The Mall at Turtle Creek
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| The Mall at Turtle Creek | |
| Mall facts and statistics | |
|---|---|
| Location | Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States |
| Opening date | March 29, 2006 |
| Developer | David Hocker & Associates MBC Holdings |
| Management | David Hocker & Associates MBC Holdings |
| Owner | David Hocker & Associates MBC Holdings |
| No. of stores and services | 100+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 3 main anchors 3 junior anchors |
| Total retail floor area | 750,000 square feet |
| Parking | 5,000 spaces |
| No. of floors | 1 (2 in Dillard's) |
| Website | http://www.mallatturtlecreek.com |
The Mall at Turtle Creek (known locally as The Mall, The New Mall, or Turtle Creek) is a shopping mall located at the Highland Drive-Stadium Boulevard intersection in Jonesboro, Arkansas. It is just north of the junction of Interstate 555 and Arkansas Highway 1. The Jonesboro Municipal Airport is located just northeast of the mall and the Northeast Arkansas Fairgrounds are located to the southwest. Restaurants surrounding the mall include Chili's, Chuck E. Cheese and Chick-Fil-A. The mall front has additional room for other restaurants and stores as well. The mall became the only enclosed mall to open within the United States during 2006.[1].
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[edit] Mall development
The idea of a new mall in the city of Jonesboro had been tossed around for years. The Indian Mall was built in 1967 and was the place to shop in northeast Arkansas for nearly four decades. The population of Jonesboro around the time of the Indian Mall's initial opening was around 26,000 people but by 1998 the population was over double that and had reached more than 55,000.[2] As Jonesboro's population boomed the need for retail space and shopping needs also grew. The Indian Mall had become too small and old for the shoppers of Jonesboro and they frequently visited larger metropolitan areas within reach such as Memphis and Little Rock for shopping trips. The Warmack family, who also owned Indian Mall, proposed a new mall site in Jonesboro and title it The Southern Hills Mall. The mall was to be located off of Southwest Drive in Jonesboro and include over one million square feet of shopping space but due to building permits, bonds, and other political failures construction never began.[3]
MBC Holdings and David Hocker & Associates stepped up and purchased a 75 acre piece of land at the Stadium Boulevared and Highland Drive intersections and revealed their plans to develop a mall there called The Mall at Turtle Creek. [4] The new mall would cost over $100 million dollars to create and would bring in millions of revenue and tax money for the city and state. The area was quickly cleared and development of the new mall ensued in early 2002. After three years of construction, Target and J.C. Penney both opened their stores in late 2005. Dillard's opened their store early in 2006 followed by a complete mall opening in March of 2006. [5]
[edit] The Mall's design
The Mall at Turtle Creek has a gross area of 750,000 square ft. with 230,000 of that going toward retail space.[6]
The mall is almost symmetric in shape. It takes the slight form of a rectangle and stretches over a 73 acre plot. The mall developers wanted to give it a "Main Street" presentation and feel for customers who visited the mall.[7] The 100 stores are arranged along two sides of the mall facing each other with a pedestrian walkway on each side and various vendors occupying the mid-aisles. The three main anchor stores are Dillard's, Target and J.C. Penneys. Dillard's is located at the east of the mall while Target is located at the west end. J.C. Penneys is found at the southwest end of the mall. Along with the three main anchors, the mall includes 3 junior anchors in Circuit City, Barnes & Noble, and Bed Bath & Beyond. Each junior anchor is located along the south end of the mall.
There are two large parking areas to accompany visitors to the mall. The south-end or main parking lot is the largest of the two and is located in front of the mall. The north-end parking lot is the smaller of the two and is located in the mall's rear.
The mall was developed with an outdoor feel and therefore is line with many skylights. The food court is especially prevalent in this aspect as it was designed to give shoppers and eaters a comfortable feel of being outdoors.[8]
After opening, The Mall at Turtle Creek became the fifth largest mall in Arkansas in terms of square footage. [9]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Turtle Creek Sole U.S. Enclosed Mall to Open During '06
- ^ Census Data for Jonesboro, Arkansas
- ^ Dead Malls: Indian Mall
- ^ Developers vie for New Mall in Jonesboro
- ^ Dillard's Has Soft Opening
- ^ The Mall at Turtle Creek to Hold Grand Opening March 28th-April 8th
- ^ More Than 50 New Tenants Announced for The Mall at Turtle Creek
- ^ Urban Planet: Jonesboro Development
- ^ List of largest malls and shopping centers in Arkansas
