999, the section in front of the escalators expanded to two floors.
  • Prior to 1997, this section of the mall only had the lower floor. The upper floor was added and opened after 1999, which included JCPenney, Sears, andBoscov's.

References

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  1. ^abcdefWeidener, Susan (May 3, 2000)."Exton Square Mall Settles Into Its Space After More Than A Year, Work Is Complete".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon December 22, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  2. ^abcdefg"Exton Square Mall Fact Sheet"(PDF).preit.PREIT.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on December 10, 2006.RetrievedDecember 21,2006.
  3. ^https:// abc27 /pennsylvania/malls-that-are-considered-dead-in-pennsylvania/[bare URL]
  4. ^"Powers Great American Midways".
  5. ^"PREIT's Exton Square Mall Might Go up for Sale as New Ownership Weighs its Future".
  6. ^"PREIT, under new leadership, weighing sale of Exton Square and other malls - SRA: Suburban Realtors Alliance".
  7. ^"PREIT's New Leadership Keeps Exton Square Mall on List of Properties for Sale".13 April 2024.
  8. ^Chester County, Pennsylvania(Map) (17th ed.). 1 "=2000'.ADC Map.2006.ISBN0-87530-778-7.
  9. ^ab"The West Whiteland Township Police Department History".West Whiteland Township. Archived fromthe originalon December 16, 2012.RetrievedMarch 12,2012.
  10. ^ab"Route 135 bus map"(PDF).SEPTA.RetrievedAugust 1,2021.
  11. ^"Route 204 bus map"(PDF).SEPTA.RetrievedMarch 12,2012.
  12. ^"Exton Square Mall Property Overview".PREIT.Archived fromthe originalon December 8, 2011.RetrievedMarch 12,2012.
  13. ^abcdeWeidener, Susan (December 21, 1997)."Exton Mall Poised For Leap Into A Big Future Four Years In The Planning, The Expansion Of The 24-year-old Shopping Center Has Begun. The $100 Million Project Will Triple The Size Of The Complex".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon February 2, 2014.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  14. ^Rovins, Donna (November 13, 2019)."New Chick-fil-A opens in Chesco, first free-standing location for operator".The Mercury.RetrievedNovember 13,2019.
  15. ^"Zook House/Exton Meadows Construction: c. 1750".West Whiteland Township Historical Commission.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  16. ^Ashby, Georgia S. (March 15, 1992)."More Mall Exton Square Wants To Add 2 Anchors".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon September 12, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  17. ^Weidener, Susan (July 27, 1995)."Mall Plans To Double In Size Exton Square Mall Wants To Bring High-end Retailers Into The Market".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon September 19, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  18. ^Weidener, Susan and Rachael Smolkin (July 31, 1996)."Exton Mall Signs Penney's, Boscov's The Center Will Nearly Triple In Size. It's A Coup In The Battle By Two Developers To Build A Chesco Regional Mall".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon February 21, 2014.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  19. ^Weidener, Susan (February 28, 1997)."Exton Mall Developer Says Sears To Be Fourth Anchor It Would Open In 1999 As Rouse Triples The Shopping Area. The Deal May Doom A Rival Proposal By Kravco".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon October 17, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  20. ^Weidener, Susan (September 10, 1997)."Expansion Of Exton Square Approved West Whiteland Supervisors Unanimously Endorsed The $100 Million Mall Project".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon January 31, 2013.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  21. ^Weidener, Susan (August 3, 1998)."Archaeology Precedes Zook House's Move The Grounds Are Providing History. The Home Will Be Relocated For Mall Expansion".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon September 22, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  22. ^Weidener, Susan (April 6, 1999)."Exton Square Road Project Looms".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon January 4, 2016.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  23. ^abcWeidener, Susan (September 28, 1999)."A Milestone For Mall Project Due Friday At Exton Square: New Store And More Parking".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon September 21, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  24. ^Cooper, Porus P. (March 7, 2003)."Rouse sells six malls for $548 million".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon December 23, 2015.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  25. ^abTanaka, Wendy (July 29, 2005)."Strawbridge's stores to be sold, converted New owner will change 10 to Macy's. Boscov's wants to buy others. New owners plan to sell, convert Strawbridge's".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon January 31, 2013.RetrievedMarch 11,2012.
  26. ^Freeman, Matt (March 3, 2013)."Main Line Health to open center in Exton Mall".Main Line Suburban Life.RetrievedAugust 30,2022.
  27. ^abVan Allen, Peter (January 17, 2014)."With Penney's closing, PREIT will reposition Exton Square".Philadelphia Business Journal.RetrievedJanuary 23,2014.
  28. ^ab"Here's A List Of The J.C. Penney Stores That Are Closing".The Huffington Post.January 15, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 16,2014.
  29. ^Adelman, Jacob (July 31, 2015)."PREIT to demolish Exton Square's Kmart, add organic grocery store".The Philadelphia Inquirer.Archived fromthe originalon December 24, 2015.RetrievedAugust 10,2015.
  30. ^"PREIT Announces Whole Foods Market Will Join Exton Square Mall".CNNMoney. PR Newswire. August 3, 2015.RetrievedAugust 10,2015.
  31. ^Mccullough, Brian (January 17, 2018)."Whole Foods prepares for Thursday opening in Exton; still no date for Newtown Square store".Delaware County Daily Times.RetrievedJanuary 29,2018.
  32. ^abAdelman, Jacob (December 5, 2016)."Exton Square department-store space is turning Japanese, as mall-entertainment company expands".The Philadelphia Inquirer.RetrievedDecember 11,2016.
  33. ^Levine-Weinberg, Adam (September 10, 2019)."Will PREIT's Worst Malls Die -- or Will They Evolve?".The Motley Fool.RetrievedOctober 19,2019.
  34. ^Kostelini, Natalie (March 15, 2022)."PREIT to sell Exton Square Mall as it tries to raise funds to pay down debt".Philadelphia Business Journal.RetrievedMarch 15,2022.
  35. ^ab"Exton Square Mall Directory"(PDF).PREIT.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on December 16, 2011.RetrievedMarch 12,2012.
  36. ^"Exton Square Mall".
  37. ^"New Main Line Health Center at Exton Square opens<".14 January 2014.
  38. ^Whyte, William H. and Paco Underhill (1988).City: Rediscovering the Center.Doubleday.p. 337.ISBN9780812220742.RetrievedMarch 12,2012.
  39. ^Lindak, Virginia (September 10, 2015)."MallBrats movie shooting happening in Exton".Daily Local News.West Chester, PA.RetrievedNovember 21,2015.
  40. ^McCullough, Brian (February 19, 2017)."Exton Square Mall shakes off loss of 'Mallrats' sequel".Daily Local News.West Chester, PA.RetrievedJanuary 29,2018.
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