Westmount Mall
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Westmount Mall | |
| Mall facts and statistics | |
|---|---|
| Location | London, Ontario, Canada |
| Opening date | 1973 |
| Developer | Sifton Properties |
| Management | Bentall Retail Services |
| No. of stores and services | 130 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 4 |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Website | [1] |
Westmount Shopping Centre or also referred to as Westmount Mall is a shopping centre located in London, Ontario. It is located at the northwest corner of Wonderland Road and Viscount Road.
[edit] History
In the late 1960's, London housing developers Sifton began planning for a massive residential community in the southwest area of the city. The subdivision named Westmount was to be the largest planned community in London with over 30,000 residents. It would combine high-density residential apartments with low-density houses and townhomes. Also, recreational facilities including an outdoor pool and parks would be built.
The centerpiece of the community would be a commercial shopping mall. Westmount Mall's first phase opened originally in 1971 with 15 stores including a Dominion and Shoppers Drug Mart.
In 1973, the mall expanded again and became fully enclosed with about 50 additional retailers, with Horizon as the main anchor. With this expansion, Westmount was the largest shopping centre in London, narrowly beating out the recently built White Oaks Mall.
In 1978, Horizon was closed and converted into an Eaton's department store.
[edit] Expansion
By the mid 1980's, Westmount lost its title as London's largest mall with the opening of Masonville Place. It was soon after decided that a major reconstruction would take place. The mall would be completely rebuilt as a two storey mall, with underground parking and over 160 retailers. Construction began 1987 and was finished in 1989. The newly-rebuilt mall featured a Zellers, A&P, food court and enlarged Eaton's store.
In 1998, a six-screen Cineplex Odeon was added to the second floor.
By 1999, Eaton's was closed due to bankruptcy and subsequently converted into a Sears department store.
[edit] Downturn
By the early 2000's, however, Westmount's fortunes experienced a slump. Vacancy rates in the mall took a sharp increase as 30 stores slowly left the mall. Many blame these factors on the construction of big box retailers in the area, in particular along Wonderland Road. Others feel thats it is the massive size of the mall (built for upwards of 160 retailers) and poor location that are the problem.
Recent ideas on what to do with the vacant space include converting the upper level of the mall into office space, while leaving the main floor for retail. Another idea is to tear down a portion of the mall and rebuild it for other use.
