Courtland Center

Courtland Center

Location	Burton, Michigan, USA
Coordinates	43°01′01″N 83°37′52″W / 43.017°N 83.631°W / 43.017; -83.631Coordinates: 43°01′01″N 83°37′52″W / 43.017°N 83.631°W / 43.017; -83.631
Address	4190 E. Court St.
Opening date	1968
Owner	Tucker Development
No. of stores and services	60
No. of anchor tenants	5 (4 open, 1 vacant)
Total retail floor area	460,000 square feet (43,000 m2) [1]
No. of floors	1
Website	http://courtlandcenter.com/

Courtland Center is an enclosed shopping mall in Burton, Michigan, a suburb of Flint, Michigan, USA. It opened in 1968, two years before the larger Genesee Valley Center on the other side of the Flint metropolitan area. Courtland Center comprises more than sixty inline tenants, including four anchor stores: JCPenney, Dunham's Sports, Staples, and Jo-Ann Etc. The mall is owned by Tucker Development.

History

Courtland Center opened in 1968 as Eastland Mall in what was then Burton Township, at the southestern corner of East Court Street and Center Road. At the time, it featured three anchor stores: The Fair on the western end, Detroit, Michigan-based Federals in the center, and discount chain Woolco on the eastern end.^[2] Federals closed in the late 1970s, and briefly became a Robert Hall Village store before JCPenney took over the space.

By 1982, the theater was acquired by National Amusements, who split the auditorium into two smaller screens.^[3] Later that same year, Woolco closed as the parent company, F.W. Woolworth Company, closed the last of the American Woolco stores. The former Woolco space was soon subdivided between a Crowley's department store and additional mall space. Later in the 1980s, the mall's theater complex was closed. Also, The Fair closed and was replaced with Mervyns. By 1987, the mall was renovated and renamed Courtland Center.

In the 1990s, JCPenney expanded its presence at the mall by moving its home goods into a space that had been vacated by Perry Drug Stores, and some of the women's apparel into an adjacent storefront formerly occupied by a Marianne clothing store. Crowley's closed in 1997, and the theaters re-opened in 1999 under the management of National Amusements.^[4]

2000s redevelopment

Tucker Development acquired the mall from Forest City Enterprises in the late 1990s and began renovations on it. The far end of the former Crowley's was converted to Old Navy in July 2000, while the rest remained vacant. Also the early 2000s, the theater was renovated to become a second-run complex with six screens, after the addition of stadium seating. Old Navy relocated inside the mall in 2005, displacing a former f.y.e. which had closed, and a Payless ShoeSource which was relocated.^[5] Later that same year, Staples moved from a nearby strip mall into Old Navy's former location, while the remainder of the former Crowley's was split between a new Jo-Ann Etc. store (resulting in the closure of the existing Jo-Ann Fabrics store) and Dunham's Sports, which had also moved from a nearby strip mall.^[5] Dunham's was the only one of these three new stores to feature a mall entrance.

Mervyns closed in early 2006 when the chain exited Michigan. In late 2007, JCPenney announced that it would relocate its existing stores in the mall to a newer, larger location in the former Mervyns space. While the former Mervyns space was being redeveloped and expanded, the roof of the store caught on fire, causing the mall to close for a day in September 2007.^[6] Old Navy closed its store at the mall in January 2008,^[7] and JCPenney's new store opened on March 1, 2008, resulting in the closure of the three former JCPenney stores.^[8] The new location included several departments which were not present in the former locations, such as an inline Sephora store.^[8] JCPenney's former main store in the middle of the mall was replaced by Steve & Barry's, which opened on May 15, 2008,^[8][9] while the two sub-stores were vacated. Steve & Barry's closed December 2008, and the theaters re-closed in 2009 along with a B. Dalton bookstore.^[10] Planet Fitness replaced the Old Navy space in February 2011.^[11]

References

1. ^ "Courtland Center". Tucker Development. http://www.tuckerdevelopment.com/prop-1.asp?StrSKU=COURTMI. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
2. ^ Michigan manpower review. 22-23. Michigan Employment Security Commission. 1967. http://books.google.com/books?id=uNhYAAAAYAAJ&q=%22eastland+mall%22+%22woolco%22&dq=%22eastland+mall%22+%22woolco%22&hl=en&ei=SOuuTpjtDuOlsALBsuiQDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CE0Q6AEwCQ. 
3. ^ "Courtland Center Cinemas". Cinema Treasures. http://cinematreasures.org/theater/20032/. Retrieved 2008-10-07. 
4. ^ Sicard, Allyson J. (1999-09-01). "Midwest Development Projects". Retail Traffic Mag. http://retailtrafficmag.com/mag/retail_midwest_development_projects_2/. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
5. ^ ^{a b} "JoAnn Moving; Staples on the Way — Courtland Center Mall is Changing Inside and Out". The Flint Journal. http://www.tuckerdevelopment.com/announce.asp?NewsID=8. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
6. ^ Mickle, Bryn; Holly Klaft (2007-09-21). "Fire on the roof closes Courtland Center in Burton". The Flint Journal. http://blog.mlive.com/flintjournal/newsnow/2007/09/fire_on_the_roof_closes_courtl.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
7. ^ Klaft, Holly (2008-01-15). "Old Navy store at Courtland Center closing". The Flint Journal. http://blog.mlive.com/flintjournal/newsnow/2008/01/old_navy_store_at_courtland_ce.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
8. ^ ^{a b c} Lowe, Elizabeth (2008-06-20). "Steve & Barry's and JC Penney provide strong anchor to buoy Courtland Center". The Burton News. http://www.mlive.com/flintjournal/business/index.ssf/2008/06/strong_anchor_stores_buoy_cour.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10. ^{[dead link]}
9. ^ Burden, Melissa (2008-02-21). "Courtland Center mall getting Steve & Barry's, bigger JCPenney". The Flint Journal. http://blog.mlive.com/flintjournal/business/2008/02/courtland_center_mall_getting.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
10. ^ Lowe, Elizabeth (2009-01-31). "What's ahead for Burton's Courtland Center? Some mall vendors confident, despite closings". Burton News. http://www.mlive.com/burton/index.ssf/2009/01/whats_ahead_for_burtons_courtl.html. Retrieved 2009-05-15. 
11. ^ Acosta, Roberto (2 February 2011). "Burton's Courtland Center opens new gym business with hopes of getting residents, shopping center into shape". The Flint Journal. http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2011/02/burtons_courtland_center_opens.html. Retrieved 12 May 2011. 

External links

• Official website