The Mall of Monroe

The Mall of Monroe

Interior hallway in the Mall of Monroe
Location Frenchtown Charter Township, Michigan, United States
Coordinates 41°56′49″N 83°23′16″W / 41.94694°N 83.38778°WCoordinates: 41°56′49″N 83°23′16″W / 41.94694°N 83.38778°W
Address 2121 N. Monroe Street (M-125)
Opening date 1988
Developer Cafaro Company
Management Cafaro Company
No. of stores and services 50+
No. of anchor tenants 3
Total retail floor area GLA: 620,411 ft² (57,638 m²)[1]
No. of floors 1
Website Official website

The Mall of Monroe, formerly known as Frenchtown Square Mall, is an enclosed shopping mall in Frenchtown Charter Township, Michigan, just outside the city of Monroe, Michigan. Opened in 1988, it features more than fifty tenants, including a food court and movie theater. Anchor stores include Target, Pat Catan's, and two Carson's stores, with a vacant anchor last operated by Sears. The mall is managed by Cafaro Company of Youngstown, Ohio.

History

Exterior of the Mall of Monroe

Frenchtown Square Mall opened in 1988 on M-125 (Monroe Street) north of Monroe, in Frenchtown Charter Township. Its original anchor stores included the first Phar-Mor discount pharmacy in Michigan,[2] as well as JCPenney, Sears, Hills Department Store, and Elder-Beerman. Hills closed in 1993[3] and was replaced with Target, while the closure of Phar-Mor in 1995 made way for an Elder-Beerman home store,[4] as well as an OfficeMax which did not open out into the mall. Old Navy was eventually added as well.

OfficeMax closed in the early 2000s. JCPenney closed in 2004 and was replaced two years later by Steve & Barry's. The mall's Regal Cinemas movie theater complex was closed in August 2007, but re-opened three months later under the management of Phoenix Theatres.[5] Steve & Barry's closed in late 2008,[6] as did Old Navy. Sears announced the closure of the Mall of Monroe store in late 2011.[7]

Cafaro announced $2 million renovation plans for the mall in 2009.[8] Among the renovation plans, the former Old Navy was replaced with a clothing store called Wear District, and the mall was renamed The Mall of Monroe.[9] Also, both Elder-Beerman stores were re-branded as Carson's. rue21 and an expo center opened in 2013,[10] the latter replacing the former J.C. Penney. Planet Fitness replaced the vacant OfficeMax in 2014.[11] The expo center was closed in 2014 and replaced with a Pat Catan's craft store, which moved from an existing location in Monroe.[12] Target announced in late 2014 that it would close the Mall of Monroe store in early 2015.[13]

Frenchtown Square Partnership v. Lemstone, Inc.

In 2003, the mall partnership sued Lemstone Books, a Christian bookstore chain, which had closed its store at the mall six months before the termination of its lease. In those six months, the chain did not pay rent. Lemstone had also claimed that another gift store in the mall had caused declining sales at the Frenchtown Square store.[14]

References

  1. ↑ "Directory of Major Malls". International Council of Shopping Centers. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
  2. ↑ Frederick, James (1989-09-11). "Phar-Mor in Motown". Drug Store News. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
  3. ↑ Erb, Robin (1993-06-03). "Employees take stock of Hills closing". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  4. ↑ "Elder-Beerman Opens New Home Store in Monroe". PR Newswire. 1997-12-02. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  5. ↑ "Monroe theater to be reborn". The Detroit News. 2007-10-03. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  6. ↑ Slat, Charles (2008-11-22). "Steve & Barry's plans closing store at mall". The Monroe News. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
  7. ↑ "Sears Holdings Provides Update". 2011-12-27. Retrieved 2011-12-30.
  8. ↑ Slat, Charles (2008-03-06). "Frenchtown mall to be upgraded". Monroe News. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  9. ↑ Slat, Charles (2009-12-27). "Stories of the year: Ups, downs transform county's economy". Monroe News. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
  10. ↑ http://monroe.toledonewsnow.com/news/business/107056-rue21-and-monroe-expo-center-coming-mall-monroe
  11. ↑ http://www.monroenews.com/news/2014/jan/04/planet-fitness-open-mall/
  12. ↑ http://www.toledoblade.com/Retail/2014/05/03/Monroe-mall-to-gain-an-anchor-store-in-Pat-Catan-s.html
  13. ↑ http://pressroom.target.com/news/target-announces-upcoming-store-closures
  14. ↑ "Frenchtown Square Partnership v. Lemstone, Inc.". Vlex.com. Retrieved 2009-03-15.

External links