Totem Lake Mall
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| Totem Lake Mall | |
| Facts and statistics | |
|---|---|
| Location | Kirkland, Washington |
| Opening date | 1973-1974 |
| Owner | Developers Diversified Realty Corporation |
| No. of stores and services | 10 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 4 |
| No. of floors | 2 |
Totem Lake Mall is a small shopping mall in Kirkland, Washington, United States. Originally called the Totem Lake Center, Although the opening of the mall was originally scheduled for April 1st 1973,[1] the first stores in the mall opened on May 2nd[2], and the rest of the lower mall opened on May 31st 1973.[3] The mall's Lamonts Anchor tenant/department store was still under construction at the time, and would not open until October 17 of that year.[4] Construction of the separate Eastern portion of the mall continued into 1974, and the East Mall was opened in July of 1974. The adjacent Totem Lake Cinemas opened in 1980. The center consists of an enclosed shopping mall (Lower Mall), and an adjacent strip mall (Upper Mall). Collectively, the two centers are sometimes referred to as "Totem Lake Malls".
Major tenants in the Lower Mall are Cartoys, Ross Dress for Less, Old Country Buffet, Sleep Country USA and Famous Footwear. The last smaller tenant in the Lower Mall is a Christian bookstore, although spaces in the lower mall are occasionally used by short-term and seasonal tenants. The majority of the Lower Mall is completely vacant. The Upper Mall includes Guitar Center, Trader Joe's, and Big 5 Sporting Goods.
It should be noted that the majority of these tenants are only accessible on the outside, shying away from the interior mall concept popular throughout the 1960s-1990s. Other malls in the Seattle - Tacoma area such as Northgate Mall and Lakewood Towne Center have switched to this concept as well, having tenants on the outside as well as the inside.
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[edit] Troubles
The mall has been struggling financially and facing a "steady loss of tenants" since the early 2000s.[5] The mall has been described as a "white elephant".[6]
The main mall has many vacant spaces where anchor tenants used to be, such as Lamonts (later Gottschalks). In November of 2006, the Rite Aid drugstore moved out of the mall to a free standing location up the street. And Comp USA closed in May 2007. As of July 2007, the mall interior has only two major retailers: Sleep Country USA, and a Christian bookstore.
Letter scars (where the name of a store was displayed) still clearly indicate where many former stores were, such as Gottschalks, Radio Shack, Rite Aid, Comp USA and Grab Bag (a party supply store). The Sweet Shop (a candy store), still has signs up, despite being closed for a few years. Even a partial logo from Jay Jacobs, a local boutique that closed 10 years ago, is visible. Although the decor of the mall was originally themed in the style of a Native American long house, The current interior decor of the mall is from the 1980s with a newer tile floor from the late 1990s.
[edit] Sale and Redevelopment
In January of 2004, the mall was sold by CalPERS to Developers Diversified Realty (DDR) for $37 million. DDR has discussed plans to tear it down and redevelop a multistory, mixed residential-retail complex.[7][8] As of February 2008, the City of Kirkland has not received an application for design review and does not know the planned mix of tenants, although the city did receive a conceptual master plan.[9]
[edit] Anchors
[edit] Lower Mall
- Ross Dress For Less (29,172 sq. ft.)
- Cartoys
- Old Country Buffet
- Famous Footwear
[edit] Upper Mall
- Big 5 Sporting Goods (12,000 sq. ft.)
- Guitar Center (20,216 sq. ft.)
- Trader Joe's (9,500 sq. ft.)
- Denny's Pet World
[edit] Popular Culture
Matt Harding from the Internet Phenomenon, "Where the Hell is Matt?" dance videos, states in his website FAQ:
What’s your least favorite (place)?
"The Totem Lake Shopping Center in Kirkland, Washington. It’s the most depressing place I’ve ever been. I almost didn’t make it out. I think it might be some kind of gateway to the netherworld."
[edit] References
- ^ "April 1 opening scheduled for Totem Lake Center". East Side Journal, January 10, 1973, p. 23
- ^ "Grand opening held for some at Totem Lake Center", East Side Journal May 9, 1973, P. B1
- ^ "Totem Center Ribbon Cut". East Side Journal, June 6, 1973, P. A6
- ^ "Lamonts Opens Today at Totem Lake", East Side Journal, October 17, 1973, p. A1
- ^ Kristina Shevory. "Totem Lake Mall seeing steady loss of tenants", Seattle Times, May 19, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Rachel Tuinstra. "Kirkland at 100 — The Future: A turning point in growth", Seattle Times, June 29, 2005. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Totem Lake Mall development plans. City of Kirkland.
- ^ Nick Perry. "Housing studied for Totem Lake Mall", Seattle Times, January 27, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Totem Lake Mall Conceptual Master Plan. Developers Diversified Realty (November 7, 2005).
