Independence Center
Encyclopedia
This article is about a commercial retail center in Independence, Missouri. For the arena also in Independence, see Independence Events Center. For the not-for-profit agency in St. Louis, Missouri, see Independence Center (St. Louis)
.
Independence Center is a 1032000 square feet (95,875.9 m²) super-regional shopping mall
located in Independence, Missouri
. The mall opened in 1974. Its three department stores were Macy's
, Sears and Stix, Baer & Fuller. The mall featured a unique three-level, 60 feet (18.3 m) central atrium, with a series of ramps and stair risers traversing the expanse of open space. In the center of the atrium, on the lowest floor, was a food court. When it first opened and for many years afterward, the mall's advertising carried the memorable slogan "Independence Center: The "I" has it." Independence Center even featured an enormous flashing advertising marquee which stood along I-70. Independence Center was built by Homart, a division of Sears Roebuck & Co. It was later acquired, owned and managed by Chicago-based LaSalle. The mall saw its first cosmetic renovation in the mid-1980s. Stix Baer & Fuller was replaced by Dillard's in 1984. In 1985, after Dillard's acquired Macy's midwest stores, it sold the Independence Center location to Mercantile Stores, then the parent company of The Jones Store Co. In 1994, Independence Center was purchased by Simon Property Group. In 1996, the mall added a two-story carousel in the atrium; and in 1998, the mall underwent a massive $20 million renovation, which improved the property's aesthetics and vertical transportation, and also improved the food court. Also in 1998, a large children's play area was added. In 2004, Independence Center saw another renovation, which added small shop space on the outside of the mall facing 39th Street. In 2006 Macy's returned to its original location in the mall after the Federated-May department stores merger, which resulted in all Kansas City area Jones Store locations being converted to Macy's stores.
Independence Center is the third largest mall in the KC Metro Area, behind Oak Park Mall
and Metro North Mall
.
. Department stores and other tenants earn their highest sales in the Independence area at Independence Center.
Independence Center (St. Louis)
This article is about the not-for-profit organization in St. Louis. For the shopping mall in Independence, Missouri, see Independence Center.Independence Center is a rehabilitation center for people with psychiatric disorders in St. Louis, Missouri. It uses the Clubhouse Model of Psychosocial...
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Independence Center is a 1032000 square feet (95,875.9 m²) super-regional shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
located in Independence, Missouri
Independence, Missouri
Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
. The mall opened in 1974. Its three department stores were Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
, Sears and Stix, Baer & Fuller. The mall featured a unique three-level, 60 feet (18.3 m) central atrium, with a series of ramps and stair risers traversing the expanse of open space. In the center of the atrium, on the lowest floor, was a food court. When it first opened and for many years afterward, the mall's advertising carried the memorable slogan "Independence Center: The "I" has it." Independence Center even featured an enormous flashing advertising marquee which stood along I-70. Independence Center was built by Homart, a division of Sears Roebuck & Co. It was later acquired, owned and managed by Chicago-based LaSalle. The mall saw its first cosmetic renovation in the mid-1980s. Stix Baer & Fuller was replaced by Dillard's in 1984. In 1985, after Dillard's acquired Macy's midwest stores, it sold the Independence Center location to Mercantile Stores, then the parent company of The Jones Store Co. In 1994, Independence Center was purchased by Simon Property Group. In 1996, the mall added a two-story carousel in the atrium; and in 1998, the mall underwent a massive $20 million renovation, which improved the property's aesthetics and vertical transportation, and also improved the food court. Also in 1998, a large children's play area was added. In 2004, Independence Center saw another renovation, which added small shop space on the outside of the mall facing 39th Street. In 2006 Macy's returned to its original location in the mall after the Federated-May department stores merger, which resulted in all Kansas City area Jones Store locations being converted to Macy's stores.
Independence Center is the third largest mall in the KC Metro Area, behind Oak Park Mall
Oak Park Mall
Oak Park Mall is a super-regional shopping mall located in Overland Park, Kansas, containing 200 stores in a covered area of . It is the largest mall in the Kansas City Metro Area as well as the entire state of Kansas, and is split into two levels and contains five department stores.It was...
and Metro North Mall
Metro North Mall
Metro North Mall is a 1.3 million square foot regional mall located at 400 NW Barry Road, in Kansas City North, Missouri.Metro North opened its doors in 1976 and was the only enclosed mall located north of the Missouri River in the Kansas City metro area, as well as being the second largest mall...
.
Anchors and Mall Directory
With 12 million annual visitors, Independence Center has constantly been named the most visited attraction in Independence, MissouriIndependence, Missouri
Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
. Department stores and other tenants earn their highest sales in the Independence area at Independence Center.
Anchors
- Dillard'sDillard'sDillard's, Inc. is a department store chain in the United States, with 330 stores in 29 states. Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dillard's locations are concentrated in Texas and Florida; with a major presence in other states including Arizona, Iowa, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Missouri,...
(174,500 sq ft.) (originally Stix, Baer, FullerStix, Baer, FullerStix, Baer and Fuller was a department store chain in St. Louis, Missouri that operated from 1892 to 1984...
) - Macy'sMacy'sMacy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
(158,001 sq ft.) (originally Macy'sMacy'sMacy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
1974-1985) (The Jones Store Co. 1985-2006) - Sears (138,961 sq ft.)