Grand Central Mall
Grand Central Mall entrance, July 2013
LocationVienna, West Virginia, United States
Coordinates39°18′4″N 81°33′9″W / 39.30111°N 81.55250°W / 39.30111; -81.55250
Opening date1972 (1972)
DeveloperEugene Lebowitz[1]
OwnerWashington Prime Group
No. of stores and services90
No. of anchor tenants9 (8 open, 1 vacant)
Total retail floor area908,238 square feet (84,378.1 m2)
No. of floors1
Websitegrandcentralmall.com

Grand Central Mall is a 908,238-square-foot (84,378.1 m2) regional shopping mall in Vienna, West Virginia, near the larger city of Parkersburg. The mall opened in 1972 and is the only enclosed mall within thirty-five miles of its region. It features more than ninety tenants, including a food court, and eight anchor stores: Belk Outlet, JCPenney, Dunham's Sports, PetSmart, TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, Ross Dress For Less, and a Regal movie theater, with one vacant anchor previously occupied by Elder-Beerman. The mall is owned by Washington Prime Group.

History

Grand Central Mall opened in 1972 as the only enclosed mall within the Mid-Ohio Valley region.[2] At the time, the mall included The Diamond (a branch of the Associated Dry Goods chain), JCPenney, Sears, and a G.C. Murphy dime store among its anchors. The Diamond closed in 1983 and was later converted to Stone & Thomas, which in turn became Elder-Beerman after the Stone & Thomas chain was acquired in 1998. Phar-Mor, a discount pharmacy chain, was later added to the mall.

Glimcher Realty Trust acquired the mall in 1993.[2] Three years later, the company invested in an $8 million expansion, which brought a food court and a new movie theater.[2] Phase 2 of the expansion comprised a Proffitt's (now Belk) anchor store, which was also added to Glimcher's Morgantown Mall in Morgantown, West Virginia the same year. These two stores were the first Proffitt's stores in West Virginia.[3] Phar-Mor closed in 2002 and eventually became Steve & Barry's.

Steve & Barry's, a former anchor store, closed in September 2008.[4] The space is now occupied by Dunham's Sports.

In November 2002, Toys R Us, Olive Garden, Long John Silver’s and Outback Steakhouse opened outside the mall. In 2016, Long John Silver’s was replaced with Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen. In 2019, Toys R Us was replaced with Big Lots. On March 1, 2022, Ruby Tuesday was replaced with Longhorn Steakhouse.

On November 28, 2017, it was announced that Elder-Beerman would be closing on January 31, 2018.[5] A 20,000 square foot portion of the store will be converted to the first H&M store in West Virginia.[6]

On September 18, 2018, Sears announced that its store would be closing as part of a plan to close 12 stores nationwide. The store closed in December 2018.[7]

On March 11, 2021, two of the four new tenants to be built on the former Sears property, TJ Maxx and HomeGoods, opened their doors.[8] The third tenant, PetSmart, opened on March 27, 2021. The final new tenant, Ross Dress for Less, opened on July 16, 2021.

On June 17, 2023, Belk downgraded its full-line store into an outlet store.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Gehrke, Donna (1995-06-11). "Eugene Lebowitz, Turnberry Isle Developer". The Miami Herald. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  2. 1 2 3 "Major expansion and renovation planned for Glimcher's Grand Central Mall, Parkersburg/Vienna, West Virginia; $8 million to be invested in Phase 1". Business Wire. 1995-05-03. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  3. ↑ "Proffitt's to anchor Glimcher Realty Trust's West Virginia malls; new anchor stores are continuation of redevelopment projects that total $25 million". Business Wire. 1996-01-12. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  4. ↑ "Steve & Barry's at Huntington Mall starts liquidation sale today". The Herald-Dispatch. 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  5. ↑ "Elder-Beerman store in Vienna closing in January".
  6. ↑ "H&M moving in at Grand Central Mall location".
  7. ↑ "Sears closing Grand Central Mall store".
  8. ↑ "Mall event celebrating spring is March 20".
  9. ↑ "Belk at Grand Central Mall rebrands as Belk Outlet". News and Sentinel. June 17, 2023. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
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