Westgate Mall (Fairview Park)

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Westgate Mall has existed as a preferred Greater Cleveland shopping center in some form since the mid-1950s. Located at the intersection of West 210th Street and Center Ridge Road in Fairview Park, Ohio at the boundary of Rocky River, Ohio, it is currently under redevelopment once again.

[edit] History

Originally built several years after the close of World War II, the first Westgate shopping center opened in 1954 as one of the first postwar suburban retail centers with department store anchors in the United States. The original anchors of what was then an open-air plaza was Halle Bros. Co., Higbee's, Kroger Supermarket and Federal Department Stores. Eventually, Higbee's took over the Federal space, while the center was roofed over in the late 1960s. 1972 saw the construction of a four-screen movie house operated by General Cinema Corporation. Halle's closed in 1982 when the chain went out of business.

In 1984, the Richard E. Jacobs Group, a Cleveland-based real estate developer, took ownership of the fading complex and began renovations and remerchandising to aim for the upper-income buyers surrounding the mall. The year saw the addition of Pittsburgh-based Joseph Horne Co. in the former Halle space and the Promenade Food Court, which was added to replace the original movie theatres. A new six-screen cineplex was built behind the mall on its own wing, near the Higbee's Home Store.

The 1990s saw another decline of the complex as newer facilities like Westfield Great Northern Mall in nearby and far-flung suburbs, a revitalized Downtown Cleveland and a recession-battered economy took its toll. Higbee's was taken over by Dillard's in 1992, which then bought out the Horne's store, creating a unique three-unit operation with ladies apparel in the north store, men's & children's items and housewares in the south wing and furniture & electronics in the outlying Home Store. Eventually, the Home Store was closed when Dillard's discontinued electronics and furniture in their Cleveland area locations. In 1996, Kohl's built a two-level store adjacent to the Promenade, which temporarily boosted the struggling mall's fortunes, but eventually the aging mall continued its downward trend. Many stores followed their customers to other locations or simply vanished due to their own corporate problems.

Dillard's closed both its stores at the end of March 2005. Almost immediately, the remaining mall stores began leaving. A major redevelopment was announced in late May to demolish the original components except for the Kohl's store and the freestanding restaurants and replace it with the popular lifestyle center concept. The new Westgate (minus the "mall") is expected to open in 2007 with 600,000 square feet of retail space as well as a new Target store.