Five Points Mall

Five Points Mall was a shopping center in Marion, Indiana, located on the city's north side at the intersection of Kem Road and Baldwin Avenue. The property began operations in 1961 as North Park Plaza, a conventional open-air strip mall developed by the Cafaro Company of Youngstown, Ohio. Its original tenant mix included W. T. Grant, Woolworth, Hook's Drug Stores, and Standard Supermarket, reflecting the broad everyday-shopping role common to regional centers of that period. The center was substantially expanded and enclosed in 1978, after which it was known as North Park Mall. Over time, the property developed a conventional regional-mall tenant structure. JCPenney, Hills, Meis, and Sears served as major anchors or department-store tenants at different stages. Hills later became Ames, then Steve & Barry's, and ultimately Roses. Meis was subsequently associated with Elder-Beerman and later Carson's. Sears was added in 1990. A movie theater that had been among the property's early attractions closed in the late 1990s; its space was later divided for other uses, including an arcade and Hibbett Sports. The mall experienced a long period of anchor departures and declining occupancy. Sears closed at the end of 2013, reportedly following weak sales during the 2011 holiday season. JCPenney announced in January 2014 that it would close its location despite holding a lease extending to 2017. Carson's, operated within the Bon-Ton corporate structure, announced its closure in January 2018 and shut the store on April 29 of that year. The Carson's closure removed the last tenant that had been present from the mall's 1978 enclosed-mall opening. The property was renamed Five Points Mall, but its enclosed retail area continued to contract. Planet Fitness opened in 2018 in space formerly occupied by several vacant stores, including KB Toys, Hallmark, and Finish Line, with access from outside the mall. By early 2019, most of the interior had been boarded off. Roses, Planet Fitness, and Applebee's remained accessible through exterior or separate entrances, but the interior mall no longer operated as a conventional shopping concourse. By late 2019, the interior was fully closed, leaving the property with a limited group of exterior-access businesses rather than a functioning enclosed mall. The property is managed by Select Strategies according to the referenced Wikipedia account. Available reference material does not establish a current owner, a formal demolition date, or a definitive legal status for the overall property.

Five Points Mall originated as North Park Plaza, an open-air shopping center established in 1961 on the north side of Marion, Indiana. The development stood at Kem Road and Baldwin Avenue and was built by the Cafaro Company, a Youngstown, Ohio-based shopping-center developer. Its early tenants included W. T. Grant, Woolworth, Hook's Drug Stores, and Standard Supermarket. These occupants positioned the center as a convenient destination for general merchandise, groceries, pharmacy services, and routine household shopping. In 1978, North Park Plaza was expanded and converted into an enclosed shopping mall named North Park Mall. The redevelopment added the enclosed-mall format and a larger anchor-based retail configuration. JCPenney and Hills were among the principal department-store occupants. Hills later became Ames in 1998, then Steve & Barry's in 2004, and eventually Roses. The Meis department store also changed corporate identities over time, becoming associated with Elder-Beerman and later Carson's. Sears was added as another major anchor in 1990. The mall also contained entertainment and food-related uses. Its movie theater, identified as an original tenant in the available account, closed in the late 1990s. The former theater area was divided for later uses, including an arcade and a Hibbett Sports store. The grocery component likewise changed names over the years: Standard Supermarket was followed by Hank's Supermarket, which later became part of Lance's New Market and then Ruler Foods. During the 2010s, the property underwent a sustained loss of major anchors. Sears closed permanently at the end of 2013. In January 2014, JCPenney announced that it would leave even though its lease reportedly ran until 2017. Carson's, the successor to the former Meis/Elder-Beerman department-store presence, remained longer but was affected by the financial difficulties of The Bon-Ton. The company announced in January 2018 that the Carson's store would close, and it ceased operations on April 29. Carson's was described as the last original tenant from the mall's enclosed opening. The property was subsequently known as Five Points Mall. Retail activity increasingly shifted away from the interior concourse. Planet Fitness opened in 2018 in space that had included several vacant storefronts, such as KB Toys, Hallmark, and Finish Line, but it used an exterior entrance. Roses also remained open with separate access. Applebee's continued operating with access to the remaining mall area, although the internal shopping environment was no longer fully functional. By early 2019, most of the mall had been boarded off. Later that year, the interior closed completely. At that point, the property no longer functioned as a conventional enclosed shopping mall, with Roses, Planet Fitness, and Applebee's identified as the remaining operating businesses in the referenced account. Select Strategies is identified as the mall manager. The available sources do not provide enough information to determine whether the property has since been demolished, redeveloped, legally closed as a whole, or retained under the Five Points Mall name.

• 2019

  Interior operations cease

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The enclosed mall is boarded and its interior closes, while a limited number of exterior-access businesses remain.

• 2018

  Carson's closes

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The Carson's anchor closes on April 29 after a closure announcement by The Bon-Ton.

• 2018

  Planet Fitness opens

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  Planet Fitness begins operating from former vacant mall space with an exterior entrance.

• 2014

  JCPenney announces departure

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  JCPenney announces that it will close its mall location.

• 2013

  Sears closes

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The Sears store shuts permanently at the end of the year.

• 2004

  The former Hills location becomes Steve & Barry's

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The former Hills/Ames anchor later operates under the Steve & Barry's name.

• 1998

  Hills becomes Ames

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The Hills anchor is converted to Ames.

• 1990

  Sears is added

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  Sears joins the property's major-anchor lineup.

• 1978

  The property becomes an enclosed mall

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  North Park Plaza is expanded and enclosed, becoming North Park Mall.

• 1961

  North Park Plaza opens

  [1]Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The property opens as an open-air strip mall on Marion's north side, developed by the Cafaro Company.

A regional shopping center serving Marion and surrounding communities, evolving from an open-air neighborhood plaza into an enclosed mall and later into a largely inactive property with a small number of exterior-access businesses.

• Department-store retail

  Roses

  Roses became the successor to the former Hills, Ames, and Steve & Barry's anchor location. It is identified as the sole remaining traditional anchor in the available account, operating separately from the closed interior concourse.

• Fitness services · 2018

  Planet Fitness

  Planet Fitness opened at the property in 2018 in space formerly occupied by vacant storefronts. The club used an exterior entrance and therefore did not depend on access through the enclosed mall interior.

• Casual dining

  Applebee's

  Applebee's was one of the businesses that remained accessible after the mall's interior retail activity contracted. It operated with separate access rather than as part of a functioning enclosed shopping concourse.

• 2018

  Shift remaining activity to exterior-access tenantsStrategy

  Background

  Major anchors had departed or were departing, and interior occupancy had deteriorated.

  Action taken

  Planet Fitness opened in former vacant retail space with an exterior entrance, while Roses and Applebee's also remained accessible separately from the interior mall.

  Aftermath

  The property moved away from operating as a conventional enclosed mall and toward a limited collection of independently accessible businesses.

  Source

• 1978

  Convert the open-air plaza into an enclosed mallStrategy

  Background

  The original North Park Plaza operated as a conventional strip mall from 1961.

  Action taken

  The property was expanded and enclosed, and it began operating as North Park Mall.

  Aftermath

  The conversion established the property as a regional enclosed shopping mall with department-store anchors.

  Source

1. 1Five Points Mallen.wikipedia.org