Eastern Shore Centre

Eastern Shore Centre is a hybrid regional shopping center in Spanish Fort, Alabama, a suburb of Mobile. The complex is positioned at the intersection of Malbis Parkway, also designated Alabama State Route 181, and Interstate 10, giving it access to communities on both sides of Mobile Bay and to regional automobile traffic. Its approximately 540,000-square-foot footprint combines a landscaped lifestyle-center environment with a larger power-center component known as Eastern Shore Plaza. Eastern Shore Boulevard functions as a landscaped perimeter road linking the principal parts of the development. The broader property also includes the Arlington at Eastern Shore Centre apartment community on the northeastern portion of the site. The development originated in the late 1990s, when approximately 90 acres near Alabama 181 and Interstate 10 were optioned from Malbis Plantation, Inc. by a development partnership involving The Trotman Company, The Herring Group, Foshee Realty, and Stephens Property Group of Atlanta. Construction and site preparation transformed previously wooded land into a mixed retail destination. Eastern Shore Centre opened on November 17, 2004, with Dillard's and Belk serving as its principal department-store anchors. Barnes & Noble and Shoe Station provided additional large-format or junior-anchor retail, while the in-line tenant mix included specialty, apparel, home-furnishing, and family-oriented stores such as Build-A-Bear Workshop, Ann Taylor LOFT, and Kirkland's Home. The center was planned to attract shoppers seeking a more open, amenity-oriented alternative to a conventional enclosed mall. Its merchandising strategy combined national department stores, specialty retailers, restaurants and services, and large-format stores. Early tenants included Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Hollister Co., The Sharper Image, and Bed Bath & Beyond. Bed Bath & Beyond's arrival was notable locally because it represented the retailer's first South Alabama location. The property also incorporated Eastern Shore Plaza, a power-center component of more than 250,000 square feet with stores including Best Buy, PetSmart, Old Navy, Ross Dress for Less, Michaels, and Cost Plus World Market. The retail complex expanded its entertainment role in 2008 with the construction of Premier Cinemas. The approximately 45,000-square-foot theater facility opened with fourteen screens and more than 2,500 seats and was described as Alabama's first all-digital theater complex at the time. In 2011, a later development phase added Eastern Shore Commons, a community-oriented strip-center area anchored by a Publix supermarket. The Publix store opened on November 19, 2011, north of the Belk building. Tenant composition changed as the local retail market evolved. Bed Bath & Beyond closed its Eastern Shore Centre location in April 2015 and moved to the nearby Jubilee Square power center in Daphne. Shoe Station subsequently relocated from an outparcel at Eastern Shore Plaza into a renovated space incorporating the former Bed Bath & Beyond premises and adjacent mall area. Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn moved to Legacy Village at Spring Hill in West Mobile in January 2017, after which Forever 21 was planned for the combined former spaces and opened in the spring of 2018. As of fall 2024, Wicker Park Capital Management owned Eastern Shore Centre, while Crawford Square Real Estate Advisors handled leasing. The center's current identity is therefore that of a multi-component regional retail property rather than a single enclosed mall: department stores, specialty and service tenants, power-center merchants, a supermarket, entertainment, and nearby residential development operate within one branded destination. Its continued relevance depends on its highway-accessible location, the breadth of its retail offer, and the ability of its owners and leasing representatives to refresh tenant space as national and regional retailers change strategies.

Eastern Shore Centre developed from a late-1990s plan to create a substantial retail destination near the intersection of Alabama 181 and Interstate 10 in Spanish Fort. In December 1997, a development group associated with The Trotman Company, The Herring Group, Foshee Realty, and Stephens Property Group of Atlanta obtained an option on approximately 90 acres from Malbis Plantation, Inc. The location was selected for its highway access and its position within the growing Eastern Shore market near Mobile Bay. Site preparation required clearing trees and removing debris. The work generated environmental and neighborhood concerns in 2003, when smoke from the burning of cleared materials drifted across Alabama 181 and nearby communities, including the TimberCreek golf neighborhood. Residents reported breathing difficulties. ADEM also reported that Turkey Creek contained substantial quantities of dirt and construction debris associated with the work. Temco, Inc., the contractor responsible for burning materials, was fined $15,000 by ADEM in December 2004. The retail plan evolved during development. Sears had considered a roughly 100,000-square-foot department store with a separate automobile service center, but Dillard's became the first major department-store commitment, proposing a 126,000-square-foot store by fall 2001. Belk later joined as the second fashion anchor and opened a 96,250-square-foot store in March 2005. The developers sought a high proportion of tenants that were new to the local market, and the original specialty mix included Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Hollister Co., The Sharper Image, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Ann Taylor LOFT, Kirkland's Home, and Barnes & Noble. Bed Bath & Beyond also established its first South Alabama store at the property. Eastern Shore Centre officially opened on November 17, 2004. It was designed by CMH Architects of Birmingham and covered approximately 540,000 square feet. Rather than functioning solely as an enclosed mall, it used a hybrid format that combined a landscaped lifestyle center with a power-center component. Eastern Shore Boulevard connected the different retail areas, while Eastern Shore Plaza accommodated large-format tenants such as Best Buy, PetSmart, Old Navy, Ross Dress for Less, Michaels, and Cost Plus World Market. Entertainment became a larger part of the project with the addition of Premier Cinemas in early 2008. Built on surface parking east of Belk, the approximately 45,000-square-foot facility offered fourteen screens and more than 2,500 seats. It was described at opening as Alabama's first all-digital cinema complex. The property later expanded with Eastern Shore Commons, a community-oriented strip-center phase north of Belk. Its 54,817-square-foot Publix supermarket opened on November 19, 2011. Master and lease plans also contemplated additional commercial development, including a possible large-format retailer and further space near the cinema site, although the cited reference does not establish that all planned space was built. Tenant changes in the middle and late 2010s reflected broader shifts in department-store, home-goods, and specialty retail. Bed Bath & Beyond closed in April 2015 and moved to Jubilee Square in Daphne. Shoe Station took over a renovated combination of the former Bed Bath & Beyond store and adjoining mall space later that year. Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn relocated to Legacy Village at Spring Hill in January 2017. Forever 21 subsequently occupied the combined former home-furnishings spaces in spring 2018. The property also includes The Arlington at Eastern Shore Centre apartment community on its northeastern section, adding a residential element to the wider development. By fall 2024, Wicker Park Capital Management was the owner and Crawford Square Real Estate Advisors was handling leasing. Eastern Shore Centre remains an active, multi-format retail complex serving Spanish Fort, the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay, and the broader Mobile-area market.

