Salem Mall

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Salem Mall was the first enclosed shopping center in the Dayton, Ohio area. It was located at the intersection of Shiloh Springs Road and Salem Avenue, in the northwest Dayton suburb of Trotwood. The center opened in 1966, and in its early stages had 60 retailers. The original mall was anchored by the Rike's and Sears department stores. There was also a Liberal supermarket and a multi-screen cinema.

A large-scale renovation was completed in the early 1980s, with the center atrium and supermarket being torn out. They were replaced by a large food court and a two-story concourse, with a new J.C. Penney anchor store at its end. The mall, which by that time featured over 110 retailers, was prosperous throughout the remainder of the 1980s. However, crime had been a long time problem, and it only escalated in the late 1980s.

The Salem Avenue corridor, and the City of Trotwood in general, had been in a state of suburban blight since the late 1970s. By the mid 1980's the blight was finally affecting the Salem Mall's ability to attract new tenants, renew existing leases, and most importantly, attract serious shoppers. Another factor to consider is Trotwood's and The Salem Mall's lack of immediate proximity to major expressways. Suburban towns and malls without immediate access suffer in comparison to malls like The Dayton Mall, Fairfield Commons and The Greene which are all located at major expressway interchanges.

By the mid-late 1990s, the Salem Mall was officially considered a dead mall. In 1997, anchor store Lazarus left the mall, and later that year J.C. Penney also closed. The restaurants and the Lowes Cinema also went out of business, leaving Sears and a newly-built Home Depot as the only anchors.

Demolition of The Salem Mall began on May 15, 2006. Sears is the only part of the original structure that remains. The area is being redeveloped as the Landmark Town Center, an upscale, open-air, "lifestyle" complex, intended to resemble the Easton Commons in Columbus. The new center, replacing the old Salem Mall, has suffered delays and its completion date has been extended indefinitely.