North DeKalb Mallwas an enclosedshopping malllocated in unincorporatedDeKalb County,nearDecatur,a suburb ofAtlanta, Georgia,United States.Opened in 1965, the center currently comprises more than eighty-five stores on one level. The sole remaininganchor storeisMarshalls.That store and anAMCmultiplex theater will remain. The rest of the mall was demolished in the summer of 2024 and will be replaced with a mixed-use development called Lulah Hills.[1]
 North DeKalb Mall in 2007 | |
 | |
| Location | NearDecatur, Georgia,U.S. |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 33°48′31″N84°16′34″W/ 33.80861°N 84.27611°W |
| Opening date | July 29, 1965 |
| Closing date | October 1, 2020 |
| Developer | Scott Development |
| Owner | Lennar& Sterling Organization |
| No. of stores and services | 85+ |
| No. ofanchor tenants | 3 (1 open, 2 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 635,000 square feet (59,000 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
| Website | northdekalbmall |
History
editOriginally and formerly called North DeKalb Center, the mall was designed by Barrett + Associates, Architects, and first opened July 29, 1965, with fifty-four stores; original anchor stores included Atlanta-based department storeRich's,and aWoolworthdime store.[2]
Plans for the extension of theStone Mountain Freewayin the late 1960s would have led to the demolition of the mall, but werenever put into effect.
In 1986, North DeKalb Mall was expanded and renovated with two new anchor stores: department store chainsMervyn'sand discount chainLechmere.[3]The mall was renamed Market Square at North DeKalb at this time.[4]
Lechmere closed in 1989 and was replaced with the discount pharmacy chainPhar-Mor,[5]which closed in 1992 and was eventually replaced with a movie theater andRhodes Furniture.
Mervyns shuttered all of its Georgia locations in 1997; the store at North DeKalb was replaced by anUptons,which closed in 1999, then it becameBurlington.Stein Martwas added in the early 1990s, replacing a portion of a mall wing which once housed a Spinnaker's restaurant, a Bonanza Steakhouse and smaller mall stores.Old Navywas also added but later closed, becomingRoss Dress for Less.Rhodes Furniture was later Shoder Furniture for a short time before becoming Marshalls in 2010. A furniture store also replaced the old Stein Mart.
Hendon Properties, which bought the mall for $25 million (USD) in 2003, planned on bringing aCostcoto the mall.[6]
On May 15, 2014,Lennarin partnership with Sterling Organization, purchased the mall for an undisclosed amount, with plans to convert the enclosed portion to an open-air concept.[7]
In the spring of 2016, the Macy's anchor closed.[8]North DeKalb Mall has since become the 'almost' mall of DeKalb County with Costco 'almost' becoming a store anchor for nearly a decade.[9]The mall's primary traffic stems fromEmory Universityemployees who use North DeKalb Mall's vast parking lots as a temporary location for ride sharing into the University. This along with limited traffic from the AMC movie theater has helped keep the mall from going completely under.
The 2018Clint EastwoodfilmThe Mulehad scenes shot in the parking lot of the mall.
By 2019, multiple vacant storefronts in the North DeKalb Mall in Georgia were now renovated so that they could be used for filming theFear StreetTrilogy.[10][11]Casual Corner,Software Etc.,B. Dalton Bookseller,MusiclandandGadzookswere placed. As of October 1, 2020, North DeKalb Mall had officially closed its doors due to poor sales and the impact of theCOVID-19 pandemic.Marshalls and AMC Theatres remain open.
In 2019, the property was sold to Edens, which plans to develop the site into a mixed use facility.[12]In February 2022, local journalists obtained preliminary site plans in a public records request.[13]
Parts of the mall were used in 2021 for the filming of the live actionLoud HousefilmA Loud House Christmas.[citation needed]
North DeKalb Mall was demolished and is being redeveloped as Lulah Hills by commercial real estate developer Edens.[14]Demolition began in June 2024.[15]
References
edit- ^"Demolition on North DeKalb Mall to start soon, press conference scheduled".13 June 2024.
- ^Mills, Linda (July 29, 1965). "New North DeKalb Center Opens Today".Dekalb New Era.
- ^"Expansion planned for North DeKalb Mall".Nl.newsbank.Retrieved2016-12-03.
- ^National Real Estate Investor.Communication Channels, Incorporated. 1986-05-01.
- ^"Phar-Mor to be new anchor at DeKalb's Market Square".Nl.newsbank.Retrieved2016-12-03.
- ^"Costco may bulk up locally with two new stores - Atlanta Business Chronicle".Atlanta Business Chronicle.Retrieved2016-05-10.
- ^"Lennar, Sterling buy North DeKalb Mall".American City Business Journals.May 15, 2014.
- ^Duncan, Todd C."Macy's at North DeKalb Mall to close in spring".The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- ^"Waiting for Costco? Plans for North DeKalb Mall remain murky".21 February 2017.
- ^Whisenhunt, Dan (April 23, 2019)."North DeKalb Mall lives again on the big screen".Decaturish.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
- ^Capelouto, J. D. (May 3, 2019)."New Findings: North DeKalb Mall is so empty, it's become a hot spot for filming".The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
- ^Hansen, Zachary (May 3, 2019)."North DeKalb Mall sold for potential mixed-use redevelopment".The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.RetrievedSeptember 27,2021.
- ^Whisenhunt, Dan (2022-02-08)."Records reveal possible site plan for North DeKalb Mall redevelopment".Decaturish.Retrieved2022-03-25.
- ^Whisenhunt, Dan (2023-05-15)."North DeKalb Mall gets a new name as part of redevelopment, demolition to begin later this year".Decaturish - Locally sourced news.Retrieved2023-08-23.
- ^https://decaturish /2024/06/start-of-north-dekalb-mall-demolition-draws-out-politicians-mixed-emotions-and-memories/[bare URL]