Annapolis Mall

infobox shopping mall
shopping_mall_name = Westfield Annapolis (Annapolis Mall)


caption =
location = Annapolis, Maryland, USA
coordinates = Coord|38.989736|N|-76.545138|E|type:landmark_region:US-MD|display=inline,title
opening_date = 1980
developer = May Centers, Inc.
manager = The Westfield Group
owner = The Westfield Group
number_of_stores = 175http://westfield.com/corporate/retailer/us/annapolis.html, accessed August 18, 2006]
number_of_anchors = 7
floor_area = convert|1416774|sqft|m2|abbr=on.
floors = 1
website = http://westfield.com/annapolis
parking = 4,376

The Annapolis Mall (officially, Westfield Annapolis) is a shopping mall owned by The Westfield Group that is located near the junction of U.S. Route 50 and Interstate 97 in Annapolis, Maryland. Its major anchor stores include Borders Books and Music (formerly Garfinckel's), Macy's (formerly Hecht's), Lord & Taylor, Nordstrom, Sears (formerly Montgomery Ward), JCPenney, and Bow Tie Cinemas (formerly Crown Theatres).

As of November 2007, the mall has completed an expansion of over convert|240000|sqft|m2 that includes more than 60 additional stores, making the mall the largest in Anne Arundel County (surpassing Arundel Mills). [http://westfield.com/annapolis/centreupgrade/index.html]

History

Originally opened in 1980 by developer May Centers, Inc., the Annapolis Mall was, at that time, anchored by Hecht's, Garfinckel's, and Montgomery Ward. JCPenney joined the mall a few years later followed by Nordstrom in March of 1994 and Lord & Taylor in 1998. After Montgomery Ward went bankrupt and closed in 1999, its location was eventually acquired by Sears, which moved from nearby Parole Plaza in 2002. As the result of a merger in 2006, Hecht's was re-equipped and absorbed into the larger Macy's chain.

In 1992, the original developer May Centers, Inc., was renamed CenterMark Properties and sold by May Department Stores in 1994 to a consortium led by Westfield Holdings, Ltd., a predecessor of The Westfield Group. Westfield bought its partnership in CenterMark in 1995 and gained full ownership of the mall in 1997. In 1998 the center was renamed "Westfield Shoppingtown Annapolis", the unwieldy "Shoppingtown" name being dropped in 2005. Despite the name changes, the mall remains most commonly known as the Annapolis Mall.

The original mall contained fountains in the Ward's, JCPenney and center courts which were all removed in 1994. A new fountain was added to the Nordstrom wing during the first expansion, an art installation titled "Sojourner II" designed by D.C. artist Larry Kirkland. A second fountain was added to the center court in the second expansion, along with a kid's play area near JCPenney. There are two mall entrances to Macy's and three to Lord & Taylor. One must walk through Lord & Taylor to get from the "east wing" to the "west wing", which also have entrances to levels P2-3 via elevators, escalators (to P2 only), and stairs (P2-P3).

2006 shooting

On Saturday, November 17, 2006, an off duty United States Secret Service agent was at the mall when she witnessed a fight in progress in the food court. During the attempt to break up the fight, one of the combatants pulled a gun and fired at the agent, wounding her. The agent returned fire, hitting the shooter. A third person was wounded in the altercation. The food court was closed shortly after the incident, with all patrons asked to leave quickly, although the remainder of the mall stayed open.http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/11/18/maryland.shootings.ap/index.html, accessed November 18, 2006] http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=25&sid=979876, accessed November 18 2006]

2007 expansion

After several attempts, Westfield reached agreement in 2006 with local planning authorities to reconfigure the center and expand it by over convert|240000|sqft|m2. The total project cost was projected to be over $100,000,000 and was completed on November 1st, 2007. New stores include Pottery Barn, H&M, Lucky Brand Jeans, Ruehl No.925, Martin + Osa, Sephora, aerie, PINK, Ann Taylor Loft, ESPRIT, GUESS?, Metropark, Under Armour, Quiksilver, Skechers, Vans, Levi's, Fossil, Solstice, and Garage. Coming in 2008 are The Buckle, American Apparel, Dockers, Madewell 1937, Downtown Locker Room, Pumpkin Patch, Lush, The Cheesecake Factory, Swarovski, Adidas (Fall 2008), Sony Style (coming soon), Swim N'Sport (coming soon), Austin Grill, Punk's Backyard Grill and Stoney River Legendary Steaks. Crate & Barrel is coming in Fall 2009. The Under Armour store is the company's first full line retail store in the country. Punk's Backyard Grill is a local, independent restaurant and the Annapolis location is the company's first.

Anchors

*JCPenney (83,695 sq ft. on 1 level) Opened 1987. (Undergoing renovation/expansion)
*Lord & Taylor (120,000 sq ft. on 2 levels, with access to P2, and access to P3 via elevator) Opened 1998, renovated 2007
*Macy's (198,171 sq ft. on 2 levels, with access to P2) Opened 1980
*Nordstrom (153,000 sq ft. on 2 levels with 1-level basement parking garage(Level P), with access to P1) Opened 1994
*Sears (147,282 sq ft. on 1 level, no garage access)

References

External links

* [http://www.westfield.com/annapolis/ Official Westfield Annapolis Website]