The Shoppes at Northway

The Shoppes at Northway

Location	Ross Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania,  USA
Opening date	1953 (strip mall) August 1, 1962 (enclosed mall)
Management	Zamias Services, Inc.
No. of stores and services	15+
No. of anchor tenants	5
Total retail floor area	385,000 sq ft (35,800 m2).
No. of floors	2
Website	Official website

The Shoppes at Northway, formerly Northway Mall, is an ailing enclosed shopping mall located in Ross Township, north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The mall began as a strip mall called Northway Shopping Center in 1953; it was re-opened on August 1, 1962 as Northway Mall, the first indoor mall in the state of Pennsylvania.^[1] Currently, the mall features approximately 15 shops, with Borders Books & Music, Dick's Sporting Goods, Marshalls,and PetSmart, as its anchor stores.^[2]

History

Northway Shopping Center began as a strip mall constructed in 1953. In 1962, an enclosed portion was added above the existing strip, thus creating the mall. The original mall also included an aviary, which was removed in 1994.^[1]

Original anchor stores included Joseph Horne Company, Woolworth, G.C. Murphy, and A&P. The mall continued to thrive until 1986, when Ross Park Mall opened nearby, causing many businesses to relocate there. Horne's and G.C. Murphy both closed in 1988 (the former being replaced with Erie, Pennsylvania Dahlkemper's Catalog Showroom, which closed in the 1990s)on the top level and Value City on the bottom level. A&P also closed in the 1980s and was replaced with Herman's World of Sporting Goods.

G.C. Murphy was replaced with a discount movie theater, which was later purchased by National Amusements and converted to a first-run theater. A food court was added in 1990, featuring Rax Restaurants among its tenants. Woolworth closed in 1991, with Marshalls opening in its former space in 1995. Herman's World of Sporting Goods closed in 1993, and was replaced with Borders. Dick's Sporting Goods opened in the former Dahlkemper's space in 1994. Old Navy was also added in 1995.

In 1995, the mall was renovated by McNeil Real Estate of Dallas, Texas, which owned the center at the time. It was then sold to the Archon Group (also of Dallas), who put the mall up for sale again in 2000. At the time, the mall was at 94% occupancy.^[3] Since then, occupancy has declined once more, and plans were announced to convert the mall's enclosed upper level to a strip center. Under this plan, the mall would be renamed The Shops at Northway, and the movie theater would close. This construction eliminated the movie theater since a whole wall was knocked down.^[4] In 2007, new tenants were announced for the planned Shops at Northway, including a shoe store and a family play center.^[5] Value City and Old Navy closed in 2008, while the family play center (the Kid Company, which replaced the food court) existed only briefly. As of 2011, much of the upper level is empty, consisting only of Marshall's, Mamma Lucia's, Dick's, an shop specializing in Oriental decorations, and the Shoe Carnival.

The lower level is in a less depressed state, with Borders, PetSmart, Ritz Camera, Northway Dollar, Bruce's Music, Northway Shoe and Repair, Rock America, Verizon Wireless, and a hair salon still intact. However, a number of spaces (such as the recently departed Party City and Csonka Optical) remain vacant. In the early 90's the movie The Jacksons: An American Dream was filmed right in front of Mama Lucia's current day location.

Borders will close its store at Northway in 2011 in response to the company's liquidation.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} State's first enclosed mall -- Northway -- celebrates 40 years
2. ^ McKinney Properties - Commercial
3. ^ Northway Mall owner put site on block again
4. ^ Northway Mall plans announced | YourNorthHills.com
5. ^ Northway Mall announces new tenants Pittsburgh Business Times

External links

• The Shoppes at Northway

Coordinates: 40°33′05″N 80°01′17″W / 40.5513°N 80.0213°W / 40.5513; -80.0213