• 2024

  Ownership and leasing identified

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Wicker Park Capital Management owned the property and Crawford Square Real Estate Advisors handled leasing as of fall 2024.

• 2018

  Forever 21 occupies former tenant spaces

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Forever 21 opened in the combined spaces previously associated with Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma.

• 2017

  Home-furnishings tenants relocate

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn moved to Legacy Village at Spring Hill in West Mobile.

• 2015

  Bed Bath & Beyond closes and Shoe Station relocates

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Bed Bath & Beyond departed for Daphne, while Shoe Station moved into a renovated portion of the former store space.

• 2011

  Eastern Shore Commons adds Publix

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The Publix-anchored community shopping phase opened on November 19.

• 2008

  Premier Cinemas opens

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  A fourteen-screen, more than 2,500-seat all-digital cinema complex opened at the center.

• 2005

  Belk opens its anchor store

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Belk opened a 96,250-square-foot department store in March.

• 2004

  Eastern Shore Centre opens

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The approximately 540,000-square-foot center opened on November 17 with Dillard's and Belk as principal anchors.

• 2001

  Dillard's joins the project

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Dillard's committed to a planned approximately 126,000-square-foot department store, becoming a major anchor.

• 1997

  Land optioned for the retail development

  [1]Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org

  A development group optioned approximately 90 acres near Alabama 181 and Interstate 10 from Malbis Plantation, Inc.

A highway-accessible regional shopping destination combining an open-air lifestyle center, department-store anchors, a power-center retail cluster, supermarket services, entertainment, and nearby residential development.

• Retail property · 2004

  Regional shopping center

  The core Eastern Shore Centre development is an open-air, lifestyle-oriented regional shopping center with department stores, specialty retail, restaurants, services, landscaped circulation, and entertainment. Its tenant mix has changed over time, but the format is designed to combine destination shopping with everyday consumer needs.

• Power center · 2004

  Eastern Shore Plaza

  Eastern Shore Plaza is the property's adjacent power-center component, covering more than 250,000 square feet. It accommodates large-format and value-oriented retailers, with cited tenants including Best Buy, PetSmart, Old Navy, Ross Dress for Less, Michaels, and Cost Plus World Market.

• Entertainment · 2008

  Premier Cinemas

  Premier Cinemas is a cinema complex constructed at Eastern Shore Centre in 2008. The facility was described as approximately 45,000 square feet, with fourteen screens and more than 2,500 seats. It was promoted as Alabama's first all-digital theater complex when it opened.

• Community shopping center · 2011

  Eastern Shore Commons

  Eastern Shore Commons is a later phase north of the Belk building, organized around a Publix supermarket and adjoining community-oriented retail space. The Publix anchor opened in November 2011.

• Residential component

  The Arlington at Eastern Shore Centre

  The Arlington at Eastern Shore Centre is an apartment community developed on the northeastern section of the broader complex, extending the property beyond retail and entertainment uses.

• 2017

  Replace relocated home-furnishings tenantsStrategy

  Background

  Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn relocated to another shopping center in West Mobile.

  Action taken

  The former tenant spaces were combined for a planned Forever 21 store.

  Aftermath

  Forever 21 opened in the space in spring 2018, shifting the merchandise profile toward fast fashion.

  Source

• 2015

  Reconfigure space after Bed Bath & Beyond's departureStrategy

  Background

  Bed Bath & Beyond closed its location and relocated to Jubilee Square in nearby Daphne.

  Action taken

  Shoe Station moved from an Eastern Shore Plaza outparcel into a renovated combination of the former Bed Bath & Beyond space and adjoining mall area.

  Aftermath

  The change preserved a substantial footwear-retail presence while adapting the property to a new tenant configuration.

  Source

• 2011

  Expand into community-oriented grocery retailStrategy

  Background

  The development plan included a later phase north of the Belk department store to add everyday-needs retail.

  Action taken

  Eastern Shore Commons was developed with a 54,817-square-foot Publix supermarket as its anchor.

  Aftermath

  Publix opened on November 19, 2011, adding grocery shopping and community-serving retail to the center.

  Source

• 2008

  Add a cinema as an entertainment anchorProduct launch

  Background

  The original development plan contemplated a multiplex entertainment anchor to broaden the center's appeal beyond shopping.

  Action taken

  Premier Cinemas was constructed east of Belk with fourteen screens and more than 2,500 seats.

  Aftermath

  The cinema became a dedicated entertainment component of the multi-format property.

  Source

1. 1Eastern Shore Centreen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Eastern Shore Centre official websiteeasternshorecentre.com