The Quad St. Charles

Charlestowne Mall in late May 2014, before construction for The Quad St. Charles
The Quad St. Charles
Location St. Charles, Illinois, USA
Coordinates 41°55′24.5″N 88°16′9″W / 41.923472°N 88.26917°WCoordinates: 41°55′24.5″N 88°16′9″W / 41.923472°N 88.26917°W
Management The Krausz Companies Inc.
Owner The Krausz Companies Inc.
No. of stores and services 1/120+
No. of anchor tenants 4
Total retail floor area 773,665 ft² [1]
No. of floors 2
Parking Parking Lot
Website

Charlestowne Mall

The Quad St. Charles

The Quad St. Charles (Formerly Charlestowne Mall) is a two-story shopping mall located in St. Charles, Illinois.

The mall's anchor stores include Von Maur (formerly JCPenney), Carson Pirie Scott and Kohl's.

History

Charlestowne Mall was built on the far east side of St. Charles. It opened in 1991. The mall boasted an Italian made double decked carousel in the food court. The mall also featured over 120 retail stores and 4 anchors.

Major changes to the mall include the construction of the Regal Cinemas on the Northwest Anchor slot of the mall (now Classic Cinemas). In 2001, JCPenney closed their location, which became Von Maur a year later.

The Mall has a similar design to the Danbury Fair Mall and the Freehold Raceway Mall

New Ownership

In June 2010, a California based investment group acquired the mall with plans to revitalize it.[2][3] However, as of early 2012, there were numerous vacancies in the mall. While marketing and signage have advertised the construction of an indoor ice rink and a large sushi and seafood buffet.,[4] After over a year later there have been no indications of communication between mall ownership and the city in terms of beginning construction for these projects,[5] On January 4, 2011, Sears announced that their Charlestowne location would close before April 3, 2011 after negotiations between the new mall management company and Sears officials broke down, leaving only Carson Pirie Scott, Kohl's, and Von Maur the remaining anchor stores. Sears shut its doors for the last time on March 20, 2011.[6]

After two years of no contact with the mall's ownership, city officials stated a plan in 2012 to spend $35,000 on a study to determine the best options for the mall site.[7][8]

The Krauz Companies Take Over

In mid August the abandoned mall was put under contract to be sold by Mark Goodman & Associates. They hoped to close on the property as soon as mid September, according to the Daily Herald. A full presentation of the future plans of the mall was to be given to the city within the next 30–45 days they stated. "Goodman said his group 'absolutely' intends to keep the mall property as some form of a shopping center." [9]

On November 14, 2013 The Krausz Companies Inc acquired the mall property and renamed it from Charlestowne Mall, to The Quad St. Charles. The new owners are to demolish the current Sears wing of the mall and completely remodel the interior and exterior of the mall. "The inspiration for The Quad name centers on the "neighborhood feeling" the company is trying to bring to the mall through a redesign. Outdoor patio dining and exterior merchandised retails will be part of the mall for the first time. There will also be a 'welcoming center' with a fireplace as the key attraction for families and shoppers to gather. The existing abundant natural light will be retained in the new environment" said Krausz Executive Vice President Jay E. Krigsman. Construction is expected to start in April 2014, and be completed by Fall 2015. [10] The mall's famous 2 level Italian carousel was also put up for sale due to there being no room for it in the malls new floor plan.[11] As of April 2014 the only true tenant left in the mall is Lenscrafters (excluding anchor stores). Lenscrafters, the anchor stores, and the cinema are to stay open during construction.

The Krausz company had stated that groundbreaking has been moved back to about late July or early August 2014, although they are still on schedule for the fall 2015 grand reopening.

References

  1. ↑ "City Of St. Charles PUD for Charlestowne Mall (The Quad)". Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  2. ↑ "California investment firm acquires Charlestowne Mall". REJournals.com. June 30, 2010. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Charlestowne Mall sold to California investment company". mysububrbanlife.com. St. Charles Replublican. June 16, 2010. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Charlestowne Mall plans addition of recreation corridor". TribLocal. March 27, 2012.
  5. ↑ "St. Charles ready to crack down on Charlestowne Mall". Daily Herald. April 10, 2012. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Sears Closing Charlestowne Mall Store". Daily Herald. January 4, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
  7. ↑ "St. Charles ready to crack down on Charlestowne Mall". Daily Herald. April 10, 2012. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Upgrades may help struggling mall". Chicago Tribune.
  9. ↑ "Charlestowne Mall buyers may force decision on new taxes". Daily Herald. August 16, 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Renovations at The Quad expected to start in April". Daily Herald. November 14, 2013. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Owners have big plans for ailing Charlestowne Mall in St. Charles". Chicago Sun-Times. February 19, 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.

External